Which of the following statements regarding Arc Volcanoes is/are correct ? 1. Arc volcanoes are found near divergent plate boundaries. 2. Some of the world's classical examples of cone-shaped stratovolcanoes, such as Mount Fuji in Japan, Mayon in the Philippines are Arc volcanoes. 3. Some of the highest volcanoes on Earth are of the Arc type, notably Nevado Ojos del Salado in the Chilean Andes. Select the answer using the code given below :

The correct answer is B, 2 and 3 only. Arc volcanoes form above subduction zones at convergent plate boundaries, not at divergent ones, so statement 1 is false while 2 and 3 are true. Where an oceanic plate sinks beneath another plate, water released from the sinking slab lowers the melting point of the mantle above it. The magma that rises is thick, gas-rich and explosive, and it builds steep, layered cone-shaped stratovolcanoes in a curved line, or arc, parallel to the ocean trench. Mount Fuji in Japan and Mayon in the Philippines, both on the Pacific Ring of Fire, are classic examples. In the Andes, the Nazca Plate sinking under South America has built very high volcanoes, including Ojos del Salado on the Chile–Argentina border, at about 6,893 metres the highest volcano on Earth. Option A is wrong because it includes the false statement 1. Option C is wrong because it includes statement 1 and leaves out the true statement 2. Option D is wrong because statement 1 is false. Exam tip: divergent boundaries make mid-ocean ridges and fissure eruptions; convergent subduction makes arc stratovolcanoes.