Madagascar and Tectonic Plates


Madagascar resides between two tectonic plates, being the Somali minor-plate in the north, and the Lwandle micro-plate that runs below the south-most part of the country. Madagascar "is thought to be sitting in the middle of an old tectonic plate, and so, by the rules of plate tectonics, should be tectonically quiet: few earthquakes and no volcanoes" (Lutz). Therefore, research has shown that the volcanic eruptions and earthquakes that occur in this country appear to be an anomaly. 

Despite the distance, between plates Madagascar has 5 documented Holocene volcanoes and around 500 earthquakes per year. These earthquakes mainly occur in the central region of the country, ranging in magnitude anywhere from 2.0 to 6.0. 

It has been documented that due to the divergent boundaries that surround the country, Madagascar has been breaking apart slowly; with the Eastern/Central region shifting toward the Somali plate, and Southern Madagascar moving with the Lwandle plate. 


Sources:

https://source.wustl.edu/2016/11/whats-up-with-madagascar/

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/11/madagascar-african-island-break-up#:~:text=The%20African%20island%20Madagascar%20in,Africa%20and%20the%20surrounding%20oceans.

https://africa-arabia-plate.weebly.com/somali-plate.html

Comments

  1. Ana GGSeptember 3, 2022 at 2:53 PM

    Nice tectonic setting! It seems your country should expect some geological activity!

    ReplyDelete
  2. GEOL 9 Sudan BlogSeptember 4, 2022 at 3:26 PM

    Good job on this post. This is really interesting because from what I have read Madagascar is also getting hit with major hazards like droughts, floods and cyclones. Is there any percentage of a earthquake ever hitting that region?

    ReplyDelete

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