FratFiles

• Save Paper

Welcome to the Galapagos Islands! The Galapagos are an archipelago of several volcanic islands located in the Pacific Ocean. The archipelago consists of 13 major islands, six minor islands, and 40 smaller rock formations and reefs spread out over 17,000 square miles of ocean. They are born to create fire, and in the last 200 years a remarkable 50 plus eruptions have occurred. Looking into the geographic location and plate tectonic settings can easily help show why more than 50 eruptions have occurred in such a short period of geologic time.
The Galapagos Islands are located on the equator west of the South American coast. Like many oceanic islands, they are formed by a mantle plume or hotspot like Hawaii. A major subduction zone currently sits under the islands, the two plates that are subducting beneath the South American and Caribbean plates are the Nazca and the Cocos plates. The Galapagos were created by the Cocos and the Nazca plate, which are currently moving......

View the rest of this paper...

Approximate Word Count: 489
Approximate Pages: 2 (250 words per double-spaced page)

Similar Essays

1. Galapagos Islands
   

   Galapagos Islands The Galapagos Islands Christy Bosley Axia College of University of Phoenix SCI 230 Angela Buffington March 16, 2008 The Galapagos Islands The Archipelago de

2. Galapagos Islands
   

   Galapagos Islands Galapagos Islands There are many different kinds of life forms that makeup the Galapagos Islands spread throughout its sixteen main islands and six smaller

3. The Galapagos Islands
   

   The Galapagos Islands The Galapagos Islands Axia College of University of Phoenix SCI/230 Introduction to Life Science Carly Davidson The Galapagos Islands The government of

4. The Galapagos Islands
   

   The Galapagos Islands The Galapagos Islands The Galapagos Islands are a group of 16 islands located in the Pacific Ocean that straddle the equator about 525 miles west of the

5. The Galapagos Islands
   

   The Galapagos Islands The Galapagos Islands Carolyn Ayers SCI230 Sri Gogineni, January 20, 2008 The Galapagos Islands, located on the equator approximately 600 miles directly west