subduction

Also known as tectonic plate subduction

thumb|upright=1.85|Diagram of the geological process of subduction

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Subduction is a geological process in which one tectonic plate slides beneath another plate into the Earth's mantle. This process is important because it plays a major role in shaping Earth's surface features, recycling crustal material, and generating earthquakes and volcanic activity.

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Commons category: Subduction

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~29 min read

Article

23 sections

Contents

Subduction and plate tectonics
Structure of subduction zones
Arc-trench complex
Deep structure
Subduction angle
Life cycle of subduction zones
Initiation of subduction
End of subduction
Characteristics and effects
Metamorphism
Arc magmatism
Earthquakes and tsunamis
Orogeny
Subduction of continental lithosphere
Intra-oceanic: ocean/ocean plate subduction
Arc-continent collision and global climate
Beginnings of subduction on Earth
History of investigation
Importance
See also
References
Additional reading
External links

thumb|upright=1.85|Diagram of the geological process of subduction

Subduction is a geological process in which the oceanic lithosphere and some continental lithosphere is recycled into the Earth's mantle at the convergent boundaries between tectonic plates. Where one tectonic plate converges with a second plate, the heavier plate dives beneath the other and sinks into the mantle. A region where this process occurs is known as a subduction zone, and its surface expression is known as an arc-trench complex. The process of subduction has created most of the Earth's continental crust. Rates of subduction are typically measured in centimeters per year, with rates of convergence as high as 11 cm/year.