The period when the Earth had no mountains

About 800 million – 1.8 billion years ago, Earth entered a prolonged period of relative quiescence, experiencing very little change in biological evolution, geology, climate, or ocean chemistry. and atmosphere. In 2021, scientists published research showing that this period was also a period when tectonic plate activity was not notable and mountain-building activity decreased significantly.

Mountains are formed by tectonic plates slowly crashing into each other, causing them to extrude upon impact. This is how the Himalayas appeared about 50 years ago, when the Indian tectonic plate crashed into the Eurasian plate, leading to a large amount of Earth’s crust being shifted and pushed up.

Researchers uncover revealing evidence that during Earth’s billion years, the crust was thinner and more uniform than it is today, to the point that no mountains existed. Instead, the planet is dominated by vast oceans and flat land. Those conditions indicate that tectonic activity is likely to slow significantly or stop completely within about a billion years.

Tectonic activity may be the defining factor in this dreary period. The movement of tectonic plates helps enrich the world’s oceans by stirring up sediment and crust, releasing many nutrients into the water. An abundance of bacteria creates an environment that promotes the survival and evolution of more species. Without tectonic movement, the ocean becomes a stagnant and sedentary water area, causing the rate of evolution to slow down. However, as the Earth’s crust began to move more, the Billion Years led to changes in the atmosphere, oceans and life. It is also a period that reminds us how systems on Earth were once connected and separated from each other.