Appalachian

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that can be observed in the Shenandoah. As they rifted apart, they created a growing ocean called the proto-Atlantic or Iapetus after the father of Atlas, for whom the Atlantic Ocean is named. Towards the end of the Precambrian, the tensional forces changed to compression and subduction began. Volcanic islands grew as a result of andesitic volcanism associated with the subduction.
With continued subduction and convergence, volcanic islands collided with North America and those rocks were thrust up on the continental margin. Deformation, metamorphism and magmatism accompanied this collision and gave rise to the Taconic Orogeny. Rocks metamorphosed and deformed in this event are seen in the Blue Ridge and Piedmont provinces. This all occured during the Ordovician time, about 425 million years ago. As North American, African, and Europe convergence continued, a small microplate known as the Avalon terrane, collided with North America producing a second phase of deformation, ...

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