The Snake River Plain represents a world-class example of active mantle plume volcanism in an intra-continental setting. Because it is young and tectonically undisturbed, the complete record of volcanic activity can be sampled only by drilling. The project cored a series of 5 drill holes at 3 sites along the axis of the eastern and western Snake River Plain in order to study the geochemical and stratigraphic variations in plume-related volcanism in space and time.

Keywords: North America, USA, Idaho, Snake River, Yellowstone, Basalts, Climate Change, Continental Evolution, Global Environment, Hot Spots, Mantle Plumes, Thermal Regimes, Volcanic Systems