The Earth underwent very radical changes in the past. There was a time when oxygen was pure poison, and we also explored the Carnian Pluvial Event, in which it rained for two million years. That event occurred during the existence of the supercontinent Pangea, which began its separation 175–200 million years ago. A very interesting exercise is trying to determine where our countries were located in relation to the surface of Pangea, and thanks to a new interactive map we can do exactly that.
All the continents united... Although we have a fairly solid idea about the original shape of Pangea, the only thing we can do is calculate or simulate (unless someone manages to travel back in time and place a couple of satellites in orbit).
The separation of Pangea was not very fast, and from a certain point of view it is still in progress. Available data suggest that the Earth's surface will adopt a configuration similar to a supercontinent within 250 million years, dubbed Pangea Proxima.
None of us knows with certainty where our countries will end up once Pangea Proxima forms (if that even happens), but what we can do is go back and locate our region on the old Pangea. How?
Exploring Pangea, the supercontinent
The answer is to visit the page of developer Ian Webster. It is an equivalent to Google Earth that allows us to rewind the shape of the Earth up to a maximum of 750 million years. Another very interesting aspect of this version of Pangea is that it includes a brief description of the planet at that time.
And we can also remove the simulated clouds or stop the rotation, but the most important thing is the search box. That is where we must insert our address, municipality or province. The map will calculate the corresponding equivalence and place a pink circle on top. As an additional data, the map informs us about nearby fossils with a click on images and more information.
The map illustrations are based on the work of Christopher Scotese. If the name sounds familiar, it is because he is the same geologist who published the calculations for Pangea Proxima. Needless to say, all the results presented here are approximate, but I think we will have a good time exploring.
