Most volcanic activity is associated with plate tectonic processes and is mainly located along plate margins. such activity is therefore found:
· Along oceanic ridges where plates are moving apart. The best example is the mid-Atlantic ridge – Iceland represents a large area formed by volcanic activity
· Associated with rift valleys. The African rift valley has a number of volcanoes along it including Mt. Kenya and Mt. Kilimanjaro
· On or near subduction zones. The line of volcanoes, or ‘ring of fire’, that surrounds the Pacific Ocean is associated with plate subduction. This tends to be the most violent of all activity
· Over hot spots such as the one in the middle of the Pacific Ocean which has given rise to the Hawaiian islands
The effect of different plate margins on volcanic eruptions and landforms