The world's mid-ocean ridges form a single, connected global ridge system that is part of every ocean, and is the longest mountain range in the world. Geologically active, mid-ocean ridges are key ...

By comparison, the temperature of crustal fluids can reach 400 degrees C at hydrothermal vents in the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, where tectonic plates are diverging and new oceanic crust is being formed.

Running beneath the ocean's surface, mid-ocean ridges are formed at divergent plate boundaries, where tectonic plates stretch apart and magma rises to create new crust on the ocean's floor.