RE: Super Continent
January 17, 2018 at 1:22 am
(This post was last modified: January 17, 2018 at 1:23 am by Anomalocaris.)
(January 15, 2018 at 7:21 pm)Chad32 Wrote: Isn't plate tectonics supposed to be like middle school physical science? Africa has this mass on its western front that looks like it would slot in between North and South America if you moved the continents back together. Europe and the Middle East are barely connected to Africa as it is, and in the future I imagine it will drift even farther away. We might lose Southeast Asia in time too, leaving just open ocean between Asia and Australia. Southeast Greenland kind of has the same angle as Northwestern Europe. How about that?
Actually, the bulk of Africa is moving north, and will slam into the turkey, the bulkans, Italy and southern France in about 20 million years. When that happens the Alps will compete with the Himalayas for being the most awesome mountain range on earth.
A long thin slice of east Africa is in the process of parting company with the rest of Africa. The same underlying force driving the departure will also push the bulk of Africa slightly to the west. But rest assured it won't Be nearly enough to miss Europe.
Australia is also moving north, and will probably plow up the archipelagos of Southeast Asia on its way to collision with Vietnam and east China.
Greenland is actually riding on the same plate as North America. So Greenland is flying in formation with North America and moving away from Europe as the Atlantic continues to widen.