page_title: Opening of the North Atlantic Ocean
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Opening of the North Atlantic Ocean / Description
caption_attribution_description: English: Animation of the break-up of the supercontinent Pangaea and the subsequent drift of its constituents, from the Early Triassic to recent (250 Ma to 0). Français&#160;: Animation montrant la rupture du supercontinent Pangea et de la dérive subséquente de ses constituants, du Trias précoce jusqu'à l'ère actuelle (-250 Ma à 0). Deutsch: Darstellung der Auseinanderbrechens des Superkontinents Pangea und der darauf folgenden Kontinentaldrift der Einzelteile vom Anfang der Trias bis zur Gegenwart (250 Millionen Jahre vor unserer Zeit bis heute)
context_page_description: The opening of the North Atlantic Ocean is a geological event that has occurred over millions of years, during which the supercontinent Pangea broke up. As modern-day Europe and North America separated during the final breakup of Pangea in the early Cenozoic Era, they formed the North Atlantic Ocean. Geologists believe the breakup occurred either due to primary processes of the Iceland plume or secondary processes of lithospheric extension from plate tectonics.
context_section_description: Rocks from the North Atlantic Igneous Province have been found in Greenland, the Irminger Basin, Faroe Islands, Vøring Plateau (off Norway), Faroe-Shetland Basin, Hebrides, Outer Moray Firth and Denmark. The supercontinent known as Pangea existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras and began to rift around 200 million years ago. Pangea had three major phases of breakup. The first major phase began in the Early-Middle Jurassic, taking place between North America and Africa. The second major phase of breakup began in the Early Cretaceous. The South Atlantic Ocean opened around 140 million years ago as Africa separated from South America, and about the same time, India separated from Antarctica and Australia, forming the central Indian Ocean. The final major phase of breakup occurred in the early Cenozoic, as Laurentia separated from Eurasia. As the two plates broke free from each other, the Atlantic Ocean continued to expand.
caption: Animation of the rifting of the supercontinent Pangea