back to article Coming to a continent near you: America

It’s going to be a heck of a reunion: the Pangea supercontinent that broke up to create the atlas we know today will one day reform in the Northern hemisphere. That’s the conclusion reached by researchers at Yale University who, instead of looking at the past history of continental movements, have turned their attention to the …

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  1. The Envoy
    Pint

    100 million years?

    It will at least give me time to renew my passport!

    1. Code Monkey
      Trollface

      And time for Americans to *get* passports.

  2. Beachrider

    It is hard enough to get Europeans to concede..

    I remember being taught that Europe was a separate continent from Asia. That somehow the Ural Mountains were the logical separator of Europe from Asia. At least this chart concedes that Europeans live on Eurasia.

    Why wasn't it Asiope? That would be shorter.

    At any rate Amasia will amaze-ya!

    1. Thomas 4

      I can totally see Ronnald Emerich directing this film

      Probably a snappy title, i dunno "Tectonic" or something.

      A CGI budget that comprises 99% of the film

      A nice tag line like "When continents start getting frisky, pray that you're on top."

      And maybe chuck in an annoying kid somewhere and a Feel-Good-Family-Message.

      1. ravenviz Silver badge
        Mushroom

        ...and make it humanity's fault!

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      The Urals are a suture between two former continents when the former Siberian plate collided with Pangaea, so yep it is perfectly correct for geologists consider them to mark a continental divide as the geology on either side is so profoundly different.

      But then, you could claim the same for most of Scotland and North Wales which are geologically much more similar to Greenland than they are to London.

      The only really new bit in this work is the possible location of the new supercontinent (and it's a pretty safe bet none of us will be around to prove otherwise). That the Atlantic was widening, the Pacific floor being subducted and Africa and India burrowing into the belly of Eurasia is Geology 101. But the animations are nice.

  3. hplasm
    Happy

    In the end-

    Civilisation will arrive in the New World.

  4. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge

    By then, there will only be a City with a buried starship.

    1. AdamT

      and a confused robot waiting for the return of someone/something? If I (a) recall correctly and (b) got your reference right ,,,

    2. hplasm
      Happy

      Half buried starship.

      With the engine going, to restart the Earth's rotation...

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Linux

    @ Destroy All Monsters

    A City with a buried starship, with speakers playing a loop of Starship's "We Built This City on Rock and Roll"?

    And maybe some damned, dirty apes....

    Linux Penguin, because he's going to be fairly at home in our future polar supercontinent!!

  6. G R Goslin

    climate

    Will this be worse for the climate than Carbon Dioxide build up?

  7. Steven Roper

    It's been known for years

    albeit without the specifics listed in the article, that the continents would one day merge into what the scientists have long been calling "Pangaea Ultima".

    http://www.scotese.com/earth.htm, look at the links for Future World, Future +100, and Future +250 - this site places Pangaea Ultima at around 250m.y. from now.

  8. Paul Hovnanian Silver badge

    I see ...

    ... you folks managed to keep the British Isles and the mainland separated after all of this.

    1. Silverburn
      Happy

      We're on the same plate as yooroop, so it makes sense scientifically. no geological stuff to see us moving.

      The fact it keeps us upwind from the mainland is merely convenient...;-)

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Possibly.

        The Atlantic is a mature ocean, sooner or later it will begin to see subduction occurring around its margins (currently really only happening in the Caribbean margin, in South Sandwich and possibly getting started off Portugal.

        If that happens, the UK might one day have some lovely volcanoes whose effect on house prices will really upset the Daily Mail.

      2. ravenviz Silver badge
        Boffin

        I suspect erosion and isostasy will alter coastlines sufficiently to render contemporary landforms unrecognisable.

        1. Denarius
          Childcatcher

          not quite

          probable the continental granite cores will remain. However, we have a fresh replacement for Antartic ice sheets. Europe already cold enuff...

    2. hplasm
      Holmes

      But of course, old bean-

      One doesn't want to get too chummy with the neighbours.

      PipPip!

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @Paul Hovnanian

      It'll take more than an apocalypse to get us to join up with the bloody French.

  9. Local Group
    Devil

    The Holy American Empire & Reformation Gambit

    America will be stationing many divisions, air wings and atomic submarines in our long lost terra nova. This is to make sure nobody tries to leave with the silverware.

  10. Herby

    Reunite gondwanaland?

    Of course, man made global warming will start "any day (or whatever they use for measurement of time then) now". We should reduce the CO2 right away to prevent this "immediately pending" disaster.

  11. ratfox
    Megaphone

    STOP IT!

    Stop the continental drift!

    1. Yet Another Commentard

      Down with this sort of thing

      Careful now.

  12. Chris D Rogers
    Thumb Up

    Can we securitise potential Real Estate profits?

    This is indeed wonderful news for property speculators, real estate agents and bankers.

    Does anyone know if any of the above will be issuing investment brochures offering pristine beach front homes, hotels and the like in this new global landscape.

    Whilst I'm risk averse, given the potential profits and timeframes I'm confident many will sign up for these more futuristic of investment opportunities.

  13. PeterM42
    Alien

    Several million years' time - Nice safe prediction that one

    I predict that all humans on the earth will live in complete harmony, with no taxation, no crime, no need to work, plenty of food, everyone will drive perfectly, free petrol and sunshine every day.........

    In 10 million years time!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Oh - and the internet will be totally free and the Eurozone will not be totally flawed and.......

    You can predict anything you like if it's far enough ahead not to matter. Unfortunately, like listening to politicians - someone is going to take it seriously.

    1. Thomas 4

      I intend to have myself cyrogenically frozen for 10 million years

      ...and if you're wrong, I'm going to travel back in time and punch you in the face.

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    So America will join up with other countries?

    Republicans aren't going to like this, not one bit.

    1. kiwimuso
      Pirate

      @Norfolk 'n' Goode

      Nor Homeland Security!

      How are they gonna keep the terrorists out if it's all one big continent.

      That's also going to stuff up the Geography classes.

  15. TeeCee Gold badge
    Coat

    "....the Americas and Eurasia more-or-less at the North Pole....."

    With a bit of luck we'll have warmed the place up enough by then that it'll be nice and comfy up there.

  16. Anonymous Coward
    Paris Hilton

    What I can't fathom is....

    How much I actually don't care.

  17. Groaning Ninny

    Culturally, surely....?

    -> Mike Richards

    "But then, you could claim the same for most of Scotland and North Wales which are geologically much more similar to Greenland than they are to London."

    I think maybe you mean "culturally"?

  18. Qu Dawei

    crucially important...

    But will there be honey still for tea?

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