The Molucca Sea Collision Zone is postulated by paleogeologists to explain the

tectonics Tectonics (; ) are the processes that control the structure and properties of the Earth's crust and its evolution through time. These include the processes of mountain building, the growth and behavior of the strong, old cores of continents k ...

of the area based on the

Molucca Sea The Molucca Sea (Indonesian: ''Laut Maluku'') is located in the western Pacific Ocean, around the vicinity of Indonesia, specifically bordered by the Indonesian Islands of Celebes (Sulawesi) to the west, Halmahera to the east, and the Sula Islan ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, and adjacent involved areas.

Tectonics

The tectonic relationship of the

Sangihe Plate Sangihe Plate has recently (1990s) been postulated to be a microplate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone of eastern Indonesia. Regional tectonics The tectonic setting of the Molucca Sea region is unique. It is the only global example of an acti ...

Halmahera Plate Halmahera Plate has recently (1990s) been postulated to be a microplate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone of eastern Indonesia. Regional tectonics The tectonic setting of the Molucca Sea region is unique. It is the only global example of an ac ...

, and the

Molucca Sea Plate Located in the western Pacific Ocean near Indonesia, the Molucca Sea Plate has been classified by scientists as a fully subducted microplate that is part of the Molucca Sea Collision Complex. The Molucca Sea Plate represents the only known example ...

, plus the volcanic

Halmahera Arc Halmahera Arc is the volcanic arc of the Halmahera region of eastern Indonesia. It is considered to belong to the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Origin Potassium-argon ages of Neogene to Recent igneous rocks from the Halmah ...

and the Sangihe Arc is complex. Their interrelationship constitutes the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. The north of this zone interlinks with the

Philippine Mobile Belt In the geology of the Philippines, the Philippine Mobile Belt is a complex portion of the tectonic boundary between the Eurasian Plate and the Philippine Sea Plate, comprising most of the country of the Philippines. It includes two subduction z ...

. Some call this linkage the Philippine–Halmahera Arc and consider it an integral part of the elongated zone of convergence extending north through the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

into eastern

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. In the Molucca Sea Collision Zone model, the Molucca Sea Plate has been totally consumed by the arc-arc collision of the Halmahera Arc and the Sangihe Arc of eastern

Single collision zones

The magmatic systems are reaching the end of their life as island arcs and are becoming a single collision zone, lending weight to the contention that Halmahera and Sangihe should be regarded as tectonic plates rather than volcanic arcs.

Northern extension

Seismic and tomographic discrepancies in the mantle up to 400 km below

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...

in the Philippines, indicate it is a more advanced northern extension of the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Colin G Macpherson et ors, Geochemical evolution of magmatism in an arc-arc collision: the Halmahera and Sangihe arcs, eastern Indonesia, in Robert D Larter, ed, (2003) ''Intra-oceanic Subduction Systems'', Geological Society of London. p215

References

{{SE Asia plates Molucca Sea Geology of the Pacific Ocean Geology of Indonesia Geology of the Philippines Philippine tectonics Maritime Southeast Asia Volcanic belts