Caribbean Plate

E14783

The Caribbean Plate is a major tectonic plate underlying Central America and the Caribbean Sea, whose interactions with surrounding plates shape the region’s earthquakes, volcanoes, and deep ocean trenches.

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All labels observed (3)

Statements (50)

Predicate Object
instanceOf lithospheric plate
tectonic plate
associatedWithFeature Cayman Trough
Central American Volcanic Arc
surface form: Central American volcanic arc

Lesser Antilles
surface form: Lesser Antilles volcanic arc

Middle America Trench
Puerto Rico Trench
associatedWithHazard earthquakes
tsunamis
volcanic eruptions
boundedToEastBy subduction of Atlantic oceanic lithosphere beneath Caribbean Plate
boundedToNorthBy transform faults and subduction zones with North American Plate
boundedToSouthBy complex convergent boundary with South American Plate
boundedToWestBy subduction of Cocos Plate beneath Caribbean Plate
containsContinentalCrust Greater Antilles
surface form: Greater Antilles islands

parts of Central America
hasApproximateArea 3.2 million square kilometers
hasBoundaryType convergent boundary
divergent boundary
subduction zone
transform boundary
hasBoundaryWith Cocos Plate
Nazca Plate
North American Plate
Pacific Plate
South American Plate
hasSeismicZone Enriquillo–Plantain Garden fault zone
Septentrional-Oriente fault zone
hasVolcanicArc Central American Volcanic Arc
surface form: Central America volcanic front

Lesser Antilles
surface form: Lesser Antilles arc
influencesCountry Costa Rica
Dominican Republic
Guatemala
Haiti
Jamaica
Nicaragua
Panama
Puerto Rico
influencesRegion Central America
Greater Antilles
Lesser Antilles
isMostlyOceanic true
isOverriddenBy North American Plate
locatedIn Caribbean Sea
surface form: Caribbean Sea region

Central America
surface form: Central America region
motionRelativeToNorthAmericanPlate westward
motionRelativeToSouthAmericanPlate northwestward
overrides Cocos Plate
Nazca Plate
partOf Earth lithosphere

Referenced by (58)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Puerto Rico Trench separates Caribbean Plate
Isthmus of Panama locatedOnTectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
North American Plate hasBoundaryWith Caribbean Plate
Nazca Plate bordersPlate Caribbean Plate
Cocos Plate borders Caribbean Plate
Cocos Plate subductsBeneath Caribbean Plate
Cocos Plate movesRelativeTo Caribbean Plate
Cocos Plate overriddenBy Caribbean Plate
this entity surface form: Caribbean Plate at Central America
Caribbean Sea hasPart Caribbean Plate
South American Plate borders Caribbean Plate
Brownson Deep tectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
African Plate boundedBy Caribbean Plate
Farallon Plate subductedBeneath Caribbean Plate
Farallon Plate wasAdjacentTo Caribbean Plate
Lesser Antilles locatedOnTectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
Cocos Ridge subductsBeneath Caribbean Plate
Middle America Trench beneath Caribbean Plate
Cayman Ridge tectonicSetting Caribbean Plate
Colombian Basin underlainBy Caribbean Plate
Yucatán Basin tectonicSetting Caribbean Plate
Venezuelan Basin partOf Caribbean Plate
Fuego tectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
Antilles geologicalContext Caribbean Plate
Poás locatedOn Caribbean Plate
Momotombo locatedOnTectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
Turrialba tectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
Gulf of Cazones locatedOn Caribbean Plate
Apoyeque Volcano overridingPlate Caribbean Plate
Mount Pelée tectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
Leeward Antilles tectonicSetting Caribbean Plate
Irazú Volcano overridingPlate Caribbean Plate
Puerto Rican archipelago locatedOn Caribbean Plate
this entity surface form: Caribbean tectonic plate
Cocos–Caribbean plate boundary plate2 Caribbean Plate
Beata Ridge partOf Caribbean Plate
Colombian continental margin adjacentTo Caribbean Plate
Belize margin partOf Caribbean Plate
MacKenney cone associatedWith Caribbean Plate
Stony Hill locatedOnTectonicPlate Caribbean Plate
Cayman Trough transform system separates Caribbean Plate
Aves Ridge partOf Caribbean Plate