Users can simply type the name of their city into a newly built application to explore where that location stood in the age of dinosaurs and beyond. The experience invites explorers to venture into a journey through time, revealing landscapes from the farthest past. There are a few Spanish islands and certain cities whose historical data cannot be served by the app at this moment.
The story of Earth is a long one. The landmasses and seas we recognize today—Europe and Asia, the Americas, Africa, Antarctica, and Oceania—sit on vast tectonic plates. These plates move with a pace that would feel glacial in a lifetime; yet over millions of years, their constant drift gradually reshapes the world. This slow dynamism means Earth could look radically different millions of years from now, even while current life and oceans shift in tandem with these planetary movements.
The app is the result of collaboration led by Ian Webster, drawing on plate tectonics data and paleogeographic maps from the PALEOMAP Project developed by CR Scotese. These resources provide a visual backbone for reconstructing ancient geography and understanding how continents migrated over deep time.
On the main screen, users are shown an image of the planet from 240 million years ago, during the era of the supercontinent Pangaea. The app also offers a selectable timeline range from 750 million years ago to the present, enabling users to explore the evolving world step by step. Desktop users can navigate by holding down the left or right arrow keys to watch the continents drift and eventually settle into their present configurations.
The map includes features that highlight pivotal moments in the history of life on Earth. Viewers can explore events such as the emergence of the first vertebrates, the appearance of early hominids, and the extinction events that reshaped biodiversity across eras.
Reference note: Dinosaur Pictures Ancient Earth timeline 240 million years ago is used as a framework for the visual chronology. This resource is cited to provide a consistent, scientifically informed perspective on deep time visualizations.
Additional context derives from ongoing paleogeographic research and public datasets that support dynamic mapping of past Earth configurations. The visualization aims to convey how geography and life coevolved across hundreds of millions of years, emphasizing the interconnectedness of tectonics, climate, and biological evolution.
For those interested in further study, the project aligns with educational materials that summarize major geologic periods, mass extinction events, and the evolution of major life forms. It serves as a practical entry point for students, educators, and curious minds seeking a tangible sense of the planet’s deep-time progression. The integration of real paleogeographic data helps users appreciate the scale and pace of Earth’s history, making ancient epochs feel accessible and engaging.
Citation guidance: when referencing the visual timeline and paleogeographic reconstructions, attribution should acknowledge the primary data sources and researchers involved in the project. This practice supports transparency and encourages readers to consult foundational works in geology and paleogeography for deeper exploration.
Ethical use and interpretation notes emphasize that the timeline represents best available reconstructions, subject to revision as new data and methods emerge. Viewers should approach the material with an understanding of uncertainties inherent in deep-time reconstructions and the evolving nature of paleogeographic models.