The Moving Earth
In 1912, Alfred Wegener proposed that continents drift across the Earth's surface — an idea ridiculed for decades until seafloor spreading was discovered in the 1960s. We now know that Earth's surface is divided into about 15 major tectonic plates that float on the semi-fluid asthenosphere, driven by convection currents in the mantle. This simulation lets you scrub through 400 million years of continental motion, from the assembly of Pangaea to projections of the future.
Pangaea and the Supercontinent Cycle
Roughly 335 million years ago, all major landmasses collided to form Pangaea, the most recent supercontinent. By 175 million years ago, it began to rift apart — the Atlantic Ocean opened as the Americas separated from Africa and Europe, while India broke away from Antarctica and began its long journey northward to collide with Asia. This cycle of supercontinent assembly and breakup, called the Wilson Cycle, repeats roughly every 400-600 million years.
Plate Tectonics and Life
Continental drift is one of the most powerful forces shaping the evolution of life. When Pangaea existed as a single landmass, terrestrial animals could migrate freely across the globe — which is why similar Triassic fossils are found on every continent. As Pangaea fragmented, populations became isolated on separate continents and diverged independently. Australia's unique marsupial fauna, South America's diverse xenarthrans, and Madagascar's lemurs are all products of continental isolation driven by plate tectonics.
The Future of the Continents
Plate tectonics has not stopped. The Atlantic Ocean widens by about 2.5 cm per year, while the Pacific shrinks. Africa is moving northward and will eventually close the Mediterranean Sea in a collision with Europe. Australia is drifting toward Southeast Asia at 7 cm per year. In 200-250 million years, the continents are predicted to reassemble into a new supercontinent — completing another turn of the Wilson Cycle. Set the time slider to negative values to see these projections.