Where is pangea

This magma allows the plates to shift, move, and collide - albeit very slowly over great periods of time. The movements of the plates occur primarily along oceanic ridges, subduction zones and fault lines, meaning the plates are constantly in motion.

Understanding plate tectonics helped to hypothesize that the plates, and Pangea at large, did not come apart all at once, but rather broke, fractured, and separated slowly and in stages. This separation occurred in three major phases, and took place along distinct rifts. As indicated, the first main phase, estimated to have been million years ago, saw the creation of what we now know to be the central Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean.

The rift began in the Tethys Ocean running Westward to the Pacific. Cracking and fissures within the crust created multiple failed rifts along this line, resulting in the creation of the North Atlantic Ocean as North America began to split from Africa. Later, rifting occurred to the south, as the supercontinent known as Laurasia - what we now know to be North America, Europe and Asia drifted northward and rotated, resulting in the South Atlantic. At the time, Antarctica and Madagascar were joined to Africa along the coast.

As these rifts began to form, continents began to drift, and the Indian Ocean was created. This phase primarily concerned Gondwana, and began the separation of these individual continents from their former landmass body. Later, a landmass dubbed Atlantica - current day Africa and South America - broke from Gondawana creating the South Atlantic Ocean, and over time this land mass drifted westward.

The Indian Ocean was also born at this time, as Madagascar and India disengaged from Antarctica and were pushed further north. India was still only just adrift of Africa at this time, and still connected to the island of Madagascar.

A rift began to form within this land mass, and it eventually broke India and Madagascar apart. India was propelled away from its original African anchor, all the way up into Eurasia, further closing the Tethys Ocean.

India collided with Eurasia approximately 50 million years ago, and it was this forceful collision that was the cause of the Himilayan mountains, which show the buckling and jarring of the Earth's crust along the plate lines there.

To the east, smaller fractures began to separate New Zealand, and New Caledonia from Australia proper. Thus, the Coral Sea and the Tasman Sea were born, as well as a number of cracks and smaller rifts where much volcanic activity still occurs.

That's a great question! You should go on a Wonder Journey to find out the answer. Let us know what you find! Interesting question, Braxton! Why don't you take a Wonder Journey to see what you can find! We are thrown off by all the yos but we think we read you loud and cloud, Your Wrong. Glad to know it isn't our wrong. Hi, Wonder Friend! Pangaea no longer exists.

It is the name of the supercontinent that existed millions of years ago. Thanks for learning something new with us! Thanks for your comment, Rob! That's true, we would be able to get more places without flying. We encourage you to keep researching this topic at your library and online!

Hi, David! We hope this Wonder wasn't too scary. We appreciate you stopping by Wonderopolis and exploring this Wonder! Hi, Ms. Thanks for letting us know about the Wonder Words.

They have all been updated and should be correct. Enjoy the rest of your day! Hi, DuValle Collins! That's a very interesting theory, Lawrence! Thank you for sharing with us here in Wonderopolis today! We're not sure how long the continents took to split or how long it would take to reform. We think you should explore these answers on your own.

Hi there, Ky Duyen Quang, thanks for coming back to Wonder with us! We've missed you! We are so glad you shared this awesome comment and connection with us! Thanks for visiting and making us smile! Hi Victor and Tam! It sounds like you have some awesome connections to this Wonder today - you're full of awesome information about Pangaea!

Thanks for sharing your comments and telling us all about your thoughts! Pangaea is what scientists call a supercontinent - it represents all the continents when they were connected millions of years ago! We Wonder if you have traveled to another continent?

Hey Monica, Elizabeth, and Maxwell! Scientists who study the Earth have been observing and predicting history for many many years. They track the continents and how slowly they move over the years. It takes lots of hard work to notice these differences. Perhaps you will all become scientists when you're older! It sounds like you've learned a lot today, Kai, Mattisen, and Audrey!

We might speak the same language but with different accents and dialects! We're all on planet Earth, but there are tons of different languages spoken. We Wonder what you think? Thanks for joining the discussion! We hope you liked this Wonder! Thanks for visiting us today, Gracie, Zander, and Jordan!

Nice work! Hey there Elijah, Caitlyn and Isaac! We always enjoy checking out maps - especially when we can see the differences in what the world looks like today compared to millions of years ago! We think you have some great comments! Great work today, Mr. Colombo's Class! North and South America are still connected because those tectonic plates haven't separated quite yet! It sounds like you've both learned something new today, Destiny and Kaylen!

How exciting - way to go! We Wonder where you would like to travel next? Is there a cool place you have in your mind?

Perhaps it's on one of the continents we mentioned in today's Wonder! This supercontinent sure is cool to Wonder about, isn't it Timothy, Janiya, and London?

We have really enjoyed reading your comments and we hope you'll come back to visit us again soon! More Wonders on the way We're so very glad you shared your comments with us, Jenna, Elizabeth and Andrea! We think your predictions for the next Wonder of the Day are super great - and you'll be using your nose to help you guess! We hope you can watch the video at home or at the library, Mattisen!

We're glad you learned something new with us, Dana! Earthquakes can move plate tectonics, but not the same way that time can move continents.

Isn't it cool to learn how different the Earth is today than it was a billion years ago? I agree with your comment because I think the passage was very informational and I learned a few new things about Pangaea. Hey there, Wonder Friends! Thanks for visiting us today Jasmine, Cameron, and Jacob! We think it's cool that we can all Wonder together about how the Earth changes over the years.

Thanks for telling us what you think, too! Hi Elijah, Justin, and Kashmir! Thanks for sharing your comments about our Wonder - Earthquakes are a great thing to Wonder about!

Hey there Jasmine, Elijah, and Amelia! The Earth's continents are moving - very s l o w l y - but they are moving closer to one another. Scientists study the patterns of the continents and recognize those shifts.

It's fascinating! Do you have your geology hats on today? We're going back in time to Wonder about the world before we were around! Earth is a super cool place, and the continents shift and move as time goes on. Can you imagine living on a supercontinent? Great work, Mattisen, Joshua, and Rebecca! We are undergoing some spring clearing site maintenance and need to temporarily disable the commenting feature. Thanks for your patience. Drag a word to its definition. You have answered 0 of 3 questions correctly and your score is:.

Want to add a little wonder to your website? Help spread the wonder of families learning together. We sent you SMS, for complete subscription please reply. Follow Twitter Instagram Facebook. Where is Pangaea? What happened to Pangaea? Are continents still moving today? Tags: See All Tags Africa , Alfred Wegener , Antarctica , Asia , assembly , Atlantic , Australia , body , continent , drift , europe , fossil , geological , geology , German , Greek , huge , Indian , land , landmass , meteorologist , million , North America , ocean , Pangaea , Pannotia , Panthalassa , plate , Rodinia , South America , supercontinent , tectonics , theories , theory , trend.

Wonder What's Next? Try It Out Can you believe that supercontinents used to exist? Grab a friend or family member and have fun exploring one or more of the following activities: What continent do you live on? Do some independent Internet research to learn more about your home continent. How many countries does it hold? What are they? How many people live there? What range of climates can be found there? What are its highest and lowest points? Have fun learning more about the place you call home!

Back when Earth was the home of Pangaea, it was also home to something else super. What was it? A super ocean, of course! Think about what it would've been like to build a ship and set sail across an ocean even larger than those that exist today. Do you think you would've wanted to have been an ocean explorer back then? Why or why not? Can you imagine traveling all the way across a super ocean only to reach the other side of the continent you left from?

Do you think you would've had any idea you were just on the other side of the same continent? Have fun thinking about what exploring would've been like way back when! Ready to have some fun with geography? And from a North American perspective, countries such as Australia and Indonesia appear much smaller than they actually are.

Comparing the landmasses on the same latitude as Canada helps put sizes into perspective. In reality, Greenland is about fourteen times smaller than Africa.

Critics of the map—and similar projections—suggest that distortion reinforces a sense of colonialist superiority. As well, the amount of territory a country occupies is often correlated with power and access to natural resources, and map distortions can have the effect of inadvertently diminishing nations closer to the equator. In our society we unconsciously equate size with importance and even power.

Growing awareness of map distortion is translating into concrete change. Boston public schools, for example, recently switched to the Gall-Peters projection , which more accurately depicts the true size of landmasses. As well, Google, whose map app is used by approximately one billion people per month, took the bold step of using different projections for different purposes in The Earth is depicted as a globe at further zoom levels, sidestepping map projection issues completely and displaying the world as it actually is: round.

In , mathematician and astronomer, Karl Mollweide, created a namesake projection that trades accuracy of angles and shape for accuracy of proportion.

The Mollweide projection has inspired many other attempts at a user-friendly equal area map. Another evolution in cartography was the Dymaxion map , invented by Buckminster Fuller and patented in In this version, the continents are no longer in their familiar positions—however, there is more spacial fidelity than in previous projection methods.

Using a new map-making method called AuthaGraph , Japanese architect, Hajime Narukawa, may have created the most accurate map of the world yet. AuthaGraph divides the globe into 96 triangles, transfers them to a tetrahedron and unfolds into a rectangle. The end result? Landmasses and seas are more accurately proportioned than in traditional projections.

The biggest downfall of the AuthaGraph map is that longitude and latitude lines are no longer a tidy grid. As well, continents on the map are repositioned in a way that will be unfamiliar to a population that is already geographically challenged. That said, depicting our round world on a flat surface will always come with some trade-offs.

As demand grows for a true equal-area map, it will be exciting to see what the next generation of map projections have to offer. Looking to learn more about maps and map projections? This fantastic tool , created by Florian Ledermann, allows users to take a vast selection of projection styles, and modify them in different ways.

This hands-on approach is a fun way to learn how the shape of landmasses shift as the projection changes. This interactive map explores global alcohol consumption per capita.

Alcohol might be one of the oldest and most frequently used recreational substances in the world, but examining countries by alcohol consumption shows that usage is not equal. Consumption levels, and types of alcohol consumed, vary widely based on location.

Furthermore, the availability of fruits and grains used in alcohol production impacts which drinks are more commonly consumed, as does the predominant culture. Some cultures see alcohol consumption as a pleasurable experience, while others see intoxication as a sin.

When we map alcohol consumption by capita, and by different types of alcohol, these local and cultural stories come to light.