What tectonic plate is located west of a trench which reaches a maximum-known depth of 10994 m?
Mariana Plate The Mariana Plate is a small tectonic plate located west of the Mariana Trench and forms the basement of the Mariana Islands. It is separated from the Philippine Sea Plate by a long divergent boundary with numerous transform fault offsets. The boundary between the Mariana and the Pacific Plate to the east is a subduction zone with the Pacific Plate subducting beneath the Mariana. The Mariana Trench forms the southeastern boundary and the Izu-Ogasawara Trench the northeastern boundary.
Tectonics of the Tian Shan The Tian Shan is a mountain range in central Asia that extends through western China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. The Tian Shan is 2800 km long, and up to 7400 m high. Throughout the Tian Shan there are several intermontane basins separated by high ranges. Plate tectonic theory makes the assumption that deformation is concentrated along plate boundaries. However, active deformation is observed in the Tian Shan, far from plate boundaries. This apparent contradiction of plate tectonic theory makes the Tian Shan a key place to study the dynamics of intracontinental deformation.