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Many of Alaska's more than 130 volcanoes are located along the 1,550-mile-long Aleutian Arc. It extends from the Alaska mainland west toward Kamchatka, Russia, and forms the northern part of the tectonically active "ring of fire" girding the Pacific Ocean basin. To learn more about volcanic hazards in this volatile region, 25 researchers from 11 institutions studied the Aleutian Arc last summer.
The effort is part of the National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded GeoPRISMS (Geodynamic Processes at Rifting and Subducting Margins) program. GeoPRISMS is designed to investigate the architecture, mechanics and plumbing of continental margins at subduction zones and continental rifts, including what controls geohazards such as earthquakes and volcanoes.Image credit: USFWS
