The Deepest Ocean Eruption
Underwater volcanoes (or submarine volcanoes) can be found at convergent plate boundaries. A famous string of submarine volcanoes is called the ring of fire. This subduction zone surrounds a large part of the Pacific ocean, and when they erupt these volcanoes often form small islands that last for a brief amount of time. The tectonic plates push against each other and overlap, and magma is recycled and explodes out of the earth in the form of a volcano.
An expedition team with members from the University of Washington and the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration were observing the Pacific area near the islands of Tonga, Fiji and Samoa in May 2009. Under 4,000 feet of water, researchers were able to capture what is believed to be the deepest ocean eruption of all time. The eruption was southeast of Samoa.
This volcano stands over a mile off the ocean floor, and has the eruptive area of a football field.
Photo courtesey of National Geographic
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