Ita Mai Tai

Bathymetry of Ita Mai Tai Guyot. The smaller guyot in the lower left corner is Gelendzhik Guyot.

12°54′N 156°54′E / 12.9°N 156.9°E / 12.9; 156.9[1]Ita Mai Tai is a Cretaceous-early Cenozoic seamount northwest of the Marshall Islands and north of Micronesia.[2] One among a number of seamounts in the Pacific Ocean, it is part of the Magellan Seamounts which may have a hotspot origin although Ita Mai Tai itself may not have formed on a hotspot.

The seamount is formed by volcanic rocks which form two adjacent volcanic centres that erupted between the Aptian-Albian and possibly as late as the Pliocene. Reef systems developed on the seamount after its formation and led to the deposition of limestones. Especially during the Oligocene the seamount subsided and lies now at 1,402 metres (4,600 ft) depth below sea level. Ferromanganese crusts as well as pelagic oozes were deposited on the submerged rocks.

  1. ^ Lee et al. 2003, p. 359.
  2. ^ Lee et al. 2003, p. 356.