Short term, the west coast is moving west. From Alaska to the tip of south America, westward, and the force comes out in building mountains all along the coast and volcanos, with some quakes.
If it were not for this moving wall, the the Ring of Fire through Asia would be dormant. The Japan quake was caused by pressure from Washington State, forcing the Pacific Plate under Japan.
I would not cite the discovery TV programs as science.
The Old Red Sandstones do show that America and England were once one, but no one knows what caused the split, or why the Atlantic basin formed, and continued to spread. The mid Atlantic Ridge is still active, and may well be above the surface at some future time.
America seems to be several chunks that were pushed together. The East coast mountains are very old, once upon a time something bumped into something. Mid continent is the New Madrid Fault, and a rift that wants to split the country up the Mississippi.
The Rockies were formed recently, in Geology, and are the fourth set to rise in the same place. It could be where the New Madrid Spreading Rift releases. A spreading center trying to open, with the east coast trying to close it, This points to north America being three blocks of crust moving west, but not at the same rate.
In the near future, the captive part of the Pacific Plate, LA to northern California, will subduct, and that release of pressure, will allow the Mississippi to spread and form an inland sea. Deep ocean, a hundred miles wide, reaching Chicago, it would be very useful.
The magnetic pole is recently moving, last I heard heading for Russia at forty miles a year. That is very fast, and it has been picking up speed, showing no reason why it started, or that it might stop. We know the poles reverse, we may see it.
The rest is long in the future, except the New Madrid quake which is regular every 200 years, last going off in 1811-12. It rang church bells in Washington and Boston. The Mississippi ran backwards with waterfalls. It lasted for a year counting some major after shocks. Survivors were described as what we call PTSD.
I still think the 26,000 year comet is coming.
We live in great times, if you like Geology.
12 Mar 2011, 9:47 pm
