Probably, only one supercontinent will remain on our planet again.
Scientists from the Earth Dynamics Research Group of Curtin University in Australians modeled what our planet might look like in the distant future. The conducted modeling showed that one giant supercontinent will probably appear on Earth again, the institution's website says.
It is believed that in a few hundred million years, the supercontinent Amazia will appear on the planet. It was given this name because it is believed that the Pacific Ocean will disappear, connecting America and Asia together.
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But not everyone agrees with this assumption. Some researchers suggest that Amazia may have arisen through the disappearance of the Atlantic and Indian oceans. And others believe that all the oceans will remain in their places.
In a new study, scientists have found that as the Earth cools over billions of years, the thickness and strength of the plates beneath the oceans gradually decreases. This prevents the emergence of a new supercontinent by “closing” relatively young oceans such as the Atlantic and Pacific. But this can happen with the “closing” of the Pacific Ocean.
“The Pacific Ocean is what is left of the Panthalassa Ocean, which began to form about 700 million years ago. It is the oldest ocean on Earth, and it has begun to shrink from its maximum size during the time of the dinosaurs. Currently, it is decreasing by several centimeters per year. Now it has stretched for about ten thousand kilometers, according to forecasts, it will take from two to 300 million years to close,” said Professor Zheng-Xiang Li, one of the authors of the work.
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