Astronomers discover age of oldest continents in Milky Way 13:17

British scientists from Cardiff University have discovered that the first continents on some planets in our Milky Way galaxy formed before the Earth appeared. Their age is more than 5 billion years. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine Research Notes of AAS (RNASS).

Experts have discovered that the first continents formed around nearby sun-like stars about 2 billion years before Earth’s plate tectonics began. For example, continents on planets around the star HD 4614, 20 light-years from our planet, appeared about 2 billion years before the beginning of tectonics on Earth.

But two stars stand out: the planets of the two stars are slightly smaller than our Sun (HD 76932 and HD 201891), located between 70 and 110 light-years away, respectively. Observations showed that the continents there may have formed 5 billion years earlier than those on Earth.

Based on a sample of 29 stars, astronomers have suggested that planets in these systems may have more developed biospheres compared to Earth.
Continents form as a result of plate tectonics, which is the movement of rock layers floating on the surface of the planet’s molten interior. Heat radiating from the planet’s core prevents magma from solidifying and stops continental drift. The heat comes from radioactive elements such as uranium-238, thorium-232 and potassium-40, which are found in the center of the planet and release energy as they decay.

Although large land masses were not necessary for life to arise, the history of our planet shows that they were necessary for various organisms to thrive over long periods of time. The existence of other planets with continents could indicate that ancient, advanced life may have existed in the Milky Way, experts said.

Planetary scientists before in the name The best places for the origin of extraterrestrial life in the solar system.