Difference between revisions of "Supercontinent"
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− | + | : ''By [[User:John|John Eagles]]'' | |
+ | [[File:Pangaea (230 million years ago).png|thumb|250px|Pangaea (230 million years ago) was the last supercontinent]] | ||
+ | <small>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supercontinent Wikipedia: Supercontinent]</small> | ||
+ | ::In geology, a '''supercontinent''' is the assembly of most or all of the Earth's continental blocks or cratons to form a single large landmass. The definition of a supercontinent can be ambiguous. Sometimes a clustering of nearly all continents is meant, sometimes a supercontinent is also seen as one of two big continents that existed simultaneously. | ||
+ | ::Supercontinents have assembled and dispersed multiple times in the past. | ||
+ | ::The causes of supercontinent assembly and dispersal are thought to be driven by processes in the mantle. Approximately 660 km into the mantle, a discontinuity occurs, affecting the surface crust through processes like plumes and "superplumes".<ref>A mantle plume is an upwelling of abnormally hot rock within the Earth's mantle.</ref> | ||
Revision as of 10:07, 8 March 2016
- By John Eagles
- In geology, a supercontinent is the assembly of most or all of the Earth's continental blocks or cratons to form a single large landmass. The definition of a supercontinent can be ambiguous. Sometimes a clustering of nearly all continents is meant, sometimes a supercontinent is also seen as one of two big continents that existed simultaneously.
- Supercontinents have assembled and dispersed multiple times in the past.
- The causes of supercontinent assembly and dispersal are thought to be driven by processes in the mantle. Approximately 660 km into the mantle, a discontinuity occurs, affecting the surface crust through processes like plumes and "superplumes".[1]
- ↑ A mantle plume is an upwelling of abnormally hot rock within the Earth's mantle.