ALDERSGATE COLLEGE SCIENCE 10

HIGH SCHOOL

Module 4 : RING OF FIRE

Teachers: Mrs. Felicidad Oja Furigay

Mr. Jearen Hesed A. Balagan
Level: Grade 10
Allotted Time: 5 hours
OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this module, you should be able to:

1. recognize places that are prone to earthquakes

2. describe vulnerabilities of community living around the Ring of Fire.
3. practice disaster preparedness

LEARNING FOCUS
LIVING ON THE RING OF FIRE
What if someone were to tell you that there’s a region in the world where roughly 90% of the world’s
earthquakes occur. What if they were to tell you that this region is also home to over 75% of the world’s active and
dormant volcanoes, and all but 3 of the world’s 25 largest eruptions in the last 11,700 years took place here.

Chances are, you’d think twice about buying real-estate there. But strangely enough, hundreds of millions of
people live in this area, and some of the most densely-packed cities in the world have been built atop its shaky faults.
We are talking about the PACIFIC RING OF FIRE, a geologically and volcanically active region that stretches from
one side of the Pacific to the other.

The Pacific Ring of Fire is also known as the CIRCUM-PACIFIC BELT, THE “RING OF FIRE” is a 40,000
km (25,000 mile) horseshoe-shaped basin that is associated with a nearly continuous series of oceanic trenches,
volcanic arcs, and volcanic belts and/or plate movements. This ring accounts for 452 volcanoes (active and dormant),
stretching from the southern tip of South America, up along the coast of North America, across the Bering Strait,
down through Japan, and into New Zealand – with several active and dormant volcanoes in Antarctica closing the
ring.
Volcanic Activity:
Most of the active volcanoes on The Ring of Fire are found on its western edge, from the Kamchatka
Peninsula in Russia, through the islands of Japan and Southeast Asia, to New Zealand. Mount Ruapehu in New
Zealand is one of the more active volcanoes in the Ring of Fire, with yearly minor eruptions, and major eruptions
occurring about every 50 years.

Earthquakes:
Scientists have known for some time that the majority of the seismic activity occurs along plate boundaries.
Hence why roughly 90% of the world’s earthquakes – which is estimated to be around 500,000 a year, one-fifth of
which are detectable – occur around the Pacific Rim, where multiple plate boundaries exist.

As a result, earthquakes are a regular occurrence in places like Japan, Indonesia and New Zealand in Asia
and the South Pacific; Alaska, British Columbia, California and Mexico in North America; and El Salvador,
Guatemala, Peru and Chile in Central and South America. Where fault lines run beneath the ocean, larger
earthquakes in these regions also trigger tsunamis.

How safe is to live on the Ring of Fire?

The region representing the Pacific Rim is known as the “RING OF FIRE” . The Ring of Fire is home to 75%
of the world's volcanoes and 90% of its earthquakes.

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The Ring of Fire is a roughly 25,000-mile chain of volcanoes and seismically active sites that outline the
Pacific Ocean.
Also known as the CIRCUM-PACIFIC BELT, the Ring of Fire traces the meeting points of many tectonic
plates, including the Eurasian, North American, Juan de Fuca, Cocos, Caribbean, Nazca, Antarctic, Indian,
Australian, Philippine, and other smaller plates, which all encircle the large Pacific Plate.
The Ring of Fire is also where an estimated 75% of the planet’s volcanoes are located, such as Mount
Tambora of Indonesia, which erupted in 1815 and became the largest volcanic eruption in recorded history.
The Ring of Fire is home to the deepest ocean trench, called the Mariana Trench. Located east of Guam, the 7-mile-
deep Mariana Trench formed when one tectonic place was pushed under another.

Noteworthy volcanoes that dot the Ring of Fire include Mount St. Helens in the USA, Mount Fuji in Japan
and Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines. Since 1850, approximately 90% of the 16 most powerful volcanic eruptions on
Earth have occurred within the Pacific Ring of Fire.
GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION OF 1,500 ACTIVE VOLCANOES

 12 Dangerous Volcanoes Along the Ring of Fire

 Mount Fuji  Mauna Loa
 Sakurajima  Popocatépetl
 Krakatoa  Santa Maria
 Merapi  Arenal
 Taal  Galeras
 Mayon  Cotopoxi

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION OF VOLCANOES

Most volcanoes are located within or near ocean basin . Basaltic rocks: in oceanic and continental
settings. Granitic rocks: in continental settings
The magma affects the severity of a volcanic eruptions
Basaltic Magmas = mild eruptions
Rhyolitic or Andesitic Magmas = explosive eruptions
Viscosity is a measure of a material’s resistance to flow
Factors affecting viscosity
1. Temperature - Hotter magmas are less viscous
2. Composition - Silica (SiO2) content
3. Higher silica content = higher viscosity (e.g., felsic lava such as rhyolite)
4. Lower silica content = lower viscosity (e.g., mafic lava such as basalt)
5. Dissolved gases

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6. Gas content affects magma mobility

7. Gases expand within a magma as it nears the Earth’s surface due to decreasing pressure
8. The violence of an eruption is related to how easily gases escape from magma

The Ring of Fire is a crucial region for many reasons. It serves as one of the main boundary regions for the
tectonic plates of over half of the globe. It also affects the lives of millions if not billions of people who live in these
regions. For many of the people who live in the Pacific Ring of Fire, the reality of a volcanic eruption or earthquake is
commonplace and a challenge they have come to deal with over time.

At the same time, the volcanic activity has also provided many valuable resources, such as rich farmland
and the possibility of tapping geothermal activity for heating and electricity. As always, nature gives with one hand
and takes with the other!

SCIENCE 10/ PACIFIC RING OF FIRE/

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Name: ________________________________________________ Grade and Sec: _________________________

I- PICTURE ANALYSIS
Directions: Use the illustration below to answer the following questions.

Distribution of Volcanoes in the Pacific Ring of Fire

1. Describe the distribution of volcanoes in the map .

2. What do the small triangles represent?

3. Locate the places where the 12 dangerous volcanoes along the ring of fire found. Use the format
below.
No. Name of volcano Location
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

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11
12
Pacific Ring of Fire
4.
Essential Where are most of the volcanoes
Question: found?

Convergent boundary
(dots are volcanoes

Divergent
boundary

The Pacific Ring of Fire (or just The Ring of Fire) is an area where large numbers of earthquakes
and volcanic eruptions occur in the basin of the Pacific Ocean. In a 40,000 km (25,000 mi) horseshoe shape, it is
associated with a nearly continuous series of oceanic trenches, volcanic arcs, and volcanic belts and/or plate
movements. The Ring of Fire has 452 volcanoes and is home to over 75% of the world's active and dormant
volcanoes. It is sometimes called the circum-Pacific belt or the circum-Pacific seismic belt. About 90% of the world's
earthquakes and 81% of the world's largest earthquakes occur along the Ring of Fire.
The famous and very active San Andreas Fault zone of California is a transform fault which offsets a portion
of the East Pacific Rise under southwestern United States and Mexico. The motion of the fault generates numerous
small earthquakes, at multiple times a day, most of which are too small to be felt. Most volcanoes on Earth are the
result of convergent boundaries, some by divergent boundaries while a few by the weak spots on Earth’s crust like
the Hawaiian hot spots.

Clarifying Questions:

1. Describe the “Pacific Ring of Fire”.

2. What kind of plate movements is responsible for the following:

Plate movements can be convergent, divergent, transform or strike slip.
a. oceanic trenches : ____________________________________________________________
b. volcanic arcs and volcanic belts: _________________________________________________
c. San Andreas fault: ____________________________________________________________

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3. Why is it called the “Pacific Ring of Fire”?

II- Identification:
Directions: Identify the following . Write your answer on the space provided.
___________________________a. Number of volcanoes in the Pacific Ring of Fire.
___________________________b. Location of the Pacific ring of Fire.
___________________________c. Another name for the Pacific Ring of Fire.
___________________________d. The kind fault of San Andreas Fault.
___________________________e. Shape of the “Pacific Ring of Fire”.

III- What type of plate boundaries results to:

__________________________a. most volcanoes on Earth.
__________________________b. some volcanoes on Earth.
__________________________ c. Few volcanoes on Earth.

IV- STUDY THE CHART AND IDENTIFY THE TYPE OF PLATE MOVEMENTS.
Plate movements: convergent, divergent, transform, transform or strike slip, no plate boundary
Between Pacific plate and Nazca plate: ______________________________________________
Vertically across the Atlantic ocean: _________________________________________________
Hawaiian hot spot: _______________________________________________________________
Western side of the United States: __________________________________________________
West of the Pacific ocean: _________________________________________________________
North of the Pacific ocean: ________________________________________________________

V- Challenge! ( 10 pts.)
Why are earthquakes most common around the
Pacific Ocean? Use the following words for your
answer: convergent boundary, subduction,
volcano, friction, pressure, and release.
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________

VI- MULTIPLE CHOICE

Directions: Write the letter of the correct answer on the space before the number.

____ 1. Most magma forms in...

A. continental crust B. the lithosphere C. the asthenosphere D. ocean crust

____ 2. An opening in the earth's surface through which molten rock flows is called a ...
A. vent B. caldera C. mantle D. fault

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____ 3. An opening on the earth's surface through which molten rock flows and the material that builds up
Around the opening together form a...
A. subduction zone B. trench C. convergent boundary D. volcano

____ 4. The broad volcanic feature formed by quiet eruptions on thin lava flows is called a_____.
A. shield zone B. cinder cone
____ 5. Which of the following formations would most likely result from a single violent volcanic eruption?
A. shield volcano B. vent C. cinder cone D. caldera

____ 6. What is the name of the volcano which erupted in 1980 and caused widespread damage in the
Washington and Oregon region?
A. Mt. Vesuvius B. Mt. St. Helens C. Mt. Rushmore D. Mt. McKinley
____ 7. What is formed when a magma chamber empties and collapses?
A. a crater B. a fissure C. a caldera D. a vent

____ 8. Before a volcanic eruption, seismic activity seems to...

A. increase in frequency and decrease in intensity C. decrease in frequency and increase in intensity
B. decrease in both frequency and intensity D. increase in both frequency and intensity

____ 9. Plates pushing against each other or are colliding produce a _________________ boundary
A. divergent B. convergent C. Transform

____ 10. What kind of plate boundary is found between the Pacific plate and the North American plate?
A. divergent B. convergent C. Transform

References: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/earth/ring-of-fire/
https://www.universetoday.com/59341/pacific-ring-of-fire/

Exploring Life Through Science 10

Science for the Millennials

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Name:________________________________________________________ Grade & Sec:_____________________

//Worksheet 1: The Pacific Ring of Fire

North
America

A M-
1

A Pacifi c Ocean

Active Volcano
Super volcano

Figure . 1 Destructive Plate Margins Figure . 2 Active Volcanoes

1. (a) Describe the distribution of destructive plate margins in the Pacific shown in Figure 1.

(b) Explain what is happening to the plates at these plate margins in the Pacific.

(c) Compare the distribution of active volcanoes shown in Figure 2 with the distribution of plate margins in
Figure 1

(i)Name one of the supervolcanoes marked on Figure 2_________________________________________

(ii)State two ways supervolcanoes are different from the other volcanoes in Figure 2.

SCIENCE 10/ PACIFIC RING OF FIRE/

Pacifi c Ocean