Definition of palaeolatitude in English:
palaeolatitude
(US paleolatitude)
noun ˌpeɪlɪəʊˈlatɪtjuːdˌpalɪəʊˈlatɪtjuːdˌpālēōˈladət(y)o͞od
The latitude of a place at some time in the past, measured relative to the earth's magnetic poles in the same period. Differences between this and the present latitude are caused by continental drift and movement of the earth's magnetic poles.
Example sentencesExamples
- Fifth, much emphasis has been placed on paleomagnetic data indicating low depositional paleolatitudes.
- Palaeomagnetic data indicate that the palaeolatitude of the Atacama has been close to that of the present day since the late Jurassic.
- Of the lower plants, lycopods and horse-tails are rare whilst liverworts are abundant, particularly when compared to Cretaceous floras from lower palaeolatitudes.
- However, and very importantly, the distance from a palaeomagnetic pole and the sampled area of the continent, as reflected by palaeomagnetic inclination, provides a direct estimate of the palaeolatitude of the continent.
- Thus the sedimentological data indicating palaeolatitudes confirm the palaeomagnetic conclusions, in particular in the positioning of the South Pole under the Antarctic part of Gondwana.