Ireland tectonic plates

Ireland tectonic boundary 

    The closest passive plate boundary to Ireland is the boundary between the African and Eurasian plates south of Portugal. Ireland is known for its historical geological movement of millions of years ago. it was believed that two different countries merged together to create Ireland as we know it today. the two continents known as Laurentia and Gondwana that were separated by an ocean called Iapetus. these countries we know today as North America and different parts of Europe, Africa, and Australia. Together during the closure of the Atlantic ocean. 

there are Three types of tectonic plate layouts. the movement is very based on how the plates move and form.  when two plates slide past each other. when the plates move, the jagged edges of the plates' boundaries get snagged and catch each other which can get jammed. this creates a build-up of pressure and gas. when the plates finally pass each other the pressure can be released creating an earthquake. 

                                 

The impact of that prolonged collision (or series of collisions) is still evident in Ireland today, being expressed in the way mountains over much of the island, particularly the north, display long axes that trend north-east to south-west - a direction that reflects the line along which the plates clashed.

 

Variscan folds at Loughshinny
Copyright of the Geological Survey of Ireland 2006.

https://www.gsi.ie/en-ie/geoscience-topics/geology/Pages/Geology-of-Ireland.aspx#:~:text=Studies%20of%20plate%20tectonics%20tell,by%20an%20ocean%20called%20Iapetus.