page_title: Explorer Plate
section_title: Boundaries
hierarchical_section_title: Explorer Plate / Boundaries
caption_attribution_description: English: A Bathymetric Profile of the Explorer Plate Region.
context_page_description: The Explorer Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate beneath the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of Vancouver Island, Canada and is partially subducted under the North American Plate. Along with the Juan De Fuca Plate and Gorda Plate, the Explorer Plate is a remnant of the ancient Farallon Plate which has been subducted under the North American Plate. The Explorer Plate separated from the Juan De Fuca Plate roughly 4 million years ago. In its smoother, southern half, the average depth of the Explorer plate is roughly 2,400 metres and rises up in its northern half to a highly variable basin between 1,400 metres and 2,200 metres in depth.
context_section_description: The eastern boundary of the Explorer Plate is being subducted under the North American Plate. The southern boundary is a collection of transform faults, the Sovanco Fracture Zone, separating the Explorer Plate from the Pacific Plate. To the southeast is another transform boundary, the Nootka Fault, which separates the Explorer Plate from the Juan de Fuca Plate and forms a triple junction with the North American Plate. To the northwest is a divergent boundary with the Pacific Plate forming the Explorer Ridge, and the Winona Basin located within the northwest boundaries and the Pacific continental shelf. The Queen Charlotte triple junction is located where the Pacific Plate and North American Plate meets with the Explorer Plate.
caption: A Bathymetric Profile of the Explorer Plate Region.
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