Ring of Fire is not just a classic Johnny Cash song--it's a geological reality. The Ring of Fire is a suitably dramatic name for one of the most geologically active and chaotic places on the planet. The Ring of Fire is so-named because it is home to hundreds of the world's volcanoes, whose steady string of eruptions serve as a reminder to the tug of war underneath our feet.
The Facts
The Ring of Fire is the term given to the ring of volcanoes, plate movements, trenches and seismic activity that encircles the Pacific Basin. Stretching 40,000 km in length, the Ring of Fire is host to more than 450 volcanoes--more than 75 percent of the world's total. It is the most seismic region on the planet, outranking its nearest competitor--the Alpide belt--by a factor of 10.
Geography
The Ring of Fire encompasses almost the entire Pacific Ocean, roughly following the outline of the Pacific Plate. It reaches as far north as Alaska and Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, and as far east Mexico and Chile. Its westernmost edge winds its way from the Philippines, through Micronesia and New Guinea, and on down through the New Zealand's North Island. The Ring of Fire reaches as far south as Antarctica, which actually does host several active volcanoes.
Evolution
The Ring of Fire evolved over millions of years, through the collision of tectonic plates. As the Pacific Plate runs up against the adjacent plates, one of the plates will subduct (sink) beneath the other. The wet, subducting crust will serve to melt the overlying mantle, which produces magma. This magma slowly rises until it breaks through the earth's surface to form a volcano.
Effects
The Ring of Fire has produced more than just volcanoes. It has also produced island and mountain chains across the world, or even whole countries. The Aleutian Islands in Alaska are all volcanic in origin. Japan was created by the subduction of the Pacific Plate underneath the Eurasian Plate, and the iconic Mt. Fuji is one of the many volcanoes formed in the process.
Risk Factors
The vast majority of the world's earthquakes--80 to 90 percent--occur around the Ring of Fire. In the United States, the eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980 was the largest recorded volcanic eruption in the history of the continental U.S. It killed 57 people, caused more than $1 billion in damage, and deposited ash over 11 states. But major eruptions have and will continue to occur throughout the Ring of Fire, largely in countries without the resources to mount proper recovery and rescue. Indonesia and the Philippines are particularly vulnerable.
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