Mapping Earth, billions of years ago

Howtown is supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, in association with IMI.

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Bev Fong
Chris Wubbels
Sean Barrett
Mike Purvis
Jon Hewett
Albychen
Hernando Garcia
Sean Talon
Evan Hass
Mark Tinker
Julian Mayorga
L.A. O’Connor
Mikey Limotta
Marcos Huerta
Joaquim Salles
Sam Gaty
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Parag Mallick
Edgar Sutawika
Richard Gladas
Tim Davey
Scott Henderson
Navneet
Tra Him
Taylor
Pedro ZM
Ale
Andrew Paschall
Martin Weeks

What did Earth look like a billion years ago? Before Pangea, before dinosaurs—even before oxygen filled the air—continents were on the move. In this Howtown episode, we travel billions of years into the past to explore a groundbreaking new plate tectonic model. Discover how scientists trace ancient continents using zircon crystals, magnetic minerals, glacial scars, and more. From massive dike swarms to lost supercontinents like Rodinia and Nuna, we unravel the clues that reveal Earth's epic tectonic story.

🔬 Featuring: Paleomagnetism, zircon dating, cratons, and the surprising history of plate tectonics
🛰️ NASA satellites, moon rocks, and ancient Canadian crust

Chapters:
0:00 let's rewind
1:04 starting the journey
1:52 early clues
5:00 the mechanism
5:49 how fast they move
6:41 Pangea!
8:03 a major collision
9:04 tropical canada
9:25 paleomagnetism
10:08 icy
10:40 Rodinia!
11:56 Nuna!
12:41 crazy for cratons
13:37 Vaalbara!
14:14 bombardment
15:56 the hadean

[NichowA]

Shout out to the animator for some tight work on this episode!

[aidanchen]

"The moon is just a scarred husk of violence that records every punch it ever took."
This line goes so hard

[caseykoons]

I grew up in a coastal town in Maine, where there's a little mountain. There's a special kind of quartz on that mountain that has only been found one other place on earth: Another lonely coastal mountain in Africa. Learning that as a kid, while standing on that mountain, holding a piece of that quartz, was world-expanding.

[besmart]

This was an awesome journey! Thanks for inviting me along 🤓

[leonardovieira]

As a geologist, I can say, these is the best geological animated video I've ever seen. Congrats.

[Eclipse-lwvf]

Now that’s how you do a YouTube short! I wouldn’t have been here otherwise but I wanted to see more! So many post clips and don’t post the full video on it or stream etc missing out on thousands of viewers who won’t go searching! Keep it up man

[elizabethinnb]

When I was in high school, probably around 1976, I mentioned to my geography teacher that Africa and and South America looked like there were once together and he said I was wrong, they hadn't been. Wasn't long before I found out I was right.

[skgough]

The magnetite polarity switching explaining how we can know how old the crust is blew my mind! How is this the first time I've ever heard about this? So cool.

[deathninjay]

They should show this in schools. I struggle watching 5 minute videos without skipping and this just gripped me in for 17. Great video

[mergettheborgerhrunter]

The remark about 1700’s at about 1:40 goes to show how insane math and chemistry are, so much about astronomy and medecine could be calculated accurately while the land beneath our feet is a complete mystery until 300 years later.

[rmqjjhl]

How can these be so good?!? Thank you, Howtown!

[BlissOn]

I learnt about continental drift back in college during my geology class. I was absolutely fascinated and wanted to know how people came up with such theories. Unfortunately I got caught up college stuff and never really looked it up. And today youtube recommends me this video. Beautifully explained!

[fangjiunnewe]

If i remember correctly the filpping of the earth's magnetic poles were also confirmed by the same research, geologists were aware of some rocks with opposite polarities and found it weird until the theory of flipping poles was proposed and then the continental drift theory would validate the flipping poles theory if they could find rocks of increasing age that had poles flipping, and they found both at the trench, proving both theories

[lucasscopello]

the visuals where really on point, thanks. graet content

[stevenbaumann]

As a professional geologist who studies the Precambrian, thank you. Very well done. You recognized slab pull as the likely main force for PT. You acknowledged that the mantle is a solid. Most of all you didn't claim PT went back to the beginning of the Earth, because it more than likely didn't.

[akacomm]

Credits to the guy that went 1 billion years to the past to map out earth

[liamannegarner]

You mention Tolkein? The reason Middle-Earth's map looks so wonky, with right angle mountains and rivers parallel to them, is partly that he made that map before we all accepted Plate Tectonics were a thing.

[jtelliso]

4:10 - Hawaii does help prove plate movement imo. You can look at the hotspot that created Hawaii underwater and see how the plate has moved over it over time.

[themelancholyofgay]

3:25 Hand drawn? She's... she locked in

[brandonthefirst]

The graphics on this are so well done. Such a great way to demonstrate the magnetism.