GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -The abundance of volcanoes and earthquakes along the Ring of Fire is caused by the amount of movement of tectonic plates in the area. Along much of the Ring of Fire, plates overlap at convergent boundaries called subduction zones. That is, the plate that is underneath is pushed down, or subducted, by the plate above.

Detailed explanation-2: -The Ring of Fire, also referred to as the Circum-Pacific Belt, is a path along the Pacific Ocean characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. The majority of Earth’s volcanoes and earthquakes take place along the Ring of Fire.

Detailed explanation-3: -Lavas at the Ring of Fire’s stratovolcanoes are mainly andesite and basaltic andesite but dacite, rhyolite, basalt and some other rarer types also occur. Other types of volcano are also found in the Ring of Fire, such as subaerial shield volcanoes (e.g. Plosky Tolbachik), and submarine seamounts (e.g. Monowai).

Detailed explanation-4: -Volcanoes form here in two settings where either oceanic plate descends below another oceanic plate or an oceanic plate descends below a continental plate. This process is called subduction and creates distinctive types of volcanoes depending on the setting: ocean-ocean subduction produces an island-arc volcano.

Detailed explanation-5: -Along the Ring of Fire, there is a chain of volcanoes inland of each subduction zone called a volcanic arc. Alaska’s Aleutian Islands are an example of this. Subduction zones are also where Earth’s deepest ocean trenches are located.