Researchers Discover Earth's Largest Volcano, Deep in Pacific Ocean; The Size of New Mexico

Scientists have discovered the world's largest volcano, and it sits at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean.

It's name is the Tamu Massif, and at 2.5 miles tall and 400 miles wide, it's the size of New Mexico. Researchers announced its discovery in the journal Nature Geoscience.

At its size, the volcano far exceeds the previous record holder, Hawaii's Mauna Loa. Of course, Mauna Loa is an active volcano and sits above land on Big Island in Hawaii. That's a contrast from Tamu Massif, which sits undisturbed in the depths of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean and has been extinct for approximately 140 million years.

That said, there's no taking away from the sheer size. According to researchers, it's only 25 percent smaller than Olympus Mons on Mars, which is considered to be the largest volcano in our solar system. At approximately 70,000 feet high, Olympus Mons is three times the height of Earth's Mount Everest.

Lead study author and university of Houston geologist William Sager discovered Tamu Massif as a volcano where it had previously been considered a part of an oceanic plateau. Oceanic plateaus are large piles of lava, deep in the ocean, whose origin remains a matter of much scientific debate. Tamu Massif had previously been lumped in with a plateau called Shatsky Rise, and its discovery as an independent, gently-sloping volcano raises questions about oceanic plateaus throughout the globe.

"For anyone who wants to explain oceanic plateaus, we have new constraints," Sager told LiveScience. "They have to be able to explain this volcano forming in one spot and deliver this kind of magma supply in a short time."

Tamu Massif was named after Sager's previous employer, Texas A&M University. Despite the gargantuan nature of the volcano, researchers are doubtful that the magma-belcher was ever tall enough to come up above the surface of the sea.