Featuring the earth sciences at their most spectacular, this title reveals the massive internal forces that create and change the Earth's surface, with dramatic and sometimes beautiful consequences. The authors explain what fuels the power of volcanoes and earthquakes and explore how the gradual shifting of tectonic plates has transformed the Earth over its four and a half thousand million year existence. Written in a jargon-free style and fully illustrated with photographs, diagrams and maps, this is a cutting-edge introduction to earthquakes, volcanoes and plate tectonics, incorporating all the latest research developments.