What are plate tectonics?

_Elsa_

He has no difficulty finding out information on what plate tectonics is. 

‘Plate tectonics states that Earth’s outer shell, or lithosphere, consists of large rigid plates that move apart at oceanic ridges, come together at subduction zones, or slip past one another along fault lines. The pattern of seafloor spreading indicates that Pangea did not break apart all at once but rather fragmented in distinct stages. Plate tectonics also postulates that the continents joined with one another and broke apart several times in Earth’s geologic history.

The first oceans formed from the breakup, some 180 million years ago, were the central Atlantic Ocean between northwestern Africa and North America and the southwestern Indian Ocean between Africa and Antarctica. The South Atlantic Ocean opened about 140 million years ago as Africa separated from South America. About the same time, India separated from Antarctica and Australia, forming the central Indian Ocean. Finally, about 80 million years ago, North America separated from Europe, Australia began to drift away from Antarctica, and India broke away from Madagascar. India eventually collided with Eurasia approximately 50 million years ago, forming the Himalayas. 

During Earth’s long history, there probably have been several Pangea-like supercontinents. The oldest of those supercontinents is called Rodinia and was formed during Precambrian time someone billion years ago. Another Pangea-like supercontinent, Pannotia, was assembled 600 million years ago, at the end of the Precambrian. Present-day plate motions are bringing the continents together once again. Africa has begun to collide with southern Europe, and the Australian Plate is now colliding with Southeast Asia. Within the next 250 million years, Africa and the Americas will merge with Eurasia to form a supercontinent that approaches Pangean proportions.’ (Source)

Wow! Yeti is getting some really interesting information about science and how the earth split apart. 

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