East Pacific Rise

It runs south from the Gulf of California in the Salton Sea basin in Southern California to a point near 55°S 130°W / 55°S 130°W / -55; -130, where it joins the Pacific-Antarctic Ridge (PAR) trending west-south-west towards Antarctica, near New Zealand (though in some uses the PAR is regarded as the southern section of the EPR).

Much of the rise lies about 3,200 km (2,000 mi) off the South American coast and reaches a height about 1,800–2,700 m (5,900–8,900 ft) above the surrounding seafloor.

Near Easter Island, the East Pacific Rise meets the Chile Rise at the Easter Island and Juan Fernandez microplates, trending off to the east where it subducts under the South American plate at the Peru–Chile Trench along the coast of southern Chile.

[6] The southern extension of the East Pacific Rise (the PAR) merges with the Southeast Indian Ridge at the Macquarie triple junction south of New Zealand.

The southern stretch of the East Pacific Rise is also one of the fastest-spreading divergent boundaries on Earth,[2][7] peaking at 79.3 mm (3.12 in)/year.