South Kermadec Ridge Seamounts

About

The South Kermadec Ridge Seamounts are a continuation of the volcanic island arc, formed at the convergent boundary where the Pacific Plate subducts under the Indo-Australian Plate. The subducting Pacific Plate created the Kermadec Trench, the second deepest submarine trench, to the east of the islands. The seamounts lie along the western aspect of the undersea Kermadec Ridge, which runs southwest from the Kermadec Islands towards the North Island of New Zealand and northeast towards Tonga (Kermadec-Tonga Arc). This area of the Kermadec Arc - Havre Trough is a relatively young oceanic arc-back-arc system as it became active in the Quaternary. The seamounts include: Speight Knoll −1,840 metres (−6, 037 ft)32.3883°S 179.591°E / -32.3883; 179.591 (Speight Knoll) Oliver Knoll −2,200 metres (−7, 218 ft)32.39448°S 179.67231°E / -32.39448; 179.67231 (Oliver Knolll) Haungaroa Seamount −660 metres (−2, 165 ft)32.6152°S 179.6217°E / -32.6152; 179.6217 (Haungaroa Seamount) Kuiwai Seamount −560 metres (−1, 837 ft)33.159°S 179.9565°E / -33.159; 179.9565 (Kuiwai Seamount) Cole Seamount 33.4095°S 179.8715°E / -33.4095; 179.8715 (Cole Seamount) Ngātoroirangi Seamount −340 metres (−1, 115 ft)33.73533°S 179.79666°E / -33.73533; 179.79666 (Ngatoroirangi Seamount) Sonne Seamount 34.066667°S 179.583333°E / -34.066667; 179.583333 (Sonne Seamount) Kibblewhite Seamount −990 metres (−3,24

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.