Department of Education

Science 10
Distribution of Active Volcanoes, Earthquake
Epicenters and Major Mountain Belts
Quarter 1 – Week 3

Abigail M. De Lios
Writer

Herminia C. Lebrias
Validator

Jason B. Albaro
Dr. Armida S. Oblinada
Quality Assurance Team

Schools Division Office – Muntinlupa City

Student Center for Life Skills Bldg., Centennial Ave., Brgy. Tunasan, Muntinlupa City
(02) 8805-9935 / (02) 8805-9940
 This Supplementary Learning Module (SleM) focuses on distribution of active
volcanoes, earthquake epicenters and mountain belts. It will also help you understand the concept
of seismic wave. It provides you self-learning activities that will further develop your
understanding on the lesson.

After going through this SLeM, you are expected to:

Most Essential Learning Competencies
Week 3: Describe and relate the distribution of active volcanoes, earthquake epicenters, and
major mountain belts to Plate Tectonic Theory (S10ES – Ia-j-36.1)

Specifically, you will be able to:

1. Plot the active volcanoes, earthquake epicenters and major mountain belts in a world
map
2. Describe the distribution of active volcanoes, earthquake epicenters and major
mountain belts
3. Infer the relationship of tectonic plates, earthquake epicenters and active volcanoes.
4. Determine the scientific basis for dividing the lithospheric plates
5. Relate the distribution of active volcanoes, earthquake epicenters, and major
mountain belts to Plate Tectonic Theory
6. Present a schematic plan for the community on how to mitigate or reduce the effects
of disaster-related events such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions

Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write your answers on a separate sheet
of paper.

1. What is the primary mechanism involve in mountain formation in continents?

A. Diastrophism C. Orogeny
B. Oncogeny D. Pylogeny
2. Which refers to the deformation of the Earth’s lithosphere that involves faulting and
folding?
A. Convergence C. Orogeny
B. Diastrophism D. None of the Above
3. What is the most common cause of tectonic earthquake?
A. Astatic strain C. Static strain
B. Elastic strain D. Tension strain
4. Which refers to the area directly above the focus?
A. Epicenter C. Both A and B
B. Focus D. Neither A nor B
5. Which process results when the rocks are squeezed or stretch when they are at
cooler temperature?
A. Faulting B. Folding C. Earthquake D. Orogeny
6. Where is the geographic area where active volcanoes are found?
A. Arc of fire C. Edges of the plates
B. Ring of fire D. Edges of the continents
 7. Which theory states that the Earth’s lithosphere is cracked and is separated by
slabs of rocks known as plates?
A. Orogenesis C. Plate Tectonic theory
B. Sea floor spreading D. Convection Current theory
8. What Philippine agency monitors the earthquake and volcanic activities?
A. DENR B. DepED C. NASA D. PHIVOLCS
9. The following are tectonic plates included in the Ring of Fire EXCEPT
A. Nazca plate C. Antarctic plate
B. Cocos’s plate D. Philippine plate
10. Which process results when the rocks are squeezed from side to side especially
when these rocks are flexible and warm?
A. Compression B. Faulting C. Folding D. Orogeny
11. Which process shapes the Earth’s geographical surface?
A. Compression B. Diastrophism C. Faulting D. Folding
12. Which is refered to as the big slabs of lithospheric rocks?
A. Magma slabs C. Volcanic plates
B. Tectonic plates D. Mountain boulders
13. Why do you think the Philippines has several active volcanoes?
A. Because it is an archipelago
B. Because it has several rainforests
C. Because it is located at the Pacific ring of Fire
D. Because it is surrounded by mountain ranges
14. Which mechanism is responsible behind mountain formation?
A. Diatrophism B. Faulting C. Folding D. Orogeny
15. Which process leads to the compression of the lithosphere, thus forming mountains?
A. Folding C. Earthquake
B. Faulting D. Convection movement

Directions: Identify whether the given examples refer to volcanoes, mountains,

earthquake, or ALL.

1. __________An opening on the Earth’s crust where lava exits.

2. __________The shaking of the Earth’s crust due to sudden release of energy.
3. __________It created more than 70% of the Earth’s surface and continues to do so.
4. __________Result from the movement of tectonic plates in different directions.
5. __________ A high elevation on the Earth’s surface.

The Active Volcanoes

The surface of the Earth changes over a period. The most important sculptor of these
changes is brought about by the eruption of active volcanoes, which are opening or vent on
the earth’s surface where lava exits.
 A volcano is thought to be active
when it has recently erupted and will soon
erupt again. In the Philippines, the most
popular active volcanoes are the Mayon
volcano and the Taal volcano which has
recently erupted in 2020.

Around the world, distribution of

active volcanoes is mostly found in a
region at the Pacific that forms an arc,
known as the Pacific Ring of Fire. This is
the area where the most active volcanoes
and strongest earthquakes were found. It
is located along the boundaries between https://tinyurl.com/kk98zaem
several lithospheric plates—including the Fig. 1 The Pacific Ring of Fire
Cocos, Juan de Fuca, Indian-Australian,
Nazca, North American, Pacific, and Philippine Plates. In these plates, active convergence
occurs causing subduction and melting of the part of the crust, thereby allowing the magma
to come out. Most of these are found along the edges of the boundaries where the plates
interact.

This fact, however, exempts

the Hawaii Islands. The islands are
formed within the Pacific plate.
The formation of volcanoes in this
location is formed because of the
presence of a hot spot. Hotspots are
volcanic regions that are formed
because of the presence of active
mantle activities where magma oozes
out. This area is known as the https://tinyurl.com/nx4h2da
mantle plume. Fig. 2 Hotspots with Mantle Plume

In areas where there are

active volcanoes, geographical changes like formation of trenches and underwater volcanoes
occur.

The Mountain Belt

One effect of the tectonic activities is

the formation of mountain and mountain
ranges which usually involved folding and
faulting in a process called diastrophism.
Folding happens when the plate is
squeezed from side to side when the rocks
and warm and flexible while faulting occurs
in the same manner but with rocks that are
cold and rigid, causing them to break. When
mountains are built on continents like the
Himalayan Mountain range, its primary
mechanism is orogeny. Through the
convergence of some of the plates towards https://tinyurl.com/hhym8z7y
Fig. 3 Sierra Madre Mountain Ranges
each other, formation of mountains along the (Philippines)
edges of the plates is also possible. Example of
this is the Himalayan Mountain range, Andes Mountains and the Philippine’s Sierra Madre
Mountain Ranges.
The Earthquake

The earthquake epicenter as discussed in Module 2 is an important marker for the

presence of different tectonic plates. As an analysis on the result of your previous activity, it
is shown that most of the earthquake epicenters are found along the areas where there are:

1. Active volcanic activities

2. Mountain formation
3. Active plate movements
4. Earthquake epicenters
These markers served as the scientific bases for dividing the lithosphere into plates.

Plate Tectonic Theory

The Plate Tectonic theory states that the Earth’s lithosphere is divided into plates.
Many years ago, scientists have been fascinated with how the Earth’s outer shell, the
lithosphere, look like. Using the
information coming from the maps
that showed the location of the active
volcanoes, the mountain ranges and
the earthquake epicenters, they have
come up with concrete scientific
bases on how the plates are actually
divided. Further, when they started to
map the ocean floor, an astonishing
fact that supported all those
previously mentioned scientific bases https://tinyurl.com/pydzc5rh
has finally validated it all. It was the Fig. 4 The Original Painting of the Tharp-Heezen map
pronouncement of the Tharp-Heezen
map. This map was first introduced by a female oceanographer in the 1940’s, Marie Tharp.
It showed underwater mountain ranges, valleys and faults. Although many would like to
disprove the findings, it was Bruce Heezen who observed that seismic activities were present
in areas observed by Tharp. Finally, they developed the map that changed everything on how
the scientific community viewed the ocean. This further strengthens the Plate Tectonic
Theory.

Activity 1: Lets Mark and Connect

Materials Needed:
1. Copy of the maps (Plate tectonic map, mountain belt maps, active volcano maps,
maps with earthquake epicenter.
2. Three different colored pens or markers
Procedures:

1. Study the following maps:

Active Volcano

Active Volcano

Guide Questions:

1. What have you noticed with

the location of the active
volcanoes?

2. What can you infer about

this?

https://tinyurl.com/4bmmds5u

Earthquake Epicenter

Guide Questions:

3. What have you noticed with

the location of the earthquake
epicenters?

4. What can you infer about

this?

https://tinyurl.com/5ubjvw34

Mountain Belts

Guide Questions:

5. What have you noticed with

the location of the mountains
and/or mountain ranges?

6. What can you infer about

this?
https://tinyurl.com/yt3h3be5

(Note: The part with the dark color represents the presence of mountains and/or mountain
ranges)
 2. Using the different colored pens, plot the location where the active volcanoes,
earthquake epicenters and mountain range in the plate tectonic map. (Use the
separate Plate Tectonic Map provided at the end of the module.

https://tinyurl.com/9ysmjfsv
Guide Questions:

7. What can you say about the location of the active volcanoes, earthquake
epicenters and mountain ranges in respect to the plates?
8. Specifically, where are they located in the plate tectonic maps?
9. Scientists have stated that the lithosphere is cracked into slabs of rocks. Do you
think, they have scientific basis for saying so?
10. Write down the scientific bases used by the scientist in dividing the lithosphere
into plates based on this activity

Word Link
Directions: Read the following words to understand how they were used in this
module.
Vocabulary Words Meaning
The process of shaping the Earth’s geological surface.
Diastrophism
This may include the processes of faulting and folding
This process resulted from the compressing or
Faulting
stretching of the lithosphere under cooler temperature
This process resulted from the side to side compression
Folding
while the rocks are warm and flexible
It is a place in the Pacific where active volcanoes are
Ring of Fire
found
This refers to the mechanism that occurs behind the
Orogeny
geologic change in mountain formation

These are big slabs of lithospheric rocks

Tectonic plates
This is a unifying theory that states that the Earth’s
Plate Tectonic
lithosphere is broken and made up of big slabs of rocks
theory
called tectonic plates
 Your turn!

A. Directions: Write a short paragraph with at least three to five sentences about the
pictures below. Please be guided by the following questions:
Guide Questions:

1. What is the picture about?

2. What do you feel about the picture?
3. What does it do to the Earth’s surface?
4. How does it change the Earth?
5. What is the effect to both living and non-living things on the Earth’s
surface?
a. Taal Volcano
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

https://tinyurl.com/przu6jw4

b. Mt. Apo
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
https://tinyurl.com/przu6jw4

c. North Bohol Fault

_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________
_____________________________________

https://tinyurl.com/4juaj97z
 B. Directions: Write a short essay about the importance of the discovery of the scientific
bases for plate tectonic theory. How this will be important in your life as a student?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________

C. Performance Task:
Directions: Prepare a schematic
plan for the community on how
to mitigate or reduce the effects
of disaster-related events such
as earthquakes, tsunamis, and
volcanic eruptions. Submit your
work in a separate sheet of
paper. Please be guided with the
scoring rubric.

Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write your answers on a separate sheet
of paper.

1. Which statement best describes a hotspot?

A. The area in the plate where active regions of mantle called mantle plume is present
B. It occurs in the middle of the plate
C. Both statements are incorrect
D. Both statements are correct
2. Which two volcanoes erupted recently in 2020?
A. Mayon and Taal C. Taal and Pinatubo
B. Mayon and Pinatubo D. Pinatubo and Kanlaon
3. Which map shows how the seafloor looks like?
A. Heezen Map B. Seafloor Map C. Tharp Map D. Tharp-Heezen Map
4. Which does not describe the Pacific ring of fire?
A. Area where hotspots often develop
B. Area where most active volcanoes are found
C. Area where the strongest earthquakes are felt
D. Area consists of countries like Japan and Philippines
5. Which best describe the given statements?
Statement 1: Active volcanoes are the volcanoes that recently erupted and will erupt again
Statement 2: Mt. Kanlaon and Mt. Fuji have recently erupted in 2020.
A. Only statement 1 is correct C. Both statements are correct
B. Only statement 2 is correct D. Both statements are incorrect
6. Which theory states that the Earth’s lithosphere is cracked and is separated by slabs of
rocks known as plates?
A. Orogeny B. Orogenesis C. Sea floor spreading D. Plate Tectonic Theory
7. Which lithospheric plate does not form part of the Pacific Ring of Fire?
A. Cocos plate B. Eurasian Plate C. Philippine Plate D. North American Plate
8. Which is not common among the following mountains: Andes, Himalayan, and Sierra Madre
mountains?
A. All are products of the folding process
B. All are formed at the edges of the continents
 C. All are formed by the divergence of plates against each other
D. All are formed by the convergence of plates towards each other.
9. Which is considered as major tectonic plates?
A. Nazca plate B. Cocos’s plate C. Antarctic plate D. Philippine plate
10. Which is considered as an important marker for determining the location of different
tectonic plates?
A. Active volcanoes C. Mountain formation
B. Hotspot’s formation D. Earthquake epicenter
11. What does the Tharp-Heezenmap reveal?
A. Underwater rock formation C. Underwater earthquake epicenter
B. Underwater view of the ocean D. Underwater Mountain ranges, valleys and faults
12. What unifying theory in geology explains the interaction of moving crustal plates with its
results as major structural features of the Earth?
A. Tectonic Plates C. Continental Drift Theory
B. Plate Tectonics D. Seafloor Spreading Theory
13. What do geologists say about the location of earthquake belts, mountain ranges, and
volcanoes?
A. almost have the same locations C. located in the middle of the continents
B. they are not randomly distributed D. located near the edges of the continents
14. Which event provides a more reliable and concrete scientific bases in the discovery of
tectonic plates?
A. Pacific Ring of Fire C. Location of earthquake epicenters
B. Mountain formations D. Development of the Tharp-Heezen Map
15. What are the bases of scientists in dividing the Earth’s lithosphere into several plates?
I. seismicity II. volcanism III. hot spot location IV. mountain formation

A. I and II only C. I, II, and IV only

B. I, II, and III only D. I, II, III, and IV

References
Cain, F. (2016, September 16). What are Active Volcanoes? Retrieved July 03, 2020, from
https://www.universetoday.com/29662/active-volcano/

Endsley, K. (n.d.). Retrieved June 26, 2020, from http://www.geo.mtu.edu/UPSeis/locating.html

Hall, D. (2018, May 08). Making a Mark on the Ocean Floor. Retrieved July 04, 2020, from
https://ocean.si.edu/ecosystems/deep-sea/making-mark-ocean-floor

Masum, M and Akbar, A (2019.). The Pacific Ring of Fire is Working as a Home Country of Geothermal Resources
in the World. Retrieved July 03, 2020, from https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1755-
1315/249/1/012020/pdf

National Geographic Society. (2013, March 05). Plate Tectonics. Retrieved July 04, 2020, from
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/media/plate-tectonics/

National Geographic Society. (2019, April 04). Ring of Fire. Retrieved July 03, 2020, from
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/ring-fire/

Wei-Haas, M. (2019, September 19). Volcanoes, explained. Retrieved July 02, 2020, from
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/natural-disasters/volcanoes/