The Earth Contents

2. Plate Tectonics

Volcanoes are characteristically found above subducting plates

As the oceanic crust sinks down, the friction of the descending plate causes intense heat to be generated, and volcanoes are characteristically found above the subducting plate. Around the Pacific there is an almost complete ring of these volcanoes, called the 'ring of fire'. Other examples of volcanoes formed in a similar manner are those found in southern Europe adjacent to the Mediterranean, including Vesuvius, Etna, Stromboli, and Santorini. These were formed as the Mediterranean plates sank under Europe.

The Pacific 'Ring of Fire'

Name some other examples of volcanoes formed in a similar manner to those in the so-called Pacific 'Ring of Fire'?