Kenorland
Kenorland was one of the earliest known supercontinents on Earth. It is thought to have formed during the Neoarchaean Era c. 2.72 billion years ago (2.72 Ga) by the accretion of Neoarchaean cratons and the formation of new continental crust. It comprised what later became Laurentia (the core of today's North America and Greenland), Baltica (today's Scandinavia and Baltic), Western Australia and Kalaharia.
Map of Kenorland supercontinent 2.5 billion years ago | |
| Historical continent | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 2.72 Ga |
| Type | Supercontinent |
| Today part of |
|
Swarms of volcanic dikes and their paleomagnetic orientation as well as the existence of similar stratigraphic sequences permit this reconstruction. The core of Kenorland, the Baltic/Fennoscandian Shield, traces its origins back to over 3.1 Ga. The Yilgarn Craton (present-day Western Australia) contains zircon crystals in its crust that date back to 4.4 Ga.
Kenorland was named after the Kenoran orogeny (also called the Algoman orogeny), which in turn was named after the town of Kenora, Ontario.