Kermadec Plate

The Kermadec Plate is subducting beneath the Australian Plate, forming the Kermadec Trench and the Kermadec volcanic arc northeast of New Zealand. This highly active subduction zone generates frequent earthquakes, including deep earthquakes at depths exceeding 600 kilometers. The volcanic islands of the Kermadec arc are mostly uninhabited but represent one of the most volcanically active regions in the Southwest Pacific.