Question

14 along the west coast of south america, a line of volcanoes appears at the convergent plate boundary. what process explains this formation of volcanoes?
explanation
divergent plate boundaries—
where new crust is generated as the plates pull away from each other.
convergent plate boundaries—
where crust is consumed in the earths interior as one plate dives under another.
transform plate boundaries—
where crust is neither produced nor destroyed as plates slide horizontally past each other.
plate boundary zones—broad belts in which deformation is diffuse and boundaries are not well defined.
selected prominent hotspots
a) continental rift where one plate splits apart
b) one plate sliding past another causing friction and melting
c) melting of the crust because plates are moving over a hot spot
d) subducting of one plate under another causing melting of the lower plate

Explanation:

The question refers to a convergent plate boundary off South America's west coast. Convergent boundaries involve one plate subducting under another. The subducting oceanic plate melts due to heat and pressure, creating magma that rises to form volcanoes. Option A describes divergent boundaries, B describes transform boundaries, C describes hot spot volcanism (not convergent boundaries).

Answer:

D. Subducting of one plate under another causing melting of the lower plate