If life never emerged on Earth, would the continents still be more or less the same today? In other words, does life affect the formation and movement of continents significantly?

Sheridan · edit-2 6 months ago

If life never emerged on Earth, would the continents still be more or less the same today? In other words, does life affect the formation and movement of continents significantly?

@CheeseNoodle · edit-2 6 months ago

I think pretty much everything on land would be different: plant induced precipitation, river bank stabilization, carbon sequestration changing the climate and the timing/duration of ice ages and hydrocarbons being ignited by flood volcanism events. All of that would be gone, could even rearrange whole mountain ranges over time by by altering the pressure of glaciers ice on tectonic plates.

@givesomefucks · 6 months ago

Definitely.

The land would look like Mars except with oceans.

But even tidal forces wouldn’t substantial change the shape of continents on the globe.

There’s not much that effects plate tectonics. What happen would have always happened.