Tongariro National Park - Geology

Geology

The volcanoes Tongariro, Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu are the southern end of a 2500 km long range of volcanoes, below which the Indo-Australian Plate meets the Pacific Plate.These volcanoes have resulted from internal tectonic processes. The Pacific Plate subducts under the Indo-Australian plate, and subsequently melts due to the high temperatures of the aesthenosphere. This magma being less dense, rises to the surface and goes through the weak parts of the Earth's crust(the faults) resulting in volcanic processes in the area. Volcanic processes have been causing the uplift of the mountains of Tongariro National Park for over two million years.