Hey all.
I wanted to share with you a little information about my country of choice and its location in relevance to various plates. My country is Japan and a cool fact is that the plates under these islands are like the four corners, In the sense that four plats meet at practically the center of the islands. These four plates are the Eurasian, Philippines, Pacific and North American. This can be view Here.
This put the islands at high risk for earth quakes and Tsunamis much like the ones in March 2011. The type of boundary that lays under Japan is a convergent boundary. According to page 32 of our text this when one plate sinks under the other. This action is what causes the earthquakes, as well as, forms mountains and islands themselves, often through volcanic activity.
Sourses: Natural hazards third edition, by Keller and Devecchino
How interesting that all four plates are in the center of the island. I know that Japan is in the ring of fire and has always had it's fair share of earthquakes and volcanoes. From my understanding, Japan has around 100 active volcanoes. Unlike some of the other countries on the list, Japan is a very active spot and will be a very interesting country to study on a geological level. I will look forward to future blogs on Japan in the weeks to come.
ReplyDeleteGreat Tectonics entry! I know a lot of researchers (offshore) studying that subduction zone these days. It is impressive how complex the area is, huh?
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