Papua New Guinea sits in one of the most tectonically complex regions on Earth, where the Australian and Pacific plates collide amid a mosaic of smaller microplates. This intense convergence, part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, produces very frequent large earthquakes and a dense concentration of active volcanoes across the islands and mainland.
The country is dotted with hazardous volcanoes such as Rabaul, whose 1994 eruption destroyed much of the town, Ulawun, and Manam. In 1998 a magnitude 7.0 earthquake off the northern coast triggered a tsunami that killed more than 2,000 people at Aitape, a stark reminder of the double threat of seismic shaking and coastal waves in this island nation.