Plate tectonics are 3.6 billion years old, oldest minerals on Earth reveal – Livescience.com

Earth’s tectonic plates have moved continuously since they emerged a whopping 3.6 billion years ago, according to a new study on some of the world’s oldest crystals. Previously, researchers thought that these plates formed anywhere from 3.5 billion to 3 billion years ago
, and yet-to-be published research
even estimated that the plates are 3.7 billion years old.
The scientists on the new study discovered the onset date of plate tectonics
by analyzing ancient zircon crystals from the Jack Hills…

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