Cenozoic Plate Tectonics

The Cenozoic, Earth’s most recent era, began 65 million years ago after the dinosaurs' extinction.

During this time, Earth’s tectonic plates have continuously moved, shaping the planet’s surface. For example, the Rocky Mountains, which formed as pieces of the Earth’s crust were pushed upward.

The San Andreas Fault is a well-known tectonic feature marking the boundary between the Pacific and North American plates.

Approximately 30 million years ago, these plates started moving sideways against each other. This type of sideways motion is known as a transform boundary, which resulted in the formation of the San Andreas Fault.

The Pleistocene Ice Age, which began 2.6 million years ago, was marked by variations in atmospheric temperature.

During this time, large ice sheets, called glaciers, advanced and spread across parts of the Earth's surface.

When the climate became colder, these ice sheets became extremely thick, like the Antarctic ice cap today.

When the climate warmed up, these glaciers melted and retreated. This cycle of advancing and retreating happened four times, significantly shaping the Earth's surface.