The Kerguelen Plateau (, ), also known as the Kerguelen–Heard Plateau, is an oceanic plateau and a large igneous province (LIP) located on the Antarctic Plate, in the southern Indian Ocean. It is about to the southwest of Australia and is nearly three times the size of California. The plateau extends for more than in a northwest–southeast direction and lies in deep water. The plateau was produced by the Kerguelen hotspot, starting with or following the breakup of Gondwana about 130 million years ago. A small portion of the plateau breaks sea level, forming the Kerguelen Islands (a French overseas territory) plus the Heard and McDonald Islands (an Australian external territory). Intermittent volcanism continues on the Heard and McDonald Islands. Geographical extent Symmetrically across the Indian Ocean ridge and due west of Australia is the Broken Ridge underwater volcanic plateau, which at one time was contiguous with the Kerguelen Plateau before rifting by the mid-ocean ridge. To the north of Broken Ridge is the linear Ninety East Ridge which continues almost due north into the Bay of Bengal and is considered to be a hotspot track. One of the largest igneous provinces (LIPs) in the world, the Kerguelen Plateau covers an area of and rises above the surrounding oceanic basins. Most of the plateau is less than below sea level. Located on the Antarctic Plate, the Kerguelen Plateau is separated from Australia by the Southeast Indian Ridge (SEIR) and from Africa by the Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR). These two ridges meet at the Rodriguez Triple Junction. It is separated from Antarctica by Princess Elizabeth Trough and the Cooperation Sea. The eastern margin north of the William Ridge is steep and formed during the breakup between the Kerguelen Plateau and the Broken Ridge. The southern part of the margin is separated from the Australian–Antarctic Basin by the deep Labuan Basin. Geological history From the initial opening of the Indian Ocean until present, the Kerguelen hotspot has produced several now widely dispersed large-scale structures. The Southern Kerguelen Plateau (SKP) formed 119–110 ; the Elan Bank 108–107 , named by Dennis E. Hayes of Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory; the Central Kerguelen Plateau (CKP) 101–100 ; the Broken Ridge (connected to the CKP before the Eocene breakup) 95–94 ; the Skiff Bank (east of the Kerguelen Islands) 69–68 ; the Northern Kerguelen Plateau (NKP) 35–34 ; the Ninety East Ridge formed 82–38 north to