Mid-Atlantic Ridge

American  

[mid-at-lan-tik, mid-at-lan-] / ˈmɪd ætˈlæn tɪk, ˌmɪd ætˈlæn- /

noun

1. a north-south suboceanic ridge in the Atlantic Ocean from Iceland to Antarctica on whose crest are several groups of islands; shown by plate tectonics to be the axis along which North America has split away from Eurasia, and along which South America has split away from Africa.

---

Example Sentences

Iceland is very used to volcanic activity - successfully building a tourist industry on it - because it sits over the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.

From BBC • Nov. 13, 2023

It sits atop the continually spreading Mid-Atlantic Ridge, where the North American plate to the west and the Eurasian plate to the east are gradually pulling apart.

From National Geographic • Jul. 24, 2023

A recent expedition to locate more of these vents yielded a new find: a group of “black smoker” vents emitting water of 645 degrees Fahrenheit along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge near Puerto Rico.

From Washington Post • Apr. 30, 2023

And on Iceland, which straddles the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, Moretti and her colleagues have recorded comparable hydrogen flows at some of the hot springs and geothermal wells that dot the country.

From Science Magazine • Feb. 15, 2023

Similar openings on the sea floor were first spotted 18 years ago along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.

From New York Times • Jul. 29, 2022