What Is Pangaea?
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Pangaea was a supercontinent that existed from about 335 to 175 million years ago, containing essentially all of Earth's land in a single landmass. It broke apart through plate tectonics, with the pieces drifting to form today's continents. The name comes from Greek meaning 'all earth.' Pangaea is the most recent supercontinent in Earth's history.
Pangaea is the most famous supercontinent in Earth's history, a massive single landmass that contained essentially all of today's continents. Existing from about 335 to 175 million years ago, Pangaea began breaking apart in the Jurassic period, with its pieces gradually drifting to their current positions. Understanding Pangaea reveals how continents have moved through deep time and how plate tectonics has shaped Earth's surface.
What was Pangaea?
Pangaea was a vast supercontinent containing essentially all of Earth's land masses united into a single landmass. According to Britannica's account of Pangaea, the name 'Pangaea' was coined by Alfred Wegener and comes from Greek words meaning 'all earth.' The supercontinent existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras. A single ocean called Panthalassa surrounded it, covering the rest of Earth's surface. The interior of Pangaea was far from any ocean, producing extreme continental climates with dry deserts. The arrangement of land was very different from today, with what would become North America, Europe, Africa, South America, Asia, Australia, India, and Antarctica all touching.
When did Pangaea exist?
Pangaea formed about 335 million years ago during the late Carboniferous period, when previous continents collided and merged. It existed as a single landmass through the Permian and into the early Triassic periods. The breakup began about 175 million years ago in the Jurassic period as Pangaea began rifting apart. The whole transition from supercontinent to today's separated continents took about 175 million years and is still ongoing. Continents continue to move, and a new supercontinent may form in the distant future (potential future supercontinents have been hypothesized as Pangaea Ultima or Amasia).
How did Pangaea break apart?
Pangaea broke apart through plate tectonics. About 175 million years ago, rifting separated North America from Africa and Eurasia, opening the early Atlantic Ocean. Subsequent rifting separated South America from Africa about 130 million years ago. India broke off from Africa and Antarctica around 130 million years ago and drifted north to collide with Asia, forming the Himalayas. Australia separated from Antarctica about 50 million years ago. Each separation involved rifting that gradually became seafloor spreading.
Was Pangaea the only supercontinent?
Pangaea was not the only supercontinent in Earth's history; it was just the most recent. Several earlier supercontinents have been identified through geological evidence. Rodinia existed from about 1.1 billion years ago and broke apart around 750 million years ago. Pannotia formed briefly about 600 million years ago. Earlier supercontinents include Nuna/Columbia (about 1.8 billion years ago) and possibly Kenorland and Ur. Some geologists hypothesize that supercontinents have formed and broken apart cyclically every 400-600 million years throughout Earth's history, a pattern called the supercontinent cycle.
Pangaea was a supercontinent that existed from about 335 to 175 million years ago, containing all of Earth's land in a single mass. It broke apart through plate tectonics starting in the Jurassic period, with pieces drifting to form today's continents. The most recent of several supercontinents in Earth's history, Pangaea revealed itself through the matching coastlines, fossils, and rock formations across now-separated continents.
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