Kerguelen Plateau

submarine plateau, Indian Ocean

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June 30, 2026

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The Kerguelen Plateau is a large submarine plateau in the southern Indian Ocean. Oceanic plateaus are significant underwater elevations that rise at least 200 meters (660 feet) above the surrounding seafloor and typically have a flat or gently tilted summit. While the Kerguelen Islands are an archipelago within this region, the plateau itself is a distinct geological feature. The Seychelles-Mauritius Plateau is another example of a submarine ridge in the Indian Ocean, believed to be a continental outlier. These plateaus can be composed of continental rock or volcanic material and are important features in understanding oceanic geology and continental drift.123

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Antarctica
The surrounding seas
Drilling of the Kerguelen Plateau near the Amery Ice Shelf (1987–88) entailed the study of the rifting history of the Indian-Australian Plate from East Antarctica and revealed that this submerged plateau—the world’s largest such feature—is of oceanic origin and not a continental fragment, as had been previously thought.
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Drilling of the Kerguelen Plateau near the Amery Ice Shelf (1987–88) entailed the study of the rifting history of the Indian-Australian Plate from East Antarctica and revealed that this submerged plateau—the world’s largest such feature—is of oceanic origin and not a continental fragment, as had been previously thought.
Read More