Merdith, and 10 co-authors, reported in early 2021 that recent progress in plate tectonic reconstructions has seen models move beyond the classical idea of continental drift by attempting to reconstruct the full evolving configuration of tectonic plates and plate boundaries. A particular problem for the Neoproterozoic and Cambrian is that many existing interpretations of geological and palaeomagnetic data have remained disconnected from younger, better-constrained periods in Earth history.
An important test of deep time reconstructions is therefore to demonstrate the continuous kinematic viability of tectonic motions across multiple supercontinent cycles. The authors presented, for the first time, a continuous full-plate model spanning 1 Ga to the present-day, that includes a revised and improved model for the Neoproterozoic–Cambrian (1000–520 Ma) that connects with models of the Phanerozoic, thereby opening up preGondwana times for quantitative analysis and further regional refinements. In this contribution, they summarized methodological approaches to full-plate modelling and review the existing full-plate models in order to select appropriate models that produce a single continuous model. Their model is presented in a palaeomagnetic reference frame, with a newly-derived apparent polar wander path for Gondwana from 540 to 320 Ma, and a global apparent polar wander path from 320 to 0 Ma. They stressed, though while they have used palaeomagnetic data when available, the model is also geologically constrained, based on preserved data from past-plate boundaries.
This study is intended as a first step in the direction of a detailed and self-consistent tectonic reconstruction for the last billion years of Earth history, and their model files are released to facilitate community development.
Managed & Built by I2M Consulting, LLC | © 2010-
