Guatemala's Volcanic Eruption
The eruption of a volcano in Guatemala and its tragic consequences have drawn attention across the globe this week. Some will blame the event on the random violence of nature while others will see the hand of God in the destruction and suffering. But if you must accuse someone or something, blame the Atlantic Ocean. During the Permian Period, some 250 million years ago (MYA), the Continents had merged to form Pangea. By the Triassic, about 200 MYA, the Tethys Sea opened, separating Laurasia (the northern Continents) from Gondwanaland (the southern Continents). Then, during the Jurassic Period (some 150 MYA), the Atlantic began to open and the American Continents were pushed westward, a process that continues today. In concert, the oceanic Farallon Plate was forced to subduct beneath the advancing Continental Plates; today, the Juan de Fuca Plate (in the Pacific Northwest), the Cocos Plate (west of Mexico and Central America) and the Nazca Plate (west of Sou...