New Zealand's North Island. Lumbar Cushion

January 2, 2022 - View from space of New Zealand''s North Island that separates the Tasman Sea from the South Pacific Ocean. On the other side of Cook Strait, South Island peeks out from beneath the cloud cover. Seven bays surround the North Island and define its distinctive shape. The inland landscape includes grasslands (lighter green areas), forests (darker green areas), volcanic plateaus, and mountain ranges formed from sedimentary rocks. In the centre of the island, Lake Taupo, a crater lake inside a caldera formed by a supervolcanic eruption, borders the island's highest peak, the active volcano Mount Ruapehu. The volcanic nature of the island arises from its location on the tectonic plate boundary between the Indo-Australian and Pacific Plates. This plate boundary is part of the vast Pacific Ring of Fire, and leads to significant geothermal activity and earthquakes in the region. Additional volcanoes, including Mount Taranaki (Egmont Volcano), also dot the North Island landscape.