Why is coal found in cool climates?

[jackmantaz]

I know coal is found in countries that have a cool climate like Britain. Yet coal was formed under tropical conditions when vegetation in swamp forests died and was buried. How could this have happened?

[Loosehead]

Continental plates move, most of the land was once somewhere else.

[jake-the-peg]

Very true.

Most of our coal was laid down in the Carboniferous period 360-286 million years ago when the UK was on the equator.

there's a nice little chart here that shows the lattitude of what was to become the UK at different times in the geological past:

http://www.bbm.me.uk/portsdown/PH_741_Periods. htm

But I'm not sure that coal has to be formed in tropical conditions

See here for 4 requirements of coal formation

http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~crb/web/earth_res ources2.htm