صفيحة أمريكا الشمالية
In the Cascadia subduction zone, the Juan de Fuca Plate, a relic of the ancient Farallon Plate, is actively subducting eastward underneath the North American Plate. The boundary between the Juan de Fuca and North American plates is generally "locked" due to interplate friction. A GPS marker on the surface of the North American plate above the locked region will trend eastward as it is dragged by the subduction process. Geodetic measurements show periodic reversals in the motion (i.e., westward movement) of the overthrusting North American Plate. During these reversals, the GPS marker will be displaced to the west over a period of days to weeks. Because these events occur over a much longer duration than earthquakes, they are termed "slow slip events".