The Ring of Fire is a series of active volcanoes located along the Pacific tectonic plate.
The Ring of Fire refers to the series of active volcanoes that circle in a horseshoe shape throughout the Pacific Ocean. Seventy-five percent of the world's active volcanoes and ninety percent of the world's earthquakes occur along this ring, which is the result of movement along the Pacific tectonic plate. The ring is located along the edges of four continental areas.
North American Pacific
The North American section of the Ring of Fire stretches from southern Mexico up to the southern coast of Alaska, where it turns west. This section of the ring includes the San Andreas Fault in California, which has generated a number of earthquakes in the state. It also includes the Paricutin volcano in Mexico and Mount St. Helens in Washington state.
South American Pacific
The South American portion of the ring stretches the length of the western coast of the continent. The plates in this section helped create the long trail of Andean mountains along the Argentinean and Chilean coasts. Movement along this section has created several devastating earthquakes in Chile.
Asian Pacific
The Asian portion of the ring of fire stretches from Siberia down through the southeastern coast of Japan. The most famous volcano in this portion of the ring is Mount Fuji in Japan. Several earthquakes in Japan, including the Sendai earthquake in 2011, have occurred as a result of movement along the Asian Pacific Rim.
South Pacific
The South Pacific portion of the ring of fire starts in the Philippines, goes west through the Indonesian islands, and stretches down along the eastern coasts of Australia and New Zealand. The Hawaiian islands were formed as a result of the plate tectonics in this region, as well as earthquakes in Indonesia and New Zealand. The most famous active volcano in this section is Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines.
Tags: portion ring, active volcanoes, Pacific South, Ring Fire, this section, along Pacific
