Part of Australia Sits on an Ancient Piece of North America
A surprising new geologic finding provides insight into how today's continents formed.
A new geological study led by researchers from Curtin University in Western Australia has determined that rocks beneath the town of Georgetown, North Queensland—commonly known as the Georgetown Inlier—were once a part of Canada’s Western Laurentia, the geological core of North America. Though very much a part of Canada and North America, Laurentia has travelled all over the world, breaking away from several continents before settling where it is now.
Around 2 billion years ago the world was all joined together as one giant supercontinent named Nuna, before each continent split and drifted apart.
The team recorded that Laurentia had not only left segments at the very top of Australia, but remnants can be found beneath Georgetown, a town with
