According to plate tectonics theory, Earth's outer shell is divided into multiple plates that slowly glide over the mantle. This slowly changes Earth's surface over time by merging, or separating, continents.

Here, we used projections from Chris Scotese — a professor with Northwestern University's Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences — to show how Earth will look in 250 million years.

Scotese studies how plate tectonics and a warming climate will change Earth's appearance in the future, and he has made multiple animated maps based from his research.

For more animations from Scotese about tectonic plate motions — past and present — and Earth history, check out his YouTube page.

Source: Christopher Scotese

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