Andean Arc Landforms
Item
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Title
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Andean Arc Landforms
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Description
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There are many structures that are commonly associated with subduction zone volcanism. The first is an oceanic trench. The trench is formed where the oceanic crust and the continental crust meet. Because the oceanic crust is being subducted it starts bending downward where it meets the continental crust. This bend creates a low point, or a trench, in the ocean floor. Other common feature at a subduction zone are stratovolcanoes. Stratovolcanoes help to form the island arc itself. Stratovolcanoes are formed by the volcano erupting alternating layers of lava flows and pyroclastic deposits. They are usually tall and have a slope of about 36 degrees. The last common feature of a subduction zone is a back-arc basin. Back-arc basins are formed by extension due to “slab rollback”.
Picture from:
Winter, J. D. (n.d.). Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology Class Material.
Retrieved May 6, 2015, from https://www.whitman.edu/geology/winter/
JDW_PetClass.htm
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Creator
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Claire Kojaian
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Mediator
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Tamara Carley
carleyt@lafayette.edu
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Rights Holder
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Lafayette College Department of Geology and Environmental Geosciences
