ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

East Asia island arcs

Okay, so imagine you have a bunch of little islands sitting in the middle of a big body of water. Some of these islands are in a line with each other, kind of like a string of pearls. This is what we call an island arc.

Now, let's say these islands were formed a long time ago when two tectonic plates (which are like big puzzle pieces that make up the Earth's crust) collided with each other. As they crashed together, one plate got forced under the other one and melted away, creating a big magma chamber underground.

This magma eventually found its way up to the surface and erupted, creating new land in the form of these islands. Over time, the magma cooled and solidified into different types of rocks.

East Asia has a lot of island arcs because it sits on the edge of a big tectonic plate called the Pacific Plate. This plate is constantly moving and colliding with other plates, causing earthquakes and volcanic eruptions in the area.

So, there you have it – East Asia island arcs are a chain of islands formed by tectonic activity and volcanic eruptions caused by the movement of the Pacific Plate.