Tectonic Setting and Natural Hazards- United Kingdom

The Tectonic Setting and Natural Hazards of the United Kingdom



The UK is is located in the middle of the Eurasian Plate. The Eurasian plates nearest boundary is the Mid-Atlantic ridge. The boundary type of the Mid-Atlantic ridge is divergent. According to Universe Today, "The Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) is known as a mid-ocean ridge, an underwater mountain system formed by plate tectonics. It is the result of a divergent plate boundary that runs from 87° N – about 333 km (207 mi) south of the North Pole – to 54 °S, just north of the coast of Antarctica." 

 While conducting my research, I learned that the UK is currently not on a plate margin: meaning it is not tectonically active according to The Geological Study. They state "Over time, a series of tectonic events has resulted in the current location and structure of the UK - in the last 700 million years, we have gradually drifted north from near the South Pole! Evidence of this turbulent tectonic past is preserved in the rock record, making the UK an ideal starting point for a geoscientist searching for clues to the Earth’s past." 

 Divergent Boundary
Divergent Boundaries (photo) and their effects include according to geology.com "Effects that are found at a divergent boundary between oceanic plates include: a submarine mountain range such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge; volcanic activity in the form of fissure eruptions; shallow earthquake activity; creation of new seafloor and a widening ocean basin." 

Comments

  1. Ana GGFebruary 8, 2020 at 3:46 PM

    Nice research. Although that gorgeous MAR is the closest boundary, is not close enough to really affect the current activity but...as your first image shows, the UK has LOTS of fault systems and those will be responsible for a lot of the shaking...looking forward to what you'll discover next week.

    ReplyDelete
  2. GabrielleFebruary 9, 2020 at 5:24 PM

    Great blog post and research! I never knew that the United Kingdom is in the middle of the Eurasian plate. It is also very interesting that because of its location, it causes many different natural disasters such as volcanic activity, earthquakes, etc.

    ReplyDelete

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