Ancient continents and Boxgrove Man (From Worcester News)

Ancient continents and Boxgrove Man

11:19am Monday 12th January 2009 in

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ABOUT 248 million years ago, there was one single continent called Pangaea, surrounded by the world ocean, Panthalassa. The interior of Pangaea was extremely dry. 200 million years ago, Pangaea broke into two continents: Laurasia in the north and Gondwanaland to the south.

For 100 million years, land bridges linked the continents. The Atlantic Ocean opened 135 million years ago, as Africa and South America divided. The Tethys Sea separated Africa and South America from Asia. Australia and Antarctica separated 40 million years ago. Then North America separated from Europe. India reached the Equator and Arabia broke from Africa.

Late in 1993, a human tibia was found at Boxgrove, in West Sussex, UK. This leg bone is about 500,000 years old and its size states it is from a male. He lived and walked alongside now extinct species of the wooly rhinoceroses, bears and other smaller mammals during an interglacial period (a period between two ice ages). At that time the UK was joined to the mainland of Europe, and it may have had a climate much warmer than we have today.

Next Week.....Monsoons

Glossary: Millibar: The unit usually used in measuring and reporting atmospheric pressure.

Weather for coming week Monday 12th January-Friday 16th January.

A mobile Atlantic airstream will influence our weather through this coming week.

Monday wind and rain then sun and a few blustery showers.

Tuesday sunshine and scattered showers, slight overnight frost.

Wednesday into Thursday fair and placid beneath high pressure ridge.

Wind and rain into late Thursday and showers on Friday.

Maximum temperature 8-11c 46-52f.

Minimum temperature Minus 1c on Tuesday and Wednesday night otherwise 4-7c 39-45f.

Last Week's Observations (Monday-Sunday)

Highest day temperature......9.8c on Sunday 11th January.

Lowest night temperature.....minus 8.1c on Monday 5th January.

Wettest day.........................7.6 mm on Sunday 11th January.