Type Major | Movement north-west | |
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Approx. Area 60,900,000 km (23,500,000 sq mi) Speed 12–14 mm (0.47–0.55 in)/year Features Antarctica, Southern Ocean | ||
The Antarctic Plate is a tectonic plate containing the continent of Antarctica and extending outward under the surrounding oceans. After breakup from Gondwana (the southern part of the supercontinent Pangea), the Antarctic plate began moving the continent of Antarctica south to its present isolated location causing the continent to develop a much colder climate. The Antarctic Plate is bounded almost entirely by extensional mid-ocean ridge systems. The adjoining plates are the Nazca Plate, the South American Plate, the African Plate, the Indo-Australian Plate, the Pacific Plate, and, across a transform boundary, the Scotia Plate.
The Antarctic plate has an area of about 60,900,000 km2 (23,500,000 sq mi). It is the Earth's fifth largest plate.
The Antarctic plate's movement is estimated to be at least 1 cm (0.4 in) per year towards the Atlantic Ocean.