Which plate subducted beneath which plate to cause the Nepal earthquake?

• A. Pacific plate under North American plate.
• B. Indo-Australian plate subducting beneath the Eurasian plate.
• C. African plate under South American plate.
• D. Antarctic plate under Pacific plate.

Answer: (B)

The important idea is how collisions between big plates drive earthquakes. In Nepal, the Indian portion of the Indo-Australian plate is moving northward and being pushed beneath the Eurasian plate. This subduction and the resulting compression thickens and deforms the crust, building the Himalayas and creating large thrust faults. When the stress along these faults is released, a powerful shallow earthquake occurs, like the one that struck Nepal. So the correct description is the Indo-Australian plate subducting beneath the Eurasian plate.

Other options point to plate boundaries in completely different regions, so they don’t explain Nepal’s seismic activity.