The Solomon Islands lie along one of the most active plate boundaries on Earth, where the Australian and Pacific plates converge and the small Solomon Sea and Woodlark blocks are being consumed. This complex subduction and collision zone produces frequent large earthquakes and a chain of volcanic islands within the Ring of Fire.
The archipelago includes active volcanoes such as Tinakula and the submarine Kavachi, one of the world's most active undersea volcanoes. In 2007 a magnitude 8.1 earthquake off the western islands generated a destructive tsunami, and in 2013 a magnitude 8.0 quake near Santa Cruz again reminded the region of its extreme tsunami hazard.