When fully formed about 200 million years from now, the new continent will cover two-thirds of the planet's surface

Apr 29, 2015 07:10 GMT  ·  By
Researchers suspect a new massive continent will eventually form on Earth
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   Researchers suspect a new massive continent will eventually form on Earth

The fact that Earth didn't always look as it does in this day and age is not exactly breaking news. On the contrary, researchers have so far found evidence for the formation and subsequent breakage of three massive continents on the surface of our planet. 

These ancient so-called supercontinents, dubbed Pangea, Rodinia and Nuna, are believed to have come into being some 300 million, 1 billion and 1.8 billion years ago, respectively.

The rupture of the youngest of the bunch, Pangea, translated into the creation of the continents that are now spread out across Earth's surface. Because they were once part of just one mass of land, present-day continents resemble pieces of a ginormous jigsaw puzzle.

What's interesting is that, by the looks of it, Earth is not opposed to the idea of repeat performances. It actually quite enjoys encores. Thus, researchers believe that our planet is now working on forming another supercontinent like Pangea, Rodinia and Nuna before it.

Geological evidence supports this theory

In an interview, scientist Zheng-Xiang Li at the Curtin University Institute of Geoscience Research in Western Australia explained that, as shown by recent measurements, the Atlantic Ocean is now growing wider. The Pacific Ocean, on the other hand, is narrowing.

“Global GPS measurements of plate motions tell us that the Atlantic Ocean has been [and still is] widening by a few centimeters a year, whereas the Pacific Ocean is becoming narrower at a similar rate,” the researcher said, as cited by Science Network WA.

Should this trend continue, specialists expect that the Pacific Ocean will vanish and the Americas will unite with Eurasia. Judging by the rate of which the Atlantic and the Pacific are transforming, it is estimated that the new continent could form in about 200 million years.

“Such a supercontinent cycle is likely to be accompanied by major overturn events in the Earth’s mantle which some call superplume events [huge jets of super hot and partially molten rock bursting from the underground],” Zheng-Xiang Li commented on these possible future developments.

Mind you, geologists are so confident that our planet is in the process of forming a new continent that they've even come up with a name for the massive patch of land that they expect will cover two-thirds of Earth's surface a couple hundred years from now: Amasia.

Australia will too join the new continent

Geologists expect that new supercontinent Amasia will encompass not just the Americas and Eurasia but also Australia. This is because, just like the Pacific and the Atlantic, this patch of land is too currently readjusting its position.

More precisely, evidence indicates that Australia is moving north at a rate of about 7 centimeters (2.8 inches) per year. This means that, at some point in the future, this now isolated continent will probably catch up to Eurasia and unite with it.

Although the idea that Earth will form a new continent in about 200 million years is not exactly new, it was only last month that UNESCO and the International Union for Geological Sciences agreed to fund a project to further study this theory.

This new research project, expected to take 5 years to complete, will officially be launched at an international conference scheduled to take place in Montreal this coming May.

A possible map for Amasia
A possible map for Amasia

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Researchers suspect a new massive continent will eventually form on Earth
A possible map for Amasia
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