Paleo-Tethys Ocean

The Paleo-Tethys Ocean was an ancient ocean between Gondwana and northern continents that narrowed and closed as Pangaea formed.

Gondwana: A southern supercontinent that existed from the Neoproterozoic until the breakup of its constituent landmasses. Gondwana bordered the Paleo-Tethys to the south and supplied terranes that later moved north.
Subduction: The descent of one tectonic plate beneath another into Earth's mantle. Subduction consumed Paleo-Tethyan seafloor as the ocean narrowed.
Plate tectonics: The theory that Earth's outer shell is divided into moving plates whose interactions shape its surface. Plate motion provides the framework for reconstructing the Paleo-Tethys and its closure.
Paleo-Tethys in the Central Asian Orogenic Belt: The Paleozoic accretionary belt across Central Asia, assembled through the growth and closure of oceanic basins. Its sutures and arc rocks preserve major records of Paleo-Tethyan convergence.
Laurussia: A Paleozoic continent formed by the collision of Laurentia, Baltica, and Avalonia. Laurussia formed part of the northern continental margin facing the Paleo-Tethys.
Cimmerian terranes: A chain of continental fragments rifted from Gondwana and later accreted to the southern margin of Eurasia. Their northward motion across the ocean preceded collision with Eurasia.
Paleogeography: The reconstruction of the geographic arrangement of land, sea, and climate at past times. Paleogeographic maps show the ocean's changing position among ancient continents.
Paleo-Tethys in the Qiangtang terrane: A Tibetan crustal block whose geological history includes Paleo-Tethyan oceanic basins and their closure. Qiangtang records the ocean's southern reaches and later collision in the evolving Tibetan region.
Pangaea: A supercontinent assembled during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic, encompassing nearly all Earth's land. The ocean's closure accompanied the assembly of this supercontinent.
Paleotethys subduction: The destruction of Paleo-Tethyan oceanic lithosphere beneath surrounding continental and island-arc margins. These subduction systems removed the ocean floor before continental collision.

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Variscan orogenyRelated: Its changing margins formed part of the tectonic setting around Variscan terranes.