SIGNIFICANT AND INTERESTING GEOLOGICAL SITES IN NORTH ISLAND
The North Island of New Zealand lies to the west of a subduction zone marking the boundary between the Pacific and Australian Plates. The effect of that plate boundary on the island is profound, with the associated active volcanism and major crustal movement shaping its landforms and geology. The thermal activity of the crust is responsible for creating many mineral deposits, and is utilised for the production of geothermal energy.
Our downloadable tour guide passes through some of the volcanic and geothermal areas of North Island, visits several accessible mineral deposits, and views some areas subjected to significant crustal upheaval. Those sites are shown on the map to the left. Explanations of these sites are presented in the guide in terms suitable for non-geoscientists.
White Island Video
A low resolution video taken within the active volcanic crater on White Island can be downloaded below. This video is about 5.4 Mb and runs for a little more than 2 minutes. Please save the zipped video file , unpack it and play from your computer.
