Mendocino Fracture Zone

E73345

The Mendocino Fracture Zone is a major east–west-trending transform fault and fracture zone in the northeast Pacific Ocean that marks a significant boundary in the oceanic crust off the coast of northern California.


Statements (30)
Predicate Object
instanceOf fracture zone
transform fault
associatedWith earthquakes
countryBordering United States
discipline marine geology
extendsFrom offshore northern California coast
featureOf seafloor topography
geologicalFeatureType submarine geological feature
hasCharacteristic linear bathymetric expression
offset seafloor features
languageOfName English
locatedIn northeast Pacific Ocean
locatedOffCoastOf northern California
marksBoundaryIn oceanic crust off northern California
namedAfter Cape Mendocino
Mendocino County
near Cascadia Subduction Zone
Gorda Plate
Pacific Plate–North American Plate boundary
ocean Pacific Ocean
orientation approximately horizontal relative to latitude lines
partOf Pacific Plate fracture zone system
region offshore northern California
separates different-aged oceanic crust
studiedInField plate tectonics
tectonicActivity seismically active region
tectonicProcess strike-slip motion
tectonicRole transform plate boundary
tectonicSetting oceanic crust
trendDirection east–west

Referenced by (3)

Please wait…