How did the continents and islands?What determines the name of the larger plates of the Earth?How did our planet?
How it all began?
every once thought about the origins of our planet.For the deeply religious people's simple: the Earth in 7 days God created - and the point.They are steadfast in their belief, even knowing the name of the largest lithospheric plates, formed as a result of the evolution of the planet's surface.For them, the birth of our stronghold - it is a miracle, and no arguments geophysicists, scientists and astronomers are not able to convince them otherwise.
Scientists, however, have a different opinion based on hypotheses and assumptions.Imeeno they speculate, push and release pridumavayut around title.Most large slabs of the Earth is also affected.
At this point it is not known how did our firmament, but there are a lot of interesting opinions.That scholars unanimously agreed that once there was a single giganstsky mainland, resulting in disasters and natural processes on the part of the split.Also, scientists have come up with not only the name of the larger plates of the Earth, but also identified small.
theory on the verge of fantasy
example, Immanuel Kant and Pierre Laplace - German scientists - believe that the universe emerged from the gas of the nebula and Earth - it gradually cools the planet, the crust is - none other than the chilled surface.
Another scientist, Otto Schmidt, believed that the sun while passing through the gas-dust cloud of his captured with him.His version is that our Earth was never fully molten substance and originally was a cold planet.
According to the theory of British scientist Fred Hoyle, the Sun had its twin star that exploded like a supernova.Almost all the pieces thrown at a great distance, and the small number of remaining around the sun turned into a planet.One of these fragments and became the cradle of mankind.
version as an axiom
most common story of origin of the Earth is as follows:
- about 7 billion years ago formed the primary cold planet, and then it began to gradually warm up the bowels.
- Then, during the so-called "lunar era" burning hot lava poured in huge amounts on the surface.This resulted in the formation of the Archean atmosphere, and the impetus for the formation of the Earth's crust - the lithosphere.
- Through the primitive atmosphere of the planet's oceans have appeared, causing the Earth was covered by a dense shell, representing the outline of the ocean basins and continental projections.In those days the area of water predominates over the land area.By the way, the crust and upper mantle is called the lithosphere, which forms the lithosphere plates that make up the overall "look" of the Earth.Names of the largest plates correspond to its geographical position.
giant rift
How formed the continents and lithospheric plates?About 250 million years ago, Earth looked quite wrong, as it is now.Then the planet was only one, just the same giant continent called Pangaea.Its total area is impressive and amounted Square all existing continents, including the islands.Pangaea from all sides by the ocean, which was called Panthalassa.This huge ocean occupied the rest of the planet's surface.
however, was short-lived existence of a supercontinent.Inside the earth seething processes by which the substance of the mantle began to spread in all directions, gradually stretching the mainland.Because of this, Pangaea first disengaged in 2 parts, forming two continents - Laurasia and Gondwana.Then these continents gradually split into many pieces, which gradually went their separate ways.In addition to new continents, appeared lithospheric plates.From the name of the larger plates it becomes clear in what places formed giant faults.
Remains Gondwana - is known to us, Australia and Antarctica, as well as South Africa and the African lithospheric plates.It is proved that these plates and in our time gradually diverge - the speed of movement of 2 cm per year.
Shards Laurasia turned into two lithospheric plates - the North American and Eurasian.Here Eurasia is not only from a fragment of Laurasia, but also part of Gondwana.Names of the largest slabs that form Eurasia - Hindustan, Arabian and Eurasian.
in the formation of the Eurasian continent, Africa is directly involved.Her lithospheric plate is slowly moving closer to Eurasia, forming mountains and hills.It is because of this "alliance" emerged Carpathians, Pyrenees, Ore Mountains, the Alps and the Sudetenland.
List of lithospheric plates
Names largest plates are:
- South American;
- Australia;
- Eurasian;
- North American;
- Antarctic;
- Pacific;
- South American;
- Hindustan.
medium sized plates - is:
- Arabian;
- Nazca;
- Scotia;
- Filipino;
- coconut;
- Juan de Fuca.
