This Map Illustrates What Earth Will Look Like in 250 Million Years, and It Looks Like the U.S. Will Have New Neighbors

About 200 million years ago, the last supercontinent began to fragment. The division of Pangaea gradually gave way to the present geological composition. However, what once broke apart will eventually come together again. The continents are still moving and colliding. Interestingly, one theory suggests that another supercontinent, Pangaea Ultima, will emerge in about 250 million years.

Pangea Ultima. Plate tectonics is fascinating because plates continue to move under and against each other. This ongoing movement has led to the theory of continental drift. Scientists study these movements to understand the Earth’s past and to predict its future. One notable scholar in this field is American geographer Christopher Scotese.

Scotese created the PALEOMAP Project, which aims to illustrate how Earth’s landmasses have shifted over the past billion years. He’s also credited with predicting the formation of a future supercontinent.

In 2000, Scotese produced the following map:

This map inspired the creation below:

New neighbors. According to the map above, in about 50 million years, North America will have rotated significantly, placing Alaska at a subtropical latitude. Meanwhile, Eurasia will rotate in the opposite direction, causing Great Britain to move closer to the North Pole.

Africa will shift closer to Europe and Arabia, resulting in the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea disappearing. Within 100 million years, the Atlantic Ocean will reportedly begin to shrink.

In 150 million years, the Atlantic Ocean is expected to disappear as it’s pulled by the American continent, bringing North America much closer to Eurasia and Africa. The culmination of this process will occur in 200 million years, when a new supercontinent forms. The Indian Ocean will be at its center, and a unique mix of neighboring regions will originate.

According to this model, Latin America would remain largely the same, but with African neighbors to the east. Cuba would be connected to the U.S. Greenland would be adjacent to Canada. Spain would still border France and Portugal, while also being next to Italy, Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria. England would be attached to France, and Korea would find itself between Japan and China.

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It won’t make any difference. The truth is that how you feel about your new neighbors doesn’t matter. This isn’t because you won’t be around to deal with them, but because humanity may be extinct. Environmental conditions may no longer support mammalian life.

In a study published in Nature, researchers predicted that 92% of the Earth could become uninhabitable for mammals. Their climate simulation on a future supercontinent suggests that temperatures in much of Pangea Ultima will exceed 104 degrees Fahrenheit. Moreover, elevated levels of carbon dioxide will create challenging conditions for mammals.

The frequent collisions between tectonic plates will lead to significant volcanic activity. This will increase carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, resulting in further warming of the planet. Additionally, the Sun will be 2.5% brighter due to an increased rate of nuclear fusion, contributing to a drier Earth.

Scarce vegetation. The outlook may not be very encouraging due to the potential for mass extinction of plant life. However, researchers suggest that conditions may vary across different parts of the world. For instance, regions closer to the North Pole might have cooler conditions, allowing for better adaptation to life. Countries such as Spain, Portugal, Morocco, and England could find themselves in this more favorable scenario.

Desert environments might also become more prominent. Researcher Alexander Farnsworth analyzed how life adapts to the extreme climate of Dune’s Arrakis and sees parallels with Earth’s future 250 million years from now.

Multiple models. Is this what Earth will look like in 250 million years? No one knows for sure, but several hypotheses suggest the possibility of a supercontinent forming. One hypothesis is Novopangea, which predicts the closure of the Pacific Ocean. Another model, Aurica, envisions the closure of both the Atlantic and the Pacific. There’s also the Amasia model, which proposes a merger between Asia and America.

Regardless of which model is accurate, they all resemble the last Pangaea. Following the formation of this new supercontinent, the Atlantic is expected to reopen. Continents will separate again and initiate a new cycle of geological change.

Image | CHUTTERSNAP

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