Caroline Plate

Caroline Plate
Type	Minor
Approx. Area	1,700,000 km^2[1]
Movement^1	north-west
Speed^1	87mm/year
Features	Pacific Ocean
^1Relative to the African Plate

The Caroline Plate is a minor tectonic plate that straddles the equator in the eastern hemisphere located north of New Guinea. It forms a subduction zone along the border with the Bird's Head Plate and the Woodlark Plate to the south. A transform boundary forms the northern border with the Pacific Plate. Along the border with the Philippine Sea Plate is a convergent boundary that transitions into a rift.

References

• Bird, P. (2003) An updated digital model of plate boundaries, Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems, 4(3), 1027, doi:10.1029/2001GC000252.
• Bracey, D.R. (1983) Geophysics and tectonic development of the Caroline Basin, U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office TR283.

1. http://geology.about.com/library/bl/blplate_size_table.htm