. Base of "
black smoker" chimney The
oceanic crust is moving away from the East Pacific Rise to either side. Near
Easter Island the rate is over per year which is the fastest in the world. However, on the northern end, it is much slower at only roughly per year. On the eastern side of the rise, the eastward-moving
Cocos and
Nazca plates meet the westward moving
South American plate and the
North American plate and are being
subducted under them. The belt of
volcanos along the
Andes and the arc of volcanoes through
Central America and
Mexico are the direct results of this collision. Due east of the
Baja California peninsula, the Rise is sometimes referred to as the
Gulf of California Rift Zone. In this area, newly formed oceanic crust is intermingled with rifted continental crust originating from the North American plate. Near
Easter Island, the East Pacific Rise meets the
Chile Rise at the Easter Island and Juan Fernandez microplates, trending off to the east where it subducts under the
South American plate at the
Peru–Chile Trench along the coast of southern
Chile. This portion of the Rise has been referred to as the Cape Adare-Easter Island Ridge, Albatross Cordillera, Easter Island Cordillera, Easter Island Rise, and Easter Island Swell. Parts of the East Pacific Rise have oblique spreading, such as the Nazca–Pacific plate boundary between 29°S and 32°S. This is
seafloor spreading that is not orthogonal to the nearest ridge segment. peaking at /year. Along the East Pacific Rise the
hydrothermal vents called
black smokers were first discovered by the
RISE project in 1979, and have since been extensively studied. These vents are forming
volcanogenic massive sulfide ore deposits on the ocean floor. Many unique deep-water creatures have been found with vents, that subsist in a
chemosynthetic ecosystem rather than one using
photosynthesis. == See also ==