Peggy Woodcock, age l3, of Due West, SC., for her question;
What is or was Gondwanaland?
The Gondwana region that exists today is in northern India and its rocky formations are very interesting to geologists. This part of the earth's crust seems to be related to formations on distant continents. In the past these areas may have been joined in a huge Gondwanaland.
The record of the earth's geological past is written in the layers of its rocky crust. The chapters of the long diary are eras divided into paragraphs called periods. The geological periods are named for regions where the rock formations were first studied. The Jurassic Period was first observed in the Jural Mountains; the Devonian formations were first studied in Devon. However, no period was named for the interesting formations found in the Gondwana region of India. But this system of rocks may reveal more of the earth's past than any geOlogical period.
Its rocky layers solidified from silty sands deposited after an ancient Ice Age. similar Gondwana formations are found in south Africa and south America, in Australia and New Zealand. These areas are now widely separated, but geological dating proved that they were formed at the same period of time. They also bear similar plant and animal fossils that thrived millions of years ago in warm dry climates.
The most astounding surprise came when the identical Gondwana system was unearthed on the icy and isolated continent of Antarctica. More evidence was gathered and all of it points to what may be the most dramatic event of the earth's geological history. We all have noticed the jig saw puzzle lines of the east and west Atlantic shores. The Gondwana discoveries may prove that these shores once were joined together.
These and many other features also suggest that all the other Gondwana systems were part of one vast continent. some geologists call this super continent Gondwanaland; some call it Pangea which means all the earth. The geological evidence dates back more than l,000 million years, layer by rocky layer. Through the ages the vast land area was torn asunder and the pieces drifted apart to become separate continents.
Gondwanaland was in the Southern Hemisphere. The present continents of south Africa and south America, Australia and India were centered around what is now Antarctica. For millions of years these remote regions went through parallel warm spells, ice ages and geological formations. Differences began to occur in the rocks formed about 200 million years ago. At this time, we think, Gondwanaland began to crack and the drifting continents started geological histories of their own.