Figure 5-18 RIVUXG Earth’s Major Tectonic Plates (a) Earth’s surface is divided into plates that move relative to one another. The plate boundaries are where we find earthquakes, volcanoes, and rising mountain ranges. The arrows indicate whether plates are moving apart (←→), together (→←), or sliding past one another ↑↓. (b) Plates Grinding Past One Another. The San Andreas fault, running up the west coast of North America, formed because the Pacific plate is moving northwest along the North American plate. (c) Plates Pulling Apart. The plates that carry Egypt and Saudi Arabia are moving apart, leaving a space that contains the Red Sea. (d) Plates Colliding. The plates that carry India and China are colliding. As a result, the Himalayas are being thrust upward. In this photograph, taken by astronauts in 1968, Mount Everest is one of the snow-covered peaks near the center.