Island life exhibits features of special interest. The piles of lava that form Hawaii rise as high as 32,000 feet (9,700 metres) above the ocean floor. Lava accumulates to enormous thickness until it finally protrudes above the ocean surface. The islands that rise from the floors of the ocean basins are volcanic. Learn through an animation about the formation of the volcanic island chains like Hawaii and Samoa See all videos for this article A slight warping of the sea bottom in the vicinity of Torres Strait would be sufficient to join New Guinea to Australia conversely, a slight rise in sea level may submerge a hilly coast and leave the hilltops remaining as small islands just offshore (such as those off the coast near Boston and the islands off the Maine coast). Likewise the world’s second largest island, New Guinea (309,000 square miles ), is part of the Australian continental platform and is separated from it only by the very shallow and narrow Torres Strait. Greenland (840,000 square miles ), the largest island, is composed of the same materials as the adjacent North American continent, from which it is separated by a shallow and narrow sea. Many of the larger islands of the world are of the continental type. Continental islands are simply unsubmerged parts of the continental shelf that are entirely surrounded by water. Oceanic islands are those that rise to the surface from the floors of the ocean basins. Islands may be classified as either continental or oceanic. A group of islands is called an archipelago. Islands may occur in oceans, seas, lakes, or rivers. Island, any area of land smaller than a continent and entirely surrounded by water. SpaceNext50 Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!.Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them! Saving Earth Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century.
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