Chapter 19'1 movements of the Continents

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Chapter 19.1 movements of the Continents

• By Riley Stevenson

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Formation of Pangea

• Continents and oceans existed during the
  earliest periods of the earths history
• All of the continents existing today contain
  large areas of Precambrian rocks called cratons
• Precambrian rocks within the cratons that have
  been exposed at the earths surface are called
  shields.
• During the Paleozoic Era, there were probably
  two or three supercontinents that formed, broke
  up, and reformed as lithospheric plates drifted
  slowly
• around the Earth.
• The supercontinent Pangea, proposed by Alfred
  Wegener as the continental mass from which the
  modern continents split off, formed between 250
  and 350 million years ago.

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Pangea

• Pangea was located close to the polar region of
  the southern Hemisphere and covered about 40 of
  Earth the remaining 60 was covered by a single
  body of water called Panthalassa
• A triangular body of water called the Tethys Sea
  started to cut into the Eastern edge of Pangea
• The area north of the Tethys sea was called
  Laurasia is now North America and Eurasia

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Breakup of Pangea

• The area south of the Tethys sea was Called
  Gounwanaland which eventually split to form
  South America , Africa India, Australia and
  Antarctica.
• 200 Million Years ago Pangea began to break into
  two land masses nearly separating the land mass
  until they broke apart and slowly made the
  journey to their present positions

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Vocab Chapter 19.1

• Cratons-large area of Precambrian rocks found on
  all continents
• Laurasia-northern land mass that broke away from
  Pangea and later formed
• North America
• Gondwanaland- southern landmass that broke away
  from Pangea and later formed
• South America, Africa, India, Australia, and
  Antartica