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submitted 17 hours ago by floofloof@lemmy.ca to c/world@lemmy.world

cross-posted from: https://ibbit.at/post/205768

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[-] teyrnon@sh.itjust.works 27 points 15 hours ago

They are separate tectonic plates, the two continents only crashed together relatively recently, the "columbian exchange" that saw wildlife mix between the continents. South America was near Africa at one point, North America more with Europe as I understand it.

[-] Jack@lemmy.ca 1 points 47 minutes ago* (last edited 31 minutes ago)
  1. Scotia plate (bits of Patagonia),
  2. South American plate,
  3. Altiplano plate,
  4. North Andes plate,
  5. Panama plate,
  6. Caribbean plate,
  7. North America plate,
  8. Pacific plate (Baja California peninsula, southern California).
[-] not_so_handsome_jack@sh.itjust.works 14 points 15 hours ago

I find it really cool that the Appalachian mountains used to be connected with what's now the Scottish Highlands, if memory serves correctly.

[-] teyrnon@sh.itjust.works 7 points 15 hours ago

When I was on the Appalachian trail they had a placard that explained it and said it's also the oldest mountain range in the world, and used to be like 4x the size of the himalayans (which is the youngest.) Others have disputed that, but just internet randos with no sources, I trust the NPS placard.

So crazy to think about because they're so worn down at this point. Neat!

[-] Zombie@feddit.uk 4 points 13 hours ago

Hills near me (northern Scotland) were once magma chambers underneath volcanoes! That's how worn down they are. Wild to think about, and makes some lovely granite.

[-] Sunforged@lemmy.ml 1 points 14 hours ago

(That's the joke)

this post was submitted on 19 Mar 2026
373 points (100.0% liked)

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