Subduction is a geological process in which the oceanic lithosphere is recycled into the Earth's mantle at convergent boundaries. Where the oceanic lithosphere of a tectonic plate converges with the less dense lithosphere of a second plate, the heavier plate dives beneath the second plate and sinks into the mantle.

What happens when a plate Subducts?

Where two tectonic plates meet at a subduction zone, one bends and slides underneath the other, curving down into the mantle. (The mantle is the hotter layer under the crust.) ... At a subduction zone, the oceanic crust usually sinks into the mantle beneath lighter continental crust.

What happens first when a plate Subducts?

The first is mountain formation. Subduction zones always have mountain ranges caused by plate subduction. The next is volcanic activity as a plate is subducted the pressure and heat turns it into magma. These pockets of magma find paths to the surface and create volcanoes.