Out of curiosity, I am conducting my own "study" on the general conditions of planet earth 250 million years into the future.
For the sake of argument I am using Scotese's "Pangea Ultima" as a template for the general landmass shape. (I know his subduction theories can be contentious but in this thread I would like to -assume- this Pangea Ultima pans out. No pan, er, pun intended.)
Thus we have:
Also for the sake of argument, I would like to assume that humans (or their evolutionary offshoots) haven't had a chance to make a significant impact on the planet beyond what is already done. Assume that, say, humans just picked up shop and left, or were killed off in a worldwide virus, etc, sometime in the next few centuries.
What I am looking for is any insight that the forum members might be able to lend, on any number of topics, as to what this future world might be like.
What manner of climate might such a huge super-continent experience? Would there be giant hurricanes, or none? Would it be arid, or wet, and where? What would an ice age look like, here?
What forms would life take? What extant creatures alive today do you think might survive virtually unchanged, if any, or what might evolve from them? Assuming that life continues along its current path, would the atmosphere still consist of the same mixture of Oxygen, Nitrogen, etc?
What general changes might take place that aren't so obvious, but might have a huge impact? Any inevitable but subtle changes...for example, the Moon should be about 3,500 miles farther away, but will that have only negligible consequences? Any major changes to the night sky, other than slightly different star positions? What about the other planets in 250 million years, at least insofar as the are visible or affect the earth? I'm looking for any possible changes that might escape casual musing.
Would the things men have built (up to the present) survive in any form at all? If so, what? Would there be any evidence of our past "domination" whatsoever?
I thought this could make an interesting topic, and as it spans many different scientific fields of study, I have posted it in the general discussion area. So feel free to chime in on any of the above questions, or your own musings/prognostications.