Other Pacific Islands

The divergent plate boundary of the East Pacific Rise lies to the east of the region and is the formative source of the Pacific tectonic plate. In moving to the WNW, the plate passes over a number of hot spots causing the eastern Pacific volcanic island chains of Hawaii, Pitcairn, French Polynesia, and the Cook Islands, and island chains further to the west such as the Samoas are also volcanic hotspot remnants.