Pacific Ring of Fire: where is it located and why is it called that

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:42

The Pacific Ring of Fire is a band of volcanoes, virtually every one of which is active. They all border the ocean, from which they got their name. Among them are geysers, which, according to scientists, are much more dangerous than volcanoes. Predicting their eruption is almost impossible.

Where is it?

Pacific volcanic ring of fire is an area located along the perimeter of the ocean of the same name. There are many active volcanoes here. In total, there are 540 such on the planet - these are those that are known to mankind. Among them, 328 are located directly in the fiery ring.

Extent and location of this natural phenomenon:

• in the west - starts on the Kamchatka Peninsula, passes through the Japanese, Philippine and Kuril Islands, captures New Guinea, New Zealand. Ends in Antarctica. Volcanoes don't work here. They are covered with an ice cap, which prevents disasters;
• in the east -starts in the north of Antarctica, passes through the islands of Tierra del Fuego, the Andes, the Cordillera and the Aleutians.

Despite the smaller territorial affiliation, the number of volcanoes in both territories is approximately the same, they are just more densely planted in the east.

Some small geysers and volcanoes are located on numerous small islands in the Pacific Ocean.

How did it come about?

The Pacific Ring of Fire was formed by geodynamic processes such as spreading and subduction. They represent the growth of the oceanic lithosphere, when the plates begin to move away from each other, or vice versa, the shifting of the plates. As a result, volcanoes are born. The Pacific Ocean zone itself includes the Cocos and Nazca plates. They frame the continents. Volcanoes have formed above them, as the junctions of plates and continents are marked in these places.

Pacific Ring of Fire is not complete. In some places, the above processes were not observed, so no volcanic rocks were formed. This is noted on the segment between New Zealand and the coast of Antarctica. Here, seismic activity is as low as possible, so there are no earthquakes, nor can volcanoes or, for example, geysers form.

Also for the same reason, seismic activity is not observed on the coasts of North America. The calm line runs along California, then goes north to Vancouver Island.

Volcanoes themselves formed gradually, in placesjoint of plates. And the cool waters of the Pacific Ocean force them to be active all the time, which is quite dangerous for residents of nearby regions.

Disasters of the Ring of Fire

Volcanoes of the Pacific Ring of Fire caused the most trouble and trouble to the people of Japan. The most famous of them, located on this territory, is Fujiyama. It is a cone with a length of 4 km. Eruptions are observed quite often, they are accompanied by characteristic explosions. One of the most severe disasters occurred in December 1707. First, a black cloud of smoke and ash appeared over the volcano. It became dark, as if at night. Then stones and ashes began to fly out of the vent. Many small villages were bombarded by the masses, forests were destroyed, and crop fields were completely devastated.

Another disaster occurred in Tokyo at the end of September 1952. An underwater volcano erupted here. At first, steam formed, ash was slowly thrown out. Then came the so-called volcanic bombs. A giant fountain formed. There were dead - the authorities sent a research vessel to the place, which crashed. Eyewitnesses from other ships that sailed by said that islands formed on the surface of the water, which immediately disappeared.

In Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, where the Pacific Ring of Fire stretches, eruptions are also not uncommon, as there are more than 50 volcanoes. A serious disaster occurred here in 1912, when the volume of ash and volcanic rocks ejectedamounted to 8.5 cubic kilometers. The weight was equated to 29 billion tons. This is one of the largest catastrophes of volcanic origin.

Islands with volcanic origin

Where the Pacific ring of fire is located, new islands are constantly appearing, continents are expanding. Changes occur under the cover of water or are too small (shift is 50-180 mm per year) for a person to catch them without special instruments.

Volcanic origin is inherent in the mountains of Mauna Loa and Kilauea, which are located in Hawaii. When an eruption occurs, the water in their immediate vicinity begins to boil and foam. Clouds of steam appear mixed with ash.

There are 18 volcanic islands in the Malay archipelago of Sumatra. Their features are crater lakes. These cannot be found anywhere else on the planet.

Conclusion

Thus, the Pacific ring of fire is directly involved in the new formation of the continents. This happens extremely slowly, but with each volcanic eruption, the surface undergoes changes. Therefore, the ocean is not so "quiet" after all.