No, atmospheric circulation has changed dramatically over geologic time. The locations of the land masses have significant effects on global wind patterns, by controlling ocean circulation patterns. Currents in the deep ocean exist because of changes in the density of sea water occurring at the surface. These density changes give rise to specific water masses, which have well-defined temperature and salinity characteristics, and which can be traced for long distances in the ocean. Today, the large-scale thermohaline circulation of the ocean is driven by the sinking of cold water in the far North Atlantic and around Antarctica. The return flow of warm surface water to the North Atlantic transports heat to the region, resulting in a substantially warmer climate on the eastern, relative to the western side of the basin. It is suggested, therefore, that the formation of Pangaea near the end of the Paleozoic would have altered the climate by cutting off cool oceans that had formerly surrounded smaller continents that now lay with much of their land mass lodged in the hot, dry interiors.

The thermohaline circulation was initiated by the closing of the Isthmus of Panama 4 million years ago. As the Atlantic surface currents pass through the Trade Wind Belt they become saltier by evaporation. Instead of moving westward into the Pacific Ocean, as it did before, the salty water is now blocked by Panama and flows into the North Atlantic. There it is chilled and becomes quite dense, forming the sinking North Atlantic Deep Water that begins the deep-current conveyor belt. If the surface water were fresher, it would be less dense. Instead of sinking, it might flow into polar regions and warm them. It is thought that the sinking of this water initiated an ice age; changes in the sinking rate appear to have been closely linked to glacial and interglacial changes in the Northern Hemisphere.

In addition, the movement of the landmasses creates mountain chains. High mountains have a significant effect on circulation patterns. Today, the Himalayas create the monsoon wind pattern in India. This wind pattern going back over geological time has been linked to the uplift of the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau as the Indian subcontinent began to collide with the Asian crustal plate about 20 million years ago.