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So, what I'm wondering is, why is this its own continent, and the Indian subcontinent isn't considered one?
by DiabloD3 10y ago
So, what I'm wondering is, why is this its own continent, and the Indian subcontinent isn't considered one?
- niftich 10y agoIndia is a former continent underlain by its own craton and its own tectonic plate that has collided with the much larger Eurasian plate in the epic Himalayan orogeny [1]. Eurasia is a multi-plate continent that forms a continuous expanse of continental crust that has geologically interacted with parts of itself for millions of years. On the other hand, Zealandia is a continent which broke away from Gondwana (much like India did) and has since stood independently apart, not accreting to any other continent. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan_orogeny https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan_orogeny
- bonzini 10y agoSo it's because it's moving away from Australia, rather than towards it?