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Asia

Plate tectonics explains the origin of mountain ranges as the products of the collisison between plates (continental or oceanic plates). For instance, Himalayas is resulted in the collision of Inidan and Eurasian plates from 50 million years ago; or Alps is the product of the collision between Africa and Europe plates.

 


Himalayas range
(http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/understanding.html)


Alps range
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alps)

When drifting towards Eurasian plate, the Indian plate hit this plate and stucked in that position so far (left picture, below). The result of that conflict is a famous Himalayas range – look like a wrinkled forehead of an old Eurasian lady (right picture, below).


Drift of the Indian plate
(http://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/dynamic/himalaya.html)


Himalayas range like a wrinkled forehead of an old Eurasian lady(http://www.cliffshade.com/colorado/tectonics.htm)

The drift of plates to their current positions since Cambrian Era is illustrated in the image below (adapted from http://astro.wsu.edu/worthey/earth/html/md09.html):

 

A video clip below illustrates the drift of continents and its results since the beginning of the Earth up to now (!)

 


540 million years ago (Cambrian Era)


470 million years ago (Ordovician Era)


400 million years ago (Devonian Era)


280 million years ago (Permian Era)


240 million years ago (Triassic Era)


200 million years ago (Jurassic Era)


120 million years ago (Cretaceous Era)


50 million years ago (Eocene Era)


20 million years ago (Miocene Era)


1.8 million years ago (Pleistocene Era)


Our planet today


  And… 100 million years later

The question is the plates now continue drifting or already stopped ? Who knows ?