Plate tectonic modelling: virtual reality with GMAP

Palaeogeographic reconstructions have been an integral part of global tecto nic research since the advent of the plate tectonic paradigm, and GMAP is a state of the art computer program which performs all processing and plotti ng tasks associated with the generation of palaeogeographic reconstructions and plate tectonic modelling. GMAP is menu-driven and easy to use; the use r is never far removed from the basic data from which palaeogeographic reco nstructions are derived, and therefore has a sense of total control over th e program's performance. GMAP can generate reconstructions based on known E uler rotation data poles or palaeomagnetic poles. The user is also free sim ply to move continents around on the screen, according to less tangible con straints. GMAP is supplied with a full range of continental outlines. It is also possible to import new continents via simple ASCII files. GMAP is in use at leading institutions world-wide, and has been the work-horse of the EUROPEAN GEOTRAVERSE and EUROPROBE projects. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.