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These videos delve into the fascinating processes shaping the Earth’s continents, from the formation of the next supercontinent to the alternate reality of a world where Pangaea never broke apart. Discover how Earth's geological forces continue to shape our planet’s future.
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00:00Now, history teaches us that the supercontinent existed a long time ago,
00:05around 300 to 273 million years back.
00:09At that time, all the continents on Earth were buddies and hanging out together.
00:14They formed an amazing crew called Pangaea, or Pangaea if you're feeling fancy.
00:20The name comes from a Greek word which means all the Earth.
00:24Pangaea also had a massive water neighbor called Panthalassa.
00:28So our entire world was a huge piece of land surrounded by a huge piece of ocean.
00:34The megacontinent looked like a giant sea, stretching between the tippy-top and bottom of our planet.
00:40But as stories go, things changed.
00:44About 200 million years ago, in the early Jurassic people, like dinosaur times,
00:49Pangaea decided to throw a breakaway party.
00:52Forget about the old ideas of continents just drifting around like big icebergs.
00:57It split up into smaller chunks, forming the continents we know today.
01:01Oh, and it created the Atlantic and Indian Oceans as a bonus.
01:08Pangaea's tale was first told by a German weather expert named Alfred Wegener in 1912.
01:15But how did he learn about something that happened so long ago?
01:19Imagine the Earth's core as a big, cozy fireplace, giving off heat.
01:24This heat creates special swirling currents in the Earth's outer shell.
01:28We can think of it as the Earth's crust, which looks like a big puzzle with many puzzle pieces.
01:34The hot currents make these puzzle pieces, called crustal plates, move around.
01:39Sometimes they push apart.
01:41Sometimes they crash into each other.
01:44And sometimes they slide past one another.
01:46It's like a fantastic dance party that goes on beneath our feet.
01:50One day, Wegener looked at the shapes of the continents and thought that,
01:55hey, those coastlines of South America and Africa kind of fit together.
02:00And they really did.
02:02So he imagined that way back, all of the continents hung out together as one big landmass.
02:10But he couldn't just go and say that without any proof.
02:13So how do we know Pangaea really was a thing?
02:17Well, there are some clues that brought us to this amazing discovery.
02:21One clue is like when you put a puzzle together and the pieces fit just right.
02:27Take a look at the shapes of today's continents.
02:29You'll notice that they could fit together almost like a perfect match.
02:34Obviously, their shapes changed over time.
02:36It happened millions of years ago.
02:38And since then, the shores of continents have been washed by waters for years.
02:43But even so, we can still see how well they fit together.
02:47Another clue comes from checking out fossils.
02:50We know that ancient animals left a lot of fossils behind.
02:54That's how we learned their history and what species there were.
02:57But when scientists compared fossils found on different continents,
03:01they found something interesting.
03:02These fossils look similar.
03:05Surprisingly, they belong to the same groups of animals, even though they were far apart.
03:10It's not like these animals could swim across the ocean on their poor paws.
03:14And it's unlikely that this particular type of animal originated in two places at the same time.
03:25Imagine exploring underwater and finding huge mountains in the oceans.
03:29These underwater ranges and deep trenches are like scars from when Earth's tectonic plates moved around.
03:36They serve as another proof that the continents are part of something bigger.
03:40When you look at these things together, you get a pretty clear picture.
03:44The Earth's continents were once huddled together in the supercontinent.
03:48They've since gone their separate ways.
03:50But the memories of their grand adventure are still written in the shapes of coastlines,
03:55the rocks they left behind, and many more.
03:58But it's obvious to us now.
04:00At the time of Wegner's discovery, there were different ideas flying around.
04:05Some folks thought that the continents sank down to make the oceans.
04:08But Wegner had a different take.
04:11He thought that the continents are always on the move.
04:14He even came up with a fancy phrase, continental drift, to explain it.
04:22Later, he was joined by another scientist named Alexander Dutoy.
04:26He added a little twist to the story, suggesting there were two original continents,
04:31Laurasia in the north and Gondwanda in the south.
04:34But the real party didn't start until the 1960s,
04:37when scientists figure out the secret ingredient in this recipe, plate tectonics.
04:43And finally, this theory explained everything Wegner and Dutoy talked about.
04:48Wegner's theory was proven correct after 50 years.
04:52As time passed, we learned more and more about our planet.
04:56We found out that the Earth used to have multiple supercontinents.
05:00Before Pangaea, there was a megacontinent called Rodinia around a billion years ago.
05:05And later on, Panosha joined the scene about 600 million years ago.
05:14What's interesting is that the continental drift story is far from over.
05:18Our continents are always on the move.
05:21Africa is giving Europe a friendly bump.
05:23And Australia is playing a game of bumper cars with Southeast Asia.
05:28You know what's on the horizon?
05:29Another supercontinent.
05:31So, how will this next supercontinent come together?
05:35Well, there are four major possibilities.
05:37Novo Pangaea, Pangaea Ultima, Orica, and Amasia.
05:43These might sound like superhero names, but they're actually ways the puzzle pieces could fit.
05:48Let's look at them all.
05:50First, Novo Pangaea.
05:52You know how there's the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other?
05:56Well, if these oceans keep doing what they're doing now, the Atlantic will keep opening up while the Pacific squeezes
06:04in.
06:04If that happens, the Americas, North and South America, will give each other a big high five.
06:10And Antarctica, that icy land way down south, will join the fun too.
06:15It'll be drifting northward.
06:21Next, Pangaea Ultima.
06:23In the future, the Atlantic Ocean might get tired of being so wide.
06:27It might decide to slow down and shrink a bit.
06:30The Americas and the northward-drifting Antarctica will probably crash into Africa and Europe.
06:36And just like that, a brand-new supercontinent forms.
06:40There are these spots where the ocean floor is sliding underneath the land.
06:45It's like a secret underwater passage.
06:47These spots are called subduction zones.
06:50So, if these secret tunnels will be spreading and spreading all along the east coast of the Americas,
06:56the Americas, Europe, and Africa might come together again.
07:00And they'd form a supercontinent.
07:02This supercontinent would be surrounded by the Pacific Ocean.
07:06The next possible supercontinent is Orica.
07:09In this scenario, the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans might decide to take a nap and close up.
07:15But don't worry, because when one door closes, another opens.
07:20In this case, a whole new ocean would pop up to replace them.
07:26Imagine a big crack in the ground cutting through Asia, like a zipper opening up.
07:31This crack is called the Pan-Asian Rift.
07:34And it would become a brand-new ocean.
07:36With this new ocean comes a new supercontinent, Orica.
07:40Australia is currently drifting northwards, like it's trying to find a nice spot at the center of our planet.
07:47East Asia and the Americas might join in from both sides.
07:50After that, Europe and Africa might link up with the Americas and boom, Orica.
07:56And finally, Amasia.
07:59It might form if some of the tectonic plates go north.
08:02They can take continents like Africa and Australia along for the ride.
08:06They'll be hanging out around the North Pole.
08:08All the continents except Antarctica might come together.
08:14And even though they might gather around the North Pole, they won't close off the oceans.
08:20The Atlantic and Pacific Oceans would still be open for business.
08:23How this grand reunion happens depends on the Earth's tectonic movements.
08:29So far, we believe that Novo-Pangea is the most likely scenario.
08:33It also depends on what exactly happened to Pangaea after it broke apart.
08:38And when the new supercontinent appears, what's going to happen with the weather?
08:43How will the ocean behave?
08:45And what about the animals and plants?
08:47These questions all light up our minds.
08:49Who knows?
08:51Maybe someday, our descendants will look at the world map and see this incredible journey come full circle.
08:57So keep asking curious questions and stay tuned for the next 100 million years.
09:03Around 3 to 200 million years ago, all the continents were stuck together as one big landmass.
09:10Over time, they moved apart and formed the continents we have today.
09:14That giant landmass was called Pangaea, and the Earth looked very different back then.
09:21Which begs the question, what would our life be like if that split never occurred?
09:27Well, let's find out.
09:29In simple words, tectonic plates are big chunks of the Earth's outer shell.
09:35Our planet is like a puzzle of landmass, and these plates are the pieces.
09:39Since the Earth is so incredibly hot inside, its heat influences the rocky ground above the core.
09:47Slightly melted rocks start floating in the ocean of scorched magma.
09:52This movement creates the tectonic plates, and they're always moving, just really slowly, which is why we don't notice it.
10:00Their movement has been a fundamental force, shaping the Earth's surface, climate, and the evolution of life over millions of
10:08years.
10:09For example, when two plates bump into each other, one might go under the other.
10:14Or they might slide past each other.
10:17Sometimes, they pull apart.
10:19All these movements create things like earthquakes and volcanoes.
10:24And when plates push against each other, it can make the land go up, creating mountains.
10:30So, the big mountain ranges on Earth, like the Himalayas, formed because tectonic plates were pushing into each other.
10:39Now, here's the thing with Pangaea.
10:41In a supercontinent, all tectonic plates are united, and they don't really move.
10:47Well, at least not a lot like they do now.
10:49So, if Pangaea remained intact for billions of years, everything in our world would look completely different.
10:58For example, we wouldn't have many mountain ranges anymore.
11:02No Alps, Himalayas, and Andes.
11:04What a nightmare that would be for ski lovers.
11:08But there's an upside to that, too.
11:10No continental drift means much less disasters in our world.
11:13All our earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions would be much rarer and calmer, or might not occur at all.
11:22However, hurricanes would keep existing, and they could be crazy strong.
11:28With Pangaea being one huge lump of land, the rest of the world will be water stretching from the west
11:34to east.
11:36That's just a free water slide for a hurricane.
11:39Please feel free to build up in intensity without anything to bump into.
11:43So, once it finally reaches us, prepare for Category 5 or even stronger hurricanes or tornadoes.
11:51They'd be regular visitors, too.
11:53And if you decided to live in eastern Pangaea, yep, you're doomed.
11:58The way the continents are arranged also affects how the oceans move and the weather behaves.
12:04In Pangaea, the climate would be very different across the globe.
12:08The middle of our supercontinent would be super weird.
12:12Right in the center, we'd have a huge, dry desert.
12:15But there would also be dense, cool rainforests along the borders of this desert.
12:20Why?
12:21Because Pangaea is so massive, and rain from the ocean wouldn't reach far enough inland,
12:27so it would be stacking up around the edge.
12:30This would make some parts of the land not so great for… anything.
12:35Rain and water would wear down the land, flattening hills and carrying away soil over a long time.
12:42Eventually, Pangaea might even shrink and disappear underwater.
12:47Closer to the edges of Pangaea, the weather might be more mild or tropical.
12:52Up north, it would be warmer than it is now.
12:54And finally, we'd have some understanding of seasons.
12:58But we'd have no idea that it becomes harder for you to breathe as you go higher.
13:04So, how would all this affect living things?
13:08Well, bad.
13:09Pangaea would be awful for the variety of life on Earth.
13:13History shows that having separate pieces of land is very important for life.
13:17It was a big reason why new kinds of species appeared.
13:21For example, Madagascar, an island that broke off from Pangaea, was isolated for millions of years,
13:29which is why it has many plants and animals not found anywhere else.
13:33Fewer isolated lands, like Madagascar and Australia, mean less cool and unique plants and animals.
13:40The climate problem doesn't go away either.
13:43Almost all Pangaea would be hot and dry inside.
13:46But it wouldn't be all too boring.
13:48There would still be some environments for animals to live in.
13:51Reptiles like dinosaurs might do well in this kind of climate.
13:55That's one reason why dinosaurs thrived when the whole world was one big landmass before mammals came around.
14:02Also, this might push for the development of creatures that can live in water.
14:07They'd be more diverse and bigger in size.
14:10So basically, Pangaea is a master of creating Earth as dangerous for humans as possible.
14:17With all this in mind, let's finally see how humanity is doing, assuming that we survived and evolved.
14:24First of all, where would your country be located?
14:27In theory, you could take a road trip from Brazil to Canada because they'd be part of the same huge
14:33landmass.
14:34North America would be right here, and Europe would be just east of it.
14:39Most of Asia would be up north, and Antarctica would stay down south.
14:44Australia would still be in the middle of nowhere.
14:47A literal Antarctica would be closer to everyone than Australia.
14:52That's assuming that countries stayed the same.
14:54And hey, cool news!
14:56All our modern countries might not exist at all!
15:00Okay, that didn't sound as good as intended.
15:02More precisely, the countries would have completely different boundaries,
15:06and the world would be much more peaceful and united.
15:09Let's see.
15:11First, we'd form some tribes.
15:14But since we would share the land, we'd have to compromise.
15:17We can't all have the only coast or only inland regions.
15:21Each tribe would probably get a fair piece of the land so that everyone could meet in the middle to
15:26settle problems or make trade agreements.
15:29As tribes got bigger, people would move to new lands, separated by deserts and forests, forming their own nations.
15:37The hunter-gatherer era might take some more time, since we have fewer animals and plants.
15:43If we started hunting, we'd probably wipe out all the big animals pretty quickly.
15:49Except for the ones we could potentially domesticate.
15:52Imagine having dinosaurs as pets!
15:55But the whole supercontinent would quickly enter the agricultural era,
15:59because whatever technologies we discover, we'd share them with each other right away.
16:04The main difference would be that during our age of exploration,
16:08there would be mostly small, isolated islands to discover.
16:13Travel and trade would be easier, too.
16:16Cultures would be less distant from each other compared to our world.
16:19For example, right now, Native American culture is very different from Pacific Island culture
16:25because they've been separated by water for a long time.
16:29But on Pangaea, cultures might form a continuous line from the southern tip to the northern tip,
16:36which means all cultures would be very closely related.
16:39And that wouldn't be the only similarity.
16:43Our appearances would be very much alike as well.
16:45Since Earth is still tilted on its axis, the very north and south will stay cooler.
16:51So even though some people would still have white skin and blonde hair,
16:56in general, everyone would still have less melanin.
17:00Around the central part where the sun is always shining,
17:03most people will still have dark or tanned skin.
17:06This could create a more similar world where people could see themselves as global citizens and earthlings.
17:15The sad part is, we probably wouldn't be as motivated for technological progress as we are now.
17:21All the land is already known.
17:23There's no need to explore.
17:25The weather is mostly good and warm.
17:27The crops are growing well.
17:29The neighbors are hopefully peaceful, which is why humans would be fine with things as they are.
17:35We'd probably stick to basic tools and science.
17:38Of course, we're naturally curious creatures, so we'd still have some progress.
17:43It just would be very slow compared to our world.
17:48What sounds boring for some might sound awesome for us.
17:51Our life would be less exciting, but we'd be more united and peaceful.
17:56Maybe, in a world like that, we'd learn to treat each other with more kindness and love.
18:02But, we can only imagine.
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