Q. Which of the following statements with regard to the Pacific Ring of Fire is/are correct?
1.Pacific Ring of Fire is a horseshoe-shaped circum-Pacific zone characterized by active volcanism and frequent seismic events along convergent plate margins.
2.The subduction of the Nazca and Cocos plates beneath the South American and North American plates forms its eastern boundary.
3.Ring of Fire terminates at the equator and does not extend into the high southern latitudes of New Zealand or Antarctica.
Select the answer using the code given below:
Answer: A
Notes:
Explanation:
- Statement 1 is correct: Spanning nearly 40,000 km, the Ring of Fire marks subduction zones and convergent boundaries host to over 75% of the world’s active volcanoes.
- Statement 2 is correct: Oceanic subduction of the Nazca Plate under the South American Plate forms the Andes, while the Cocos Plate subducts under the Caribbean/North American plates.
- Statement 3 is incorrect: The belt extends far into the Southern Hemisphere through the Kermadec-Tonga trench system, across New Zealand, and down into Mount Erebus on the Antarctic Plate.
