A research partnership between Yale University and the University of São Paulo (USP) is advancing new understanding of Earth’s early geological history. Led by David Evans, professor of geology and geophysics in Yale’s Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, and Ricardo I. F. Trindade of USP’s Department of Geophysics and Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics, and Atmospheric Sciences, the team is investigating billion-year-old geological linkages among ancestral North and South America and Central Africa.

The project is one of five initiatives supported through the 2024 Yale–USP Strategic Partnerships Fund, which supports collaborative research between the two universities on topics such as climate change, public health, and sustainable development.

Evans and Trindade’s research focuses on reconstructing the ancient supercontinent Rodinia and assessing the extent of the ‘Snowball Earth’ glacial periods that may have covered much of the planet in ice more than 600 million years ago.

“In July we conducted a research expedition to Namibia, collecting hundreds of rock samples that we hope will preserve magnetic directions from the time they formed — about 635 million years ago,” said Evans. “These records will help us reconstruct ancient continental positions and evaluate the nature of global glaciations during that period.”

Understanding how Earth’s climate once reached extreme states provides valuable context for how the planet’s atmosphere, oceans, and continents interact today. As Evans noted in an earlier interview with Yale News, “Maps of the ancient world provide a fuller understanding of the Earth system at its longest timescales, with implications for biological evolution and climatic changes.” By studying these deep-time environmental systems, geoscientists can refine models of long-term carbon cycling and planetary stability — knowledge that informs present-day understanding of Earth’s climatic resilience.  Understanding ancient tectonic motions also leads to better prospecting for mineral deposits that underlie global industry.

The expedition brought together researchers from both institutions, including Thales Pescarini, a recent Ph.D. graduate from USP who has started a postdoctoral appointment at Yale, Grey DiMascio who is starting a Ph.D. project at Yale, and Naomi Orcel who is a Yale junior undergraduate student.

Over the coming year, the Yale researchers will perform detailed magnetic measurements on the samples, with results expected in spring 2026. The findings are expected to contribute to ongoing efforts to refine reconstructions of ancient continental movements and the evolution of Earth’s climate system.

This collaboration builds on nearly 20 years of partnership between the Yale and USP paleomagnetic laboratories, expanding opportunities for student training, joint fieldwork, and shared scientific resources.

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To learn more about Yale and Africa, visit the Yale and the World website.