Pacific Plate

The Pacific Plate is the largest tectonic plate on Earth, covering most of the Pacific Ocean basin. It is almost entirely oceanic crust, formed at the East Pacific Rise and other spreading centers. The plate's boundaries form much of the "Ring of Fire," a zone of intense volcanic and seismic activity. As it moves northwest, it subducts beneath numerous plates around its edges, creating deep ocean trenches, volcanic island arcs, and powerful earthquakes.