The geologic events that can take place depend on the type of plate movement involved. Aside from the common events like earthquakes and volcanic activity, other geologic phenomena include:
- At divergent boundaries (where plates move apart), besides volcanic eruptions, earthquakes can occur due to tension buildup as the plates pull away from each other
- At convergent boundaries (where plates collide), besides mountain building, subduction can form deep ocean trenches and generate tsunamis from underwater earthquakes
- At transform boundaries (where plates slide past each other), besides shallow earthquakes, the lateral motion can cause surface ruptures and landslides if stress accumulates sufficiently
- Hotspots , where a plate moves over a mantle plume, can cause volcanic chains and earthquakes independent of plate boundary interactions
In summary, plate movements can lead to a variety of geologic events including earthquakes, volcanic activity, mountain formation, ocean trench creation, tsunamis, landslides, and surface ruptures depending on the boundary type and tectonic setting
