A new microcontinent discovered between Canada and Greenland

Scientists from the University of Derby have discovered a new microcontinent. This finding will benefit science and provide a better understanding of the movements of tectonic plates.

The Earth "lives." The surface of our planet consists of fluid mantles whose movements, slow from a human perspective, shape the landscape. Tectonic plates can move away from each other or collide in the subduction zone, the boundary where the oceanic plate goes under the continental plate. This is how mountains or destructive earthquakes are formed.

One of these boundaries is between Canada and Greenland, creating the Davis Strait, which connects the Baffin Sea with the Labrador Sea. Scientists have discovered a new microcontinent there.

The research team used maps based on gravitational and seismic data to determine when the rift was formed. It was established that it took place around 118 million years ago. The Davis Strait's tectonic evolution is dated 33–61 million years ago.

The discovery is practically a massive fragment of crust with a thickness of 19-24 kilometres, surrounded by two narrow bands of thin continental crust with a width of 14 to 18 kilometres, which separate this area from mainland Greenland and Baffin Island. Scientists have named it the Proto-Microcontinent of the Davis Strait.

Why is the discovery of this geological anomaly so important? Dr Jordan Phethean from the University of Derby notes that better knowledge about how these microcontinents form allows researchers to understand plate tectonics on Earthworks, which has valuable implications for mitigating tectonic hazards and discovering new resources.