Alleghanian orogeny the Allegheny and Cumberland Plateau, which in some areas are popularly called mountains, but are actually simply uplifted and eroded plateaus. A portion of the Alleghanian mountain system departed with Africa when Pangaea broke up and the Atlantic Ocean began to form. Today, this forms the Anti-Atlas mountains of Morocco. The Anti-Atlas have been geologically uplifted in relatively recent times, and are today much more rugged than their Alleghanian relatives. Alleghanian orogeny The Alleghanian orogeny or Appalachian orogeny is one of the geological mountain-forming events that formed the Appalachian Mountains and Allegheny Mountains. The term and spelling Alleghany orogeny was
Andean orogeny and then to the opening of the Drake Passage 45 million years ago. The separation from Antarctica changed the tectonics of the Fuegian Andes into a transpressive regime with transform faults. About 15 million years ago in the Miocene the Chile Ridge begun to subduct beneath the southern tip of Patagonia (55° S). The point of subduction, the triple junction has gradually moved to the north and lies at present at 47° S. The subduction of the ridge has created a northward moving "window" or gap in the asthenosphere beneath South America. Andean orogeny The Andean orogeny () is an