Large igneous provinces

Canada has a rich record of large igneous provinces. At least 80 candidates are recognized in Canada and adjacent regions, with ages ranging from 3100 to 17 million years old. In the Paleozoic and Proterozoic, Large igneous provinces are typically deeply eroded. They are represented by deep-level plumbing systems consisting of giant dike swarms, sill provinces and layered intrusions. In the Archean the most promising Large igneous province candidates are greenstone belts containing komatiites. In Canada, most greenstone belts are related to mantle plumes.

The 1.2 billion year old Mackenzie dike swarm is the largest dike swarm known on Earth,[21] more than 500 kilometers (311 miles) wide and 3,000 kilometers (1,864 miles) long, extending in a northwesterly direction across the whole of Canada from the Arctic to the Great Lakes.