Science Advances· 2026Q1
Buried fragments reveal a “Greater Gondwana” supercontinent
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- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
New Nd isotopic mapping reveals extensive buried Precambrian terranes, expanding Gondwana's reconstructed area to ~80% of global landmass and establishing it as a supercontinent ('Greater Gondwana').
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Key points
- Extensive buried Precambrian terranes were identified beneath Phanerozoic orogens using continental-scale Nd isotopic mapping.
- Gondwana's reconstructed area is expanded to ~80% of global landmass, establishing it as a supercontinent ('Greater Gondwana').
- The assembly and peripheral subduction of 'Greater Gondwana' are linked to Ediacaran-Cambrian biogeochemical shifts and the Cambrian metazoan radiation.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Profound global biogeochemical shifts marked the Ediacaran-Cambrian transition [550-500 million years (Ma)], a phenomenon often ascribed to the dynamics of supercontinent cycles. However, Gondwana is frequently denied supercontinent status due to its perceived spatial deficit (∼64% of continental landmass). Leveraging continental-scale Nd isotopic mapping based on a vast database of 25,346 felsic-intermediate igneous rocks, we reveal extensive buried Precambrian terranes beneath Phanerozoic orogens in Asia, Europe, and North America. Our results expand Gondwana's reconstructed area to ∼80% of the global landmass, firmly establishing its identity as a true supercontinent-termed "Greater Gondwana." We propose that the assembly and peripheral subduction of this "Greater Gondwana" played a pivotal role in driving the geodynamic and environmental perturbations that culminated in the Cambrian metazoan radiation.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Science Advances, 2026 · DOI ↗
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PaleontologyEarth and Planetary Sciences