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Timing of continental growth and emergence

Nature volume 270, pages 426–428 (1977)Cite this article

Abstract

HARGRAVES1 has proposed that the separation of the primordial shells of the earth into continents and oceans began only about 3,700 Myr ago and continued through most of Precambrian time, with the result that the bulk of the continents as we know them today did not emerge from the sea until 1,400–1,000 Myr ago. Here I review geological and geochemical data that indicate that the growth and emergence of the bulk of the present-day continents took place in or by 2,500 ± 200 Myr ago.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK

    BRIAN F. WINDLEY

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  1. BRIAN F. WINDLEY
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WINDLEY, B. Timing of continental growth and emergence. Nature 270, 426–428 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1038/270426a0

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