The North Bismarck Plate is a small
tectonic plate
Plate tectonics (from the la, label=Late Latin, tectonicus, from the grc, τεκτονικός, lit=pertaining to building) is the generally accepted scientific theory that considers the Earth's lithosphere to comprise a number of large te ...
located in the
Bismarck Sea
The Bismarck Sea (, ) lies in the southwestern Pacific Ocean within the nation of Papua New Guinea. It is located northeast of the island of New Guinea and south of the Bismarck Archipelago. It has coastlines in districts of the Islands Regi ...
off the northeast coast of
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
.
Tectonics
To the north it collides with the
Pacific Plate and the
Caroline Plate
The Caroline Plate is a minor tectonic plate that straddles the Equator in the eastern hemisphere located north of New Guinea. It forms a subduction zone along the border with the Bird's Head Plate and the Woodlark Plate to the south. A transfo ...
, part of the western part subducts under the
Woodlark Plate
The Woodlark Plate is a small tectonic plate located in the eastern half of the island of New Guinea. It subducts beneath the Caroline plate along its northern border while the Maoke Plate converges on the west, the Australian plate converges on ...
of
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
, and it is separated from the
South Bismarck Plate by a
divergent boundary called Bismarck Seismic Sea Lineation (BSSL). The plate is moving easterly along with the Pacific plate. It is in a very seismically active area. Between the plate and the
Caroline Plate
The Caroline Plate is a minor tectonic plate that straddles the Equator in the eastern hemisphere located north of New Guinea. It forms a subduction zone along the border with the Bird's Head Plate and the Woodlark Plate to the south. A transfo ...
is the
Manus Trench Manus Trench is an oceanic trench in the Bismarck Sea north of Papua New Guinea delineating the plate tectonic boundary between the Caroline
Caroline may refer to:
People
*Caroline (given name), a feminine given name
* J. C. Caroline (born 1933), ...
and between the plate and the Pacific plate is the
Kilinailai Trench.
See also
*
List of earthquakes in Papua New Guinea
References
*
Tectonic plates
Geology of the Pacific Ocean
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