Central America has a rich mix of conditions that allow comparisons of different natural experiments in the generation of arc magmas within the relatively short length of the margin. The shape of the volcanic front and this margin's architecture derive from the assemblage of exotic continental and oceanic crustal slivers, and later modification by volcanism and tectonic activity. Active tectonics of the Cocos-Caribbean plate boundary are strongly influenced by oblique subduction, resulting in a narrow volcanic front segmented by right steps occurring at ∼150-km intervals. The largest volcanic centers are located where depths to the slab are ∼90–110 km. Volcanoes that develop above deeper sections of the subducting slab are less voluminous and better record source geochemical heterogeneity. Extreme variations in isotopic and trace element ratios are derived from different components of thesubducted oceanic lithosphere. However, the extent that volcanoes sample these signatures is also influenced by lithospheric structures that control the arc segmentation.

中美洲拥有丰富的条件组合，可以比较不同的自然实验在相对较短的边缘内产生弧形岩浆。火山前缘的形状和该边缘的建筑源于异国大陆和海洋地壳裂片的组合，以及后来的火山作用和构造活动的修改。科科斯-加勒比板块边界的活动构造受到倾斜俯冲的强烈影响，导致狭窄的火山前缘被右台阶分割，间隔约 150 公里。最大的火山中心位于板块深度约 90-110 公里处。在俯冲板片更深部分上方发育的火山体积较小，并且可以更好地记录源地球化学非均质性。同位素和微量元素比率的极端变化源自俯冲大洋岩石圈的不同组分。然而，火山对这些特征进行采样的程度也受到控制弧段分割的岩石圈结构的影响。