Panthalassa

views updated May 08 2018

Panthalassa The name given to the vast oceanic area that surrounded Pangaea when that supercontinent was in existence. Tethys was a minor arm of this ocean. Once Pangaea began to rift in the Triassic, the names of the modern oceans are normally applied to the developing ocean basins even though they were, at that time, still very small.

A Dictionary of Earth Sciences AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY

Panthalassa

views updated Jun 11 2018

Panthalassa The name given to the vast oceanic area that surrounded Pangaea when that supercontinent was in existence. Tethys was a minor arm of this ocean. Once Pangaea began to split in the Triassic, the names of all the modern oceans are normally applied to the developing ocean basins even though they were, at that time, still very small.

A Dictionary of Plant Sciences MICHAEL ALLABY

Panthalassa

views updated May 18 2018

Panthalassa The vast oceanic area that surrounded Pangaea when that supercontinent was in existence. Tethys was a minor arm of this ocean. Once Pangaea began to split in the Triassic, the names of all the modern oceans are normally applied to the developing ocean basins even though they were, at that time, still very small.

A Dictionary of Ecology MICHAEL ALLABY