paleogeology

Paleogeology is the study of the geographic layout of the Earth in the geological past, including the positions of continents and oceans, coastlines, mountain belts, and sedimentary basins as inferred from rocks and fossils. It integrates geology, paleontology, geophysics, and geochronology to interpret how the planet’s surface has changed through time.

The field relies on stratigraphy, lithology, fossil assemblages, and radiometric dating to place rocks in a chronological framework. Paleomagnetism, isotope geochemistry (such as oxygen and carbon isotopes), chemostratigraphy, and sequence stratigraphy provide information about past climates, sea-level changes, and ocean circulation. Plate tectonics offers the overarching model for continental movement and basin development, while computer reconstructions and software tools help visualize ancient configurations and test hypotheses about paleogeography.

Scope and applications of paleogeology include reconstructing major events such as the assembly and breakup of supercontinents (e.g., Rodinia and Pangea), shifts in climate and sea level, and patterns of sedimentation and basin evolution. The field informs paleoclimatology and paleoceanography and contributes to understanding mass extinctions, biogeographic histories, and crustal evolution. It also supports resource exploration by constraining the age, extent, and character of sedimentary basins relevant to hydrocarbons and minerals.

Paleogeology often overlaps with paleogeography, paleoclimatology, and paleontology, and is sometimes treated as a component of historical geology or a subdiscipline of geology. Advances in dating techniques, geophysical methods, and computational reconstructions continue to enhance its insights into Earth’s deep past.