So. I have come.

[stevebowers]

(Back from Switzerland now)
I've been giving some thought to tectonics on Orwell, and we should be able to work out a realistic geological history for this world.

[TSSL]

I've now posted an entry on the oceanic life of Orwell in the Rajasekaran Period, in which I may have gotten rather carried away... in any case, the thread should be back on the first page. I'd love to hear your tectonic thoughts there

[stevebowers]

I'll draw something up tomorrow. The tectonic history of a planet is quite long and complex, so we'll need to simplify it a bit.

[TSSL]

Sounds good! The program gplates should help; it allows moving continent shapes over a globe over time.

The very basic ideas that I've had so far are pretty much all there in the Geological Periods article, though I guess a little's developed since then... the Darwinian period had two continents in the northern midlatitudes, which drifted apart, and one just south of the equator. By the Rajaskearan period I figured they'd mostly moved north. The Dantean period says they almost merge into one continent, but not quite, which I'd figure straddles the northern hemisphere, encouraging polar ice buildup and discouraging equatorial currents. I slated the first actual supercontinent for the KappaKhitaian period, which starts breaking up in the Araratan period. A new one doesn't form until the NewMontanan period. I was guessing the NewMontanan one was probably more equatorial and the KappaKhitaian one might be closer around the north pole, but it doesn't have to work that way.

Thanks!