page_title: Geology of the Canary Islands
hierarchical_section_title: Geology of the Canary Islands
caption_attribution_description: English: Pahoehoe lava on El Hierro in the Canary Islands, Spain.
context_page_description: The geology of the Canary Islands is dominated by volcanic rock. The volcanic history of the Canary Islands started about 80 million years ago and the Canary Islands region is still volcanically active. The most recent volcanic eruption on land occurred in 1971 and the most recent underwater eruption was in 2011-12.
  The Canary Islands are a 450 km long, east-west trending, archipelago of volcanic islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, 100–500 km off the coast of Northwest Africa.
  From east to west, the main islands are Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma, and El Hierro. There are also several minor islands and islets. The seven main Canary Islands originated as separate submarine seamount volcanoes on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, which is 1,000–4,000 m deep in the Canarian region.
  Lanzarote and Fuerteventura are parts of a single volcanic ridge called the Canary Ridge. The two present-day islands were a single island in the past. Part of the ridge has been submerged and now Lanzarote and Fuerteventura are separate islands, separated by an 11 km wide, 40 m deep strait.
context_section_description: The geology of the Canary Islands is dominated by volcanic rock. The volcanic history of the Canary Islands started about 80 million years ago and the Canary Islands region is still volcanically active. The most recent volcanic eruption on land occurred in 1971 and the most recent underwater eruption was in 2011-12.
  The Canary Islands are a 450 km (280 mi) long, east-west trending, archipelago of volcanic islands in the North Atlantic Ocean, 100–500 km (62–311 mi) off the coast of Northwest Africa.                 
  From east to west, the main islands are Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Gomera, La Palma, and El Hierro. There are also several minor islands and islets. The seven main Canary Islands originated as separate submarine seamount volcanoes on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, which is 1,000–4,000 m (3,300–13,100 ft) deep in the Canarian region.
  Lanzarote and Fuerteventura are parts of a single volcanic ridge called the Canary Ridge. The two present-day islands were a single island in the past. Part of the ridge has been submerged and now Lanzarote and Fuerteventura are separate islands, separated by an 11 km (6.8 mi) wide, 40 m (130 ft) deep strait. 
  Volcanic activity has occurred during the last 11,700 years on all of the main islands except  La Gomera.
caption: A lava flow on El Hierro
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