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Scientists claim that the separation of the European and North American continents is still continuing.
As individuals who developed in the early years, most of us were taught that our planet is inhabited by seven continents.
A study with controversial findings suggests that it may be time to update the maps in geography textbooks, as it appears that the earth is home to a mere six continents, rather than the traditionally recognized seven.
According to researchers from the University of Derby, the separation of the European and North American continents is an ongoing process.
Dr. Jordan Phethean, an author of the study, said: ‘The discovery suggests that the North America and Eurasian tectonic plates have not yet actually separated, contradicting the long-held assumption that they did so about 52 million years ago.
They are, in fact, still expanding and in the process of fragmenting.
The new study centred on the origin of Iceland, situated between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean.
It was previously thought that Iceland emerged about 60 million years ago when the mid-Atlantic ridge, the boundary between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates, lost its stability, resulting in the formation of a hot mantle plume that eventually became a volcanic island.
However, in their latest research, the team is questioning this theory.
Researchers analyzed the movement of tectonic plates in Africa and infer that Iceland and the Greenland-Iceland Faroes Ridge contain fragments of the lost and submerged portions from both the European and North American continents.
Scientists are designating this newly identified geological formation as a ‘Rifted Oceanic Magmatic Plateau’, often referred to as ROMP.
‘I view this concept as the Earth Science equivalent of discovering the fabled Lost City of Atlantis,’ Doctor Phethean said. ‘Remnants of a lost continent lie submerged beneath the ocean, while vast expanses of thin, solidified lava flows stretch as far as the eye can see.’
‘By examining the evolution of faulting in the volcanic Afra region in Africa and comparing this with the behavior of the Earth in Iceland, we can observe that these two areas are undergoing similar evolutionary processes.’
If the researchers are correct, this implies that the separation of the European and North American continents is an ongoing process.
From a scientific perspective, North America and Europe could be considered as one single continent rather than two separate ones.
While it may be argued that the Gulf of Ierapetra Rift contains a significant amount of continental crust and that the European and North American tectonic plates have not entirely separated, our research indicates that this is indeed the case, Dr. Phethean stated.
The researchers’ discoveries, although abstract, are now ultimately going to be examined in more detail based on their study of volcanic rocks in Iceland.
They are also modeling the tectonic movements of the area using plates, and will rely on computer simulations to attempt to model the ROMP formation.
It is estimated that it was formed approximately 60 million years ago.
The proto-microcontinent is 400 kilometers long – roughly the same size as England – and currently lies beneath the Davis Strait, which links the Labrador Sea to the south with Baffin Bay to the north.
‘The separation and formation of microcontinents are ongoing processes,’ said Dr Phethean.
The discovery of the Davis Strait proto-microcontinent enables us to comprehend the process of microcontinent formation more clearly, which in turn facilitates a greater understanding of how plate tectonics functions on Earth.
‘This enables scientists to make more accurate forecasts about where valuable resources will be located, how the Earth will appear millions of years from now, and how plate tectonics functioned in the Earth’s early history, along with its potential influence on the emergence of life.’
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