Completing the loop of the Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous true polar wander event

Abstract

The reorientation of Earth through rotation of its solid shell relative to its spin axis is known as True polar wander (TPW). It is well-documented at present, but the occurrence of TPW in the geologic past remains controversial. This is especially so for Late Jurassic TPW, where the veracity and dynamics of a particularly large shift remain debated. Here, we report three palaeomagnetic poles at 153, 147, and 141 million years (Myr) ago from the North China craton that document an ~ 12° southward shift in palaeolatitude from 155–147 Myr ago (~1.5° Myr−1), immediately followed by an ~ 10° northward displacement between 147–141 Myr ago (~1.6° Myr−1). Our data support a large round-trip TPW oscillation in the past 200 Myr and we suggest that the shifting back-and-forth of the continents may contribute to the biota evolution in East Asia and the global Jurassic–Cretaceous extinction and endemism.