Future Supercontinent and Climate Crisis: Implications for Mass Extinction and the Human Race

The world took many turns until it reached this moment of climate crisisand, according to research by British and Swiss scientists, it could continue to revolve until a situation similar to the planet’s past: the formation of a supercontinent.

However, this situation, predicted for 250 million years in the future, could be decisive for a mass extinction of life on Earth, especially with regard to mammals, warns the research “Climate Extremes Likely to Drive Land Mammal Extinction During Next Supercontinent Assembly”, made by a team of researchers from the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the United States, published this Monday (25) in the geoscience section of scientific magazine Nature.

The reunion of Earth’s continents, becoming one again in a new Pangea, is the result of the projection of climate models from the British meteorological service onto a supercomputer at the University of Bristol (England).

In the era of Pangea Ultima, as the possible future supercontinent was named, a temperature 30°C warmer on dry land is expected, in addition to high humidity in the coastal zone and desertification in the interior, reported the newspaper The Guardian.

The extreme heat would be similar to the Permian-Triassic period, 260 million years ago, when more than 90% of species were eradicated. Prolonged periods of heat exceeding 40°C would be beyond the tolerance levels of many life forms, such as plants and mammals. The older sun will emit more radiation.

The situation would invariably impact the human race, accustomed to a mild climate compared to other eras on the planet. An important impact of temperatures would be the collapse of agriculture and livestock. This is if humanity overcomes much more urgent obstacles, such as the climate crisis that haunts this 21st Century.

“Earth has a very changeable environment. Humans are very lucky with what we have now and we shouldn’t force our own climate beyond the colder environment through which we evolved. We are the dominant species, but the Earth and its climate decide how long this will last. What comes next no one knows. The dominant species could be something completely new,” said Alexander Farnsworth of the University of Bristol.

2023-09-25 18:19:19
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