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Eurasian Plate

Eurasian Plate
Type Major
Approx. Area 67,800,000 km2[1]
Movement1 south
Speed1 7-14mm/year
Features Europe, Asia, Atlantic Ocean, Arctic Ocean
1Relative to the African Plate

The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate which includes most of the continent of Eurasia (a landmass consisting of the traditional continents of Europe and Asia), with the notable exceptions of the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent, and the area east of the Chersky Range in East Siberia. It also includes oceanic crust extending westward to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and northward to the Gakkel Ridge.

The eastern side is a boundary with the North American Plate to the north and a boundary with the Philippine Sea Plate to the south, and possibly with the Okhotsk Plate and the Amurian Plate. The southerly side is a boundary with the African Plate to the west, the Arabian Plate in the middle and the Indo-Australian Plate to the east. The westerly side is a divergent boundary with the North American Plate forming the northernmost part of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, which is straddled by Iceland. All of the volcanic eruptions in Iceland, such as those of the 1973 eruption of Eldfell (the volcano of the Icelandic island Heimaey), the 1783 eruption of Laki (Lakagígar), and the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull, are caused by the North American and the Eurasian plates moving apart, is a result of divergent plate boundary forces.

Eurasian & Anatolian Plate

The geodynamics of central Asia is dominated by the interaction between the North Eurasia and India Plates. In this area, many subplates or crust blocks have been recognized. These subplates or crust blocks form the Central Asian transit zone and the East Asian transit zone.[2]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ http://geology.about.com/library/bl/blplate_size_table.htm
  2. ^ "Up-to-Date Geodynamics and Seismicity of Central Asia" by Y. Gatinsky, D. Rundquist, G. Vladova, T. Prokhodova
Major
World map indicating tectonic plate boundaries
Minor
Other
Historical


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