Thousands of small earthquakes, detected for the first time by a machine-learning process, reveal the distinct, razor-sharp edge of the Yakutat microplate as it subducts beneath the North American plate.

The Yakutat oceanic plateau is caught in the middle of a tectonic traffic jam with the Pacific plate as it subducts beneath the North American plate. The position and structure of the plates in this congested zone play a significant role in the earthquake and volcanic landscape of south-central Alaska.

The research published by Meghan Miller of Australian National University and her colleagues in The Seismic Record now shows the edge and extent of the Yakutat plate in astonishing detail.