South American Plate: Facts, Discussion Forum, and Encyclopedia Article

South American Plate

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	South American Plate
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	Topics South American Plate Topic Home The South American Plate is a tectonic plate covering the continentContinent A continent is a large continuous landmass.... of South AmericaSouth America South America is a continent situated in the western hemisphere and, mostly, the southern hemisphere, bordered on the west b... and extending eastward to the Mid-Atlantic RidgeMid-Atlantic Ridge The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a mostly underwater mountain range of the Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean that runs from 87N to su... . The easterly side is a divergent boundaryFacts About Divergent boundary In plate tectonics, a divergent boundary, is a linear feature that exists between two tectonic plates that are moving away ... with the African PlateAfrican Plate The African Plate is a tectonic plate covering the continent of Africa and extending westward to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.... forming the southern part of the Mid-Atlantic RidgeMid-Atlantic Ridge The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a mostly underwater mountain range of the Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean that runs from 87N to su... . The southerly side is a complex boundary with the Antarctic PlateAntarctic Plate Overview The Antarctic Plate is a tectonic plate covering the continent of Antarctica and extending outward under the surrounding oce... and the Scotia PlateScotia Plate The Scotia Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate bordering the South American Plate on the north, the South Sandwich microplate... . The westerly side is a convergent boundaryConvergent boundary Overview In plate tectonics, a convergent boundary also known as a convergent plate boundary, active margin, compress... with the subducting Nazca PlateNazca Plate The Nazca Plate, named after the Nazca region of southern Peru, is an oceanic tectonic plate in the eastern Pacific Ocean ba... . The northerly side is a boundary with the Caribbean PlateCaribbean Plate The Caribbean Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate underlying Central America and the Caribbean Sea off the north coast of Sou... . The remains of the Farallon PlateFarallon Plate The Farallon Plate was an ancient, wholly oceanic tectonic plate, which began subducting under the west coast of the North A... , split into the current Cocos PlateCocos Plate The Cocos Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate beneath the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of Central America, named for Coco... and Nazca PlateNazca Plate The Nazca Plate, named after the Nazca region of southern Peru, is an oceanic tectonic plate in the eastern Pacific Ocean ba... are still subducting under the western edge of the South American Plate. This subduction is responsible for lifting the massive Andes Mountains and causing the volcanos which are strewn throughout them. There is some speculation that in addition to subducting the Cocos and Nazca Plates, the westward motion of the South American Plate may have forced the Caribbean and Scotia Plates at its northern and southern ends respectively to squeeze around it. Both share a similar shape and are being subducted along their eastern boundary. They are thought to be ancient volcanic regions formed on the Farallon Plate, with their crust too thick to be subducted under the South American Plate. There is evidence that South American plate continues to move northwards at a very slow rate.