Intraplate deformation and microplate tectonics of the Yellowstone hot spot and surrounding western U.S. interior

[1] Contemporary deformation of the Yellowstone hot spot and surrounding western United States is analyzed using tectonic microplate modeling, employing constraints from GPS observations corrected for postseismic deformation of M7+ earthquakes, fault slip rates, and earthquake focal mechanisms. We focus primarily on the kinematics of the Yellowstone hot spot and the eastern Snake River Plain volcanic field (ESRP), and secondarily on Basin-Range and Columbia Plateau provinces. Our results reveal southwest motion of the Yellowstone Plateau, excluding localized volcanic deformation, at 0.9 ± 0.1 mm/a that decreases to 0.8 ± 0.1 mm/a in the ESRP block. The southwest to west motion of the Yellowstone-ESRP introduces shear in the northern Rocky Mountain block, which is translating east at 0.78 ± 0.08 mm/a. There is