Why is the island of New Guinea divided between the continents of Asia and Australia?
Answer Hi Leanne, I’m not sure where you found this reference but New Guinea is fully on the Australian plate. North and west of the island, several plates are subsiding below the island which is why it is volcanic in nature and has in fact some of the highest mountains in Oceania. These equatorial mountains are so tall that they even have snow on the tops and glaciers. New Guinea is the second largest island in the world. Politically part of it belongs to Indonesia which is an Asian nation while the other half is an independent nation (Papua New Guinea). So from a political perspective the island is divided between the two continents. But from a strictly geological one, it is all Australian plate.
