Hello!

Welcome to my blog on plate tectonics, featuring several extraordinary places around our globe.

First, let's start with the basics... I am a geologist (hopefully if you're on a tectonics blog, you know what a geologist is) and I belong to an agency called USGS (feel free to read more about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USGS).
They've implored me to go on the organization's first international exploration trip, and learn about boundaries all over, not just near the United States. During the course of my expedition I will be visiting 4 particular places. Each are one of the 4 boundary types (convergent subduction, convergent collision, divergent and transform) as well as a hot spot. I will explain in detail how each boundary works in relation to the places in following posts. This blog will serve as my personalized way to communicate my experiences with people who also share my interest in earth science. 

Enjoy...

http://www.geologyrocks.co.uk/system/files/u2/ptmap.gif

(This is a basic overview of plate tectonics and the arrows show their directional movement)

First Stop: Iceland!

So it's been a great trip so far! Icelandair was a wonderful airline, and the man I sat next to also happened to be a retired geologist. We had a delightful conversation, and he was very intrigued by my trip. Flying in it was a bit overcast, but that's nothing new when one lives in Seattle! 

Here's a picture I took flying into Reykjavik, one of the larger towns in Iceland. I quite enjoy the colorful roofing....

http://www.nomadicmatt.com/images/iceland1.jpg  

Reykjavik 

As soon as I was out of the airport I indulged in the tourist side of me, wandering through the town. Once I'd finished I made my way for Grenivik, where my living situation has been arranged. Here's a picture of the turf house I'm staying in. I'm going to have that earthy aroma in my system for awhile...

http://photos.igougo.com/images/p520135-Grenivik-Laufs_Museum_Turf_Houses.jpg

Grenivik 

The landscapes are simply gorgeous here. And the people, let me tell you, are just the nicest. (Despite the fact I can barely understand them) 

Well time to hit the sack! I need to get some sleep for tomorrow where I'll be visiting the first stop on my map. 

More tomorrow night my fellow science enthusiasts...

Hot spot

I've just returned from the first stop! The great Eyjafjallajӧkull. A subglacial volcano located on the southern coast of the large island, to be specific: 63˚38'N 19˚36'W.

Wow.... was all I could say when I arrived. Indeed I could've been saying 'wow' to the ridiculous temperatures, but it was the breathtaking white caps, and stunning terrain that thrilled me the most. 
So why am I tell you about it? Well this volcano is a Hot spot. Were not talking WiFi, but rather a volcanic region that is created by mantle that is especially hot compared to other places. No one knows the exact reasoning as to why these form, but one hypothesis are "mantle plumes" (a hypothetical idea) that hot rock rises from the core through the Earth's mantle. 
Some of these volcanoes occur on plate boundaries and others far away. (Hawaii is a hot spot located in the middle of the Pacific, not even in proximity to a boundary)
Iceland happens to be one of the most volcanic regions in the world (located on a divergent boundary line) Could it be because of this "hot spot" phenomenon? Who knows, maybe you'll be the one to figure it out...

Here is a map showing the volcanic activity on Iceland:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Volcanic_system_of_Iceland-Map-en.svg

Here is a diagram of Hot Spots:

http://files.myopera.com/nielsol/blog/mantle_plume.jpg

And here is the result:

http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/images/0506-iceland-volcano-eyjafjallajokull/7850424-1-eng-US/0506-iceland-volcano-Eyjafjallajokull_full_600.jpg

http://alyssakent.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/iceland-eyjafjallajokull-volcanic-eruption-up-close-vs-pronounce-that-name-lol-hd-raw-video-1.jpg
Sadly, all great days must come to an end, so goodnight and hopefully I'll being sharing my next tectonic adventure with you in the next 2 days or so...

Goodbye Iceland!

The Red Sea

Hello again! I've made my way to Saudi Arabia, and have just returned from a boat tour around the eastern coast of the Red Sea. A divine body of water, situated between Africa and Asia, at 22˚N 38˚E, it holds more than 1,200 species of fish. 

(Both images are from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Sea)

Anyways, moving on to the science. We have reached our first boundary! Whoo hoo! Get excited people. The Red Sea is an effect of the "divergent plate" boundary. How so? Well divergent plate boundaries are when two plates are moving away from one another. You see, the Red Sea was formed when Arabia split from Africa due to the Red Sea Rift. Valley rifts are a common result of divergent plate boundaries. This rift is a spreading center between the two plates. Still confused? Okay, so when the plates pull apart, central blocks slide downwards on either side of the rift. In the beginning process, streams and rivers will flow into the sinking valley to form a long linear shaped lake (note the shape of the Red Sea... looks long and linear to me...) When the rift grows deeper it drops below sea level permitting ocean waters to flow in, producing a sea within the rift. Rifts can grow deeper and wider and ocean basins can be produced. Divergent boundaries, in this case, created a new sea-floor and a widening ocean basin we all know as the Red Sea. (See diagram below)

http://geology.com/nsta/divergent-boundary-continental-still.gif

Geologists, including myself, predict that in the future (we're talking super far ahead) that the Red Sea could become an ocean. For now it's just an Atlantic wannabe, (the same thing happened with the Atlantic Ocean)

 but we'll see or should I see the future generations will see.... 

But for now it's just a beautiful tropical sea.... Off to colder places, yet again, for our second boundary stop! 

Nepal

Namaste. That's hello in Nepali! 

They have had beautiful weather here. A bit chilly, but simply stunning. 

I have been staying in a village called Ghandrung for the past two days and my host family is wonderful. It was very kind of them to let me stay in their home. The food is delicious. The people are fascinating. And the views are jaw dropping.

These are the Himalayas in the rising sun from my window:

http://stitchesoftime.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/ghandrung.jpeg

Some fantastic Napalese food I had for dinner yesterday:

http://photos.igougo.com/images/p182195-Kathmandu-Nepali_Food.jpg

These are the two children who live in the house I'm currently staying at:

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGF5mbOLrKxU9rPtvg-xXH0nn8clx8XvvPS0Q0xq2155YZblihxu1g3h1ThVDmV_0-QmNA90rnldFDTTCc_MpVBuY6tygy6yCK4o69PLOeCnG7dvM6uTQ-JtdFN2VA6gfLnt6rp2i8sKpK/s800/Beautiful+Nepal+Photos+(30).JPG

Anyways, it's getting late and I'm trekking up to the mountains tomorrow morning at sunrise, so I better be going....