Subduction zones are associated with the deepest earthquakes on the planet.
Some subducted slabs seem not to be able to penetrate the major discontinuity in the mantle that lies at a depth of about 670 km, whereas other subductedoceanicplates can penetrate all the way to the core-mantle boundary.
Subduction Zone Biology: Because subduction zones are the coldest parts of the Earth's interior and life cannot exist at temperatures >150°C, subduction zones are almost certainly associated with the deepest (highest pressure) biosphere.
Subduction zones — areas of offshore ocean floors where two tectonicplates meet, with one sliding beneath the other — are often where powerful earthquakes occur, including quakes in Indonesia in 2004, Alaska in 1964, Chile in 1960 and the Pacific Northwest in 1700.
As the subductingplate slides beneath the upper plate, stress begins to build where the plates meet and the upper plate can deform to create a large structure — "a forearc basin." The basin, a bowl-shaped depression, fills with sediment from nearby rivers that empty into the ocean.
As the top part of the subductingplate meets more resistance and travels at a slower speed than the bottom part of the plate, greater strain is created in the plate.
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