Talk:Geology of Europe

Fixing

Components

Stub to be replaced by future article; first, before writing anything, I'll sketch what my memory says: regarding Europe as a continent is geologically justifyable: if we reverse our mental E. Mainland vs. Scandinavia dichotomy to say that Scandinavia is the "real mainland" and the rest of Europe fragments collected from elsewhere. If my remembrance is correct, Europe consist of the

• the Baltica continent - Scandinavia, Balticum, Russia, and Northern Poland/Germany,
• Avalonian fragments - England, Ireland, Denmark (??), Netherlands, Northern Germany, etc.,
• Laurentian (North American) fragments - Western Norway and Scotland,
• Gondwana Fragments - Spain, Italy??, Malta, possibly belonging to the Cimmerian Arc,
• Neo-Tethys Ocean floor - the Pyrenees/Alps/Appenines/Balcan Alps/Carpatian complex,
• The Turkey part of the Cimmerian Arc originating from Gondwana,

Qaþ Rursus 13:24, 21 November 2006 (UTC)

Events

~2300-2200?? Ma	Baltica	The Baltic Shield (Fennoscandia) was formed from five province blocks: Svecofennian, Sveconorwegian, Karelian, Belmorian and Kola,
2300-2100 Ma	Baltica	The Sarmatian craton was formed from other blocks,
???? Ma	Baltica	The Volgo-Uralia shield was formed,
1900-1800 Ma	Baltica	The East European craton (≈ Baltica) was formed from the above three cratons, to become a part of the supercontinent Columbia,
~1500 Ma	Baltica	The Nena Continent composed of Arctica, East Antarctica and Baltica, was splitoff from Columbia,
???? Ma	Baltica	East Antarctica was shaved off from Nena,
~1100 Ma	Baltica	Baltica and Arctica, now part of a Laurentia block, was joined to Rodinia,
~750 Ma	Baltica	The Baltica/Laurentia block, AKA Proto-Laurasia, was shaved off the splitup Rodinia,
~550 Ma	Baltica	Proto-Laurasia broke apart, forming Baltica and Laurentia,
~530 Ma	Avalonia	Avalonia broke off from Gondwana by rifting
~450 Ma	Avalonia	Avalonia got in contact with Baltica
~440 Ma	Balt./Aval.	Laurentia and Baltica collided to form Euramerica, Avalonia attached to the eastern coast of Laurentia,
~350 Ma	Balt./Aval.	Euramerica collided with Gondwana forming Pangea, while Avalonia was squished to a narrow strip inbetween Gondwana and Laurasia,
~300 Ma	Balt./Kaza.	Siberia and Kazakhstania was the last continents to adjoin Pangea towards the Baltica block, thereby forming a Laurasia subcontinent of Pangea,
~270 Ma	Cimmeria	The Cimmerian Plate split off from Gondwana by rifting,
~190 Ma	Baltica	Laurasia splits of from Gondwana by the widening of the Atlantic Ocean, and very soon afterwards splits into Laurentia (North America) and an Eurasian continent.

More Tectonics

This article need to conform more closely with modern plate tectonics. Discussion of a "Baltic continent" is absurd in that context. The modern plate is the Eurasian Plate. The Baltic "continent" is presently simply a crustal block or craton that is part of this modern day plate, as well as part of the continent of Eurasia.

I propose that this article concentrate on topographic features (and perhaps sedimentary features) with some discussion of tectonics, but with a link to the Eurasian Plate article as the main article on this aspect of European geology. Tmangray (talk) 16:54, 25 April 2008 (UTC)