South America

One of the seven continents, located in the southern half of the Western Hemisphere (or Southern Hemisphere), bordering the South Pacific Ocean to the west. The tension between the Pacific Plate and Nazca Plate generates the East Pacific Ridge; the compressional force between the Nazca Plate and South American Plate creates the subduction zone of the Peru-Chile Trench beneath the South American Plate. To the east is the Atlantic Ocean, and to the north is the Caribbean Sea. South America is the southern portion of the American continent, featuring towering Andes Mountains over 2,000 meters high on the western side, and vast plains to the east, including the Amazon River and Amazon Rainforest.