What Does Back-Arc Spreading Do?

A back-arc basin is formed by the process of back-arc spreading, which begins when one tectonic plate subducts under (underthrusts) another. Subduction creates a trench between the two plates and melts the mantle in the overlying plate, which causes magma to rise toward the surface.

What is a back arc spreading center?

: a geological region that forms at a subduction zone when the overriding plate thins and begins to spread out —often used before another noun The hot springs there are not connected at all to the midocean ridge system: they lie on what is called a back-arc spreading center, a geologic feature that occurs not where two ...

What is a back-arc volcano?

The back-arc region is the area behind a volcanic arc. In island volcanic arcs it consists of back-arc basins of oceanic crust with abyssal depths, which may be separated by remnant arcs, similar to island arcs.