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Archipelago

    Micronesia, United States and Japan

    22°07′N 145°02′E

    Izu–Bonin–Mariana arc

    The Izu–Bonin–Mariana (IBM) arc system is a tectonic plate convergent boundary in Micronesia.

    Aerial view of Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands
    Aerial view of Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands

    P. Miller, (Pdmiller) / Public domain

    Chart

    3382 landforms

    Overview

    The Izu–Bonin–Mariana (IBM) arc system is a tectonic plate convergent boundary in Micronesia. The IBM arc system extends over 2,800 km (1,700 mi) south from Tokyo, Japan, to beyond Guam, and includes the Izu Islands, the Bonin Islands, and the Mariana Islands; much more of the IBM arc system is submerged below sea level. The IBM arc system lies along the eastern margin of the Philippine Sea plate in the Western Pacific Ocean. It is the site of the deepest gash in Earth's solid surface, the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench. The IBM arc system formed as a result of subduction of the western Pacific plate. The IBM arc system now subducts mid-Jurassic to Early Cretaceous lithosphere, with younger lithosphere in the north and older lithosphere in the south, including the oldest (~170 million years old, or Ma) oceanic crust. Subduction rates vary from ~2 cm (1 inch) per year in the south to 6 cm (~2.5 inches) in the north. The volcanic islands that comprise these island arcs are thought to have been formed from the release of volatiles (steam from trapped water, and other gases) being released from the subducted plate, as it reached sufficient depth for the temperature to cause release of these materials. The associated trenches are formed as the oldest (most western) part of the Pacific plate crust increases in density with age, and because of this process finally reaches its lowest point just as it subducts under the crust to the west of it. The IBM arc system is an excellent example of an intra-oceanic convergent margin (IOCM). IOCMs are built on oceanic crust and contrast fundamentally with island arcs built on continental crust, such as Japan or the Andes. Because IOCM crust is thinner, denser, and more refractory than that beneath Andean-type margins, study of IOCM melts and fluids allows more confident assessment of mantle-to-crust fluxes and processes than is possible for Andean-type convergent margins. Because IOCMs are far removed from continents they are not affected by the large volume of alluvial and glacial sediments. The consequent thin sedimentary cover makes it much easier to study arc infrastructure and determine the mass and composition of subducted sediments. Active hydrothermal systems found on the submarine parts of IOCMs give us a chance to study how many of Earth's important ore deposits formed.

    From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

    Census, cataloged

    • Major islands11
    • Minor islands50
    • Islets408
    • Rocks & skerries2,913

    Major islands

    11
    • Guam

      Guam

      Area
      543 km²
      High point
      406 m
    • Saipan

      Saipan

      Area
      119 km²
      High point
      474 m

      Saipan is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Census Bureau, the population of Saipan was 43,385. Its people have been United States citizens since the 1980s.

    • Tinian

      Tinian

      Area
      101 km²
      High point
      181 m

      Tinian (; Chamorro: Tini'an) is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguijan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of the four constituent municipalities of the Northern Marianas. Tinian's largest village is San Jose.

    • Izu Ōshima

      Izu Ōshima

      Area
      90.8 km²
      High point
      758 m

      Izu Ōshima (伊豆大島, Izu-ōshima) is an inhabited volcanic island in the Izu archipelago and borders Sagami Bay and the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Honshu, Japan, 22 km (14 mi) east of the Izu Peninsula and 36 km (22 mi) southwest of Bōsō Peninsula.

    • Rota

      Rota

      Area
      85.1 km²
      High point
      476 m

      Rota (Chamorro: Luta), also known as the "Friendly Island", is the southernmost island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and the third southernmost of the Marianas Archipelago (the first being Cocos Island).

    • Hachijō-jima

      Hachijō-jima

      Area
      69.4 km²
      High point
      854 m

      Hachijō-jima (Japanese: 八丈島) is a volcanic island of Japan in the Pacific Ocean. It is about 287 km (178 mi) south of the special wards of Tokyo. It is part of the Izu archipelago and within the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. Its only municipality is Hachijō.

    • Miyakejima

      Miyakejima

      Area
      55.4 km²
      High point
      775 m

      Miyake-jima (三宅島; "Miyake Island") is a volcanic island in the Izu archipelago in the Philippine Sea approximately 180 kilometers (110 mi) southeast of Tokyo, Japan. As with the other islands in the Izu Island group, Miyake-jima forms part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park.

    • Yap Island

      Yap Island

      Area
      54.4 km²
      High point
      170 m
    • Pagan

      Pagan

      Area
      47.8 km²
      High point
      206 m

      Pagan is a volcanic island in the Marianas archipelago in the northwest Pacific Ocean, under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. It lies midway between Alamagan to the south and Agrihan to the north.

    • Agrihan

      Agrihan

      Area
      43.6 km²
      High point
      965 m

      Agrihan (also spelled Agrigan) is an island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. The island has mostly been uninhabited, but had 4 permanent residents in the 2020 U.S. census. Agrihan is located 62 kilometers (39 mi) to the north of Pagan.

    • Anatahan

      Anatahan

      Area
      34 km²
      High point
      790 m

      Anatahan is a volcanic island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and has one of the most active volcanoes of the archipelago. Formerly inhabited, the island is currently uninhabited due to the constant danger of volcanic eruptions.

    Minor islands

    50

    Rocks & skerries

    2913

    On the chart above, at its closest zooms.

    Listing 61 of 3382; the rest are on the chart.

    Figures

    Comparative heights

    Sea level500 m1,000 m965 mAgrihan916 mSouth Iwo Jima854 mHachijō-jima851 mMikura-jima840 mAsuncion792 mNorth Iwo Jima790 mAnatahan775 mMiyakejima758 mIzu Ōshima723 mAlamagan617 mHachijō-kojima572 mKōzu-shima538 mSarigan508 mToshima
    High points by island, metres above sea level.

    Islands by area

    0.11101001,000Guam: 543 km²GuamSaipan: 119 km²SaipanTinian: 101 km²TinianIzu Ōshima: 90.8 km²Izu ŌshimaRota: 85.1 km²RotaHachijō-jima: 69.4 km²Hachijō-jimaMiyakejima: 55.4 km²MiyakejimaYap: 54.4 km²YapPagan: 47.8 km²PaganAgrihan: 43.6 km²AgrihanAnatahan: 34 km²AnatahanIwo Jima: 30 km²Iwo JimaGagil-Tamil: 27.2 km²Gagil-TamilChichijima: 23.8 km²ChichijimaNii-jima: 23.2 km²Nii-jimaMikura-jima: 20.5 km²Mikura-jimaHahajima: 20.2 km²HahajimaKōzu-shima: 18.5 km²Kōzu-shimaAlamagan: 12.9 km²AlamaganMaap: 10.5 km²MaapAsuncion: 7.9 km²AsuncionAnijima: 7.9 km²AnijimaAguijan: 7 km²AguijanAogashima: 6 km²AogashimaNorth Iwo Jima: 5.6 km²North Iwo JimaOtōtojima: 5.2 km²OtōtojimaTori-shima: 4.8 km²Tori-shimaSarigan: 4.5 km²SariganGuguan: 4.3 km²GuguanToshima: 4.1 km²ToshimaRumung: 4 km²RumungNishinoshima: 3.8 km²NishinoshimaShikine-jima: 3.7 km²Shikine-jimaSouth Iwo Jima: 3.5 km²South Iwo JimaHachijō-kojima: 3.1 km²Hachijō-kojimaMukojima: 2.5 km²MukojimaFarallón de Pájaros: 2.3 km²Farallón de Pájar…Minamitorishima: 1.5 km²MinamitorishimaAnejima: 1.4 km²AnejimaMukōjima: 1.4 km²Mukōjima
    km², log scale. 1 without a known area.
    Guam543 km²
    Saipan119 km²
    Tinian101 km²
    Izu Ōshima90.8 km²
    Rota85.1 km²
    Hachijō-jima69.4 km²
    Miyakejima55.4 km²
    Yap Island54.4 km²
    Pagan47.8 km²
    Agrihan43.6 km²
    Anatahan34 km²
    Iwo Jima30 km²
    Gagil-Tamil27.2 km²
    Chichijima23.8 km²
    Nii-jima23.2 km²
    Mikura-jima20.5 km²
    Hahajima20.2 km²
    Kōzu-shima18.5 km²
    Alamagan12.9 km²
    Maap10.5 km²
    Asuncion Island7.9 km²
    Anijima7.9 km²
    Aguijan7 km²
    Aogashima6 km²
    North Iwo Jima5.6 km²
    Otōtojima5.2 km²
    Tori-shima4.8 km²
    Sarigan4.5 km²
    Guguan4.3 km²
    Toshima4.1 km²
    Rumung4 km²
    Nishinoshima3.8 km²
    Shikine-jima3.7 km²
    South Iwo Jima3.5 km²
    Hachijō-kojima3.1 km²
    Mukojima2.5 km²
    Farallón de Pájaros2.3 km²
    Minamitorishima1.5 km²
    Anejima1.4 km²
    Mukōjima1.4 km²
    Nakōdo Island1.3 km²
    Imōtojima1.2 km²
    Maug East Island0.92 km²
    Meijima0.87 km²
    Farallon de Medinilla0.78 km²
    Yomejima0.61 km²
    Maug West Island0.59 km²
    Nishijima0.49 km²
    Hirajima0.48 km²
    Maug North Island0.44 km²
    Udone-shima0.41 km²
    Cocos Island0.31 km²
    Minamijima0.29 km²
    Higashijima0.25 km²
    Jinai-tō0.19 km²
    Kangoku Rock0.18 km²
    Kitanoshima0.14 km²
    Magojima0.12 km²
    Fanqamat0.12 km²
    Hanshima0.11 km²

    Groups within

    3

    Sources

    Facts

    • Geometry, areas and high points: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Copernicus GLO-30, via Talus.
    • Wikidata
    • Wikipedia

    Photographs