Gorda Ridge

Eight underwater volcanoes, known as the President Jackson Seamounts, sit on the Pacific plate, roughly 50 km west of the northern portion of the ridge.

[6] Because the ridge is divided into three distinct parts, each section has its own spreading rate, caused by the slab-pull and ridge-push of the surrounding tectonic plates.

The northern segment is the narrowest, with portions as narrow as 3 km across, and has the fastest spreading rate of 2.9 cm per year (half-rate).

[2] Due to the Gorda Ridge's proximity to the Mendocino triple junction, the area experiences a significant amount of seismic activity.

[3] On February 28, 1996, the northern segment of the Gorda Ridge experienced a burst of seismic activity, lasting roughly three weeks.

[7] This is caused by the oceanic crust beneath the ridge being thinner, and mantle temperatures being cooler than other intermediate spreading centers.