A CONTINENTAL DRIFT FLIPBOOK

Abstract

Forty-six miniature plate tectonic reconstructions are presented that can be assembled into a "flipbook" that illustrates the movement of the continents since the Late Precambrian, 750 m.yr. ago. Six principal lines of evidence have been used to reconstruct the past positions of the continents: (1) linear magnetic anomalies produced by sea floor spreading, (2) paleomagnetism, (3) hotspot tracks and large igneous provinces, (4) the tectonic fabric of the ocean floor mapped by satellite altimetry, (5) lithologic indicators of climate (e.g., coals, salt deposits, tillites), and (6) the geologic record of plate tectonic history. I discuss the probable uncertainties associated with the plate tectonic reconstructions and give an estimate of the uncertainty in the positions of the continents back through time.