Continental Drift Theory

CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY
Presented by: Prince Noel A. Mendoza

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Age nda
INTRODUCTION
WHO IS ALFRED WEGENER?
WHAT IS PANGEA?
THEORY OF ALFRED WEGENER ABOUT

CONTINENTAL DRIFT
ANALYSIS ON HIS EVIDENCE
THE IMPACT OF HIS THEORY ON THE

FIELD OF GEOLOGY
presentation title 2
Introduction
THE THEORY DEALS WITH THE

DISTRIBUTION OF THE OCEANS
AND THE CONTINENTS.
ACCORDING TO WEGENER'S
CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY, ALL
THE CONTINENTS WERE ONE
SINGLE CONTINENTAL MASS
(CALLED A SUPER CONTINENT) –
PANGAEA AND A MEGA OCEAN
SURROUNDED THIS
SUPERCONTINENT. THE MEGA
OCEAN IS KNOWN BY THE NAME
PANTHALASSA.
Who is Alfred Wegener?
• Alfred Wegener, in full Alfred Lothar Wegener, (born November 1, 1880, Berlin,
Germany—died November 1930, Greenland) was a german
CLIMATOLOGIST, GEOLOGIST, GEOPHYSICIST, METEOROLOGIST,
and POLAR RESEARCHER.
• During his lifetime he was primarily known for his achievements in meteorology and
as a pioneer of polar research, but today he is most remembered as the originator of
continental drift hypothesis by suggesting in 1912 that the continents are slowly
drifting around the Earth.
• Wegener first presented his theory in lectures in 1912 and published it in full in 1915
in his most important work, Die Entstehung der Kontinente und Ozeane (The Origin
of Continents and Oceans).
• He searched the scientific literature for geological and paleontological evidence that
would buttress his theory, and he was able to point to many closely related fossil
organisms and similar rock strata that occurred on widely separated continents,
particularly those found in both the Americas and in Africa.
What is Pangea?
• Pangea, also spelled Pangaea. Wegener was convinced that all of Earth’s
continents were once part of an enormous, single landmass called
Pangaea.
• Wegener, trained as an astronomer, used biology, botany,
and geology describe Pangaea and continental drift. For
example, fossils of the ancient reptile mesosaurus are only found in
southern Africa and South America. Mesosaurus, a freshwater reptile
only one meter (3.3 feet) long, could not have swum the Atlantic Ocean.
The presence of mesosaurus suggests a single habitat with many lakes
and rivers.
• Wegener also studied plant fossils from the frigid Arctic archipelago of
Svalbard, Norway. These plants were not
the hardy specimens adapted to survive in the Arctic climate. These
fossils were of tropical plants, which are adapted to a much warmer,
more humid environment. The presence of these fossils suggests
Svalbard once had a tropical climate.
• Finally, Wegener studied the stratigraphy of different rocks
and mountain ranges. The east coast of South America and the west
coast of Africa seem to fit together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, and
Wegener discovered their rock layers “fit” just as clearly. South America
and Africa were not the only continents with similar geology. Wegener
discovered that the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States,
for instance, were geologically related to the Caledonian Mountains of
Scotland.
Theory of Alfred Wegener about Continental Drift
• Alfred Wegener a German meteorologist and geophysicist who noticed

something curious when he looked at a map of the world. Wegener observed
that the continents of South America and Africa looked like they would fit
together remarkably well—take away the Atlantic Ocean and these two
massive landforms would lock neatly together. He also noted that
similar fossils were found on continents separated by oceans, additional
evidence that perhaps the landforms had once been joined. He hypothesized
that all of the modern-day continents had previously been clumped together in
a supercontinent he called Pangaea (from ancient Greek, meaning “all lands”
or “all the Earth”). Over millions of years, Wegener suggested,
the continents had drifted apart. He did not know what drove this movement,
however. Wegener first presented his idea of continental drift in 1912, but it
was widely ridiculed and soon, mostly, forgotten. Wegener never lived to see
his theory accepted—he died at the age of 50 while on an expedition in
Greenland.
Analysis on his Evidence
• Alfred Wegener first thought of this idea by noticing that the different large landmasses of the Earth almost fit together
like a jigsaw puzzle. The continental shelf of the Americas fits closely to Africa and Europe. Antarctica, Australia, India
and Madagascar fit next to the tip of Southern Africa. But Wegener only published his idea after reading a paper in
1911 which criticised the prevalent hypothesis, that a bridge of land once connected Europe and America, on the
grounds that this contradicts isostasy.
• Wegener's main interest was meteorology, and he wanted to join the Denmark-Greenland expedition scheduled for
mid-1912. He presented his Continental Drift hypothesis on 6 January 1912. He analysed both sides of the Atlantic
Ocean for rock type, geological structures and fossils. He noticed that there was a significant similarity between
matching sides of the continents, especially in fossil plants.
• From 1912, Wegener publicly advocated the existence of "continental drift", arguing that all the continents were once
joined in a single landmass and had since drifted apart. He supposed that the mechanisms causing the drift might be
the centrifugal force of the Earth's rotation ("Polflucht") or the astronomical precession. Wegener also speculated
about sea-floor spreading and the role of the mid-ocean ridges, stating that "the Mid-Atlantic Ridge ... zone in which
the floor of the Atlantic, as it keeps spreading, is continuously tearing open and making space for fresh, relatively fluid
and hot sima [rising] from depth." However, he did not pursue these ideas in his later works.
• In 1915, in the first edition of his book, Die Entstehung der Kontinente und Ozeane, written in German, Wegener drew
together evidence from various fields to advance the theory that there had once been a giant continent, which he
named "Urkontinent" (German for "primal continent", analogous to the Greek "Pangaea", meaning "All-Lands" or "All-
Earth"). Expanded editions during the 1920s presented further evidence. (The first English edition was published in
1924 as The Origin of Continents and Oceans, a translation of the 1922 third German edition.) The last German
edition, published in 1929, revealed the significant observation that shallower oceans were geologically younger.
What were Alfred Wegener's contributions? Wegener noticed the
similarity in the coastlines of eastern South America and western
Africa and speculated that those lands had once formed a
supercontinent, Pangaea, which had split and slowly moved many
miles apart over geologic time.
The Impact of his The Effects Of Continental Drift. Continental drift has played a
large role in the evolution of life today. It has caused some very
Theory on the unique creatures to evolve from very different ancestors. It has also
caused some species from the same place to diverge into many
Field of Geology separate species.
Today, scientists think that several supercontinents like Pangaea

have formed and broken up over the course of the Earth’s lifespan.
These include Pannotia, which formed about 600 million years
ago, and Rodinia, which existed more than a billion years ago.
Thank you so much
PRINCE NOEL A. MENDOZA
X-AGUINALDO

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CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY

Presented by: Prince Noel A. Mendoza

WHO IS ALFRED WEGENER?

THEORY OF ALFRED WEGENER ABOUT

ANALYSIS ON HIS EVIDENCE

THE IMPACT OF HIS THEORY ON THE

THE THEORY DEALS WITH THE

• Alfred Wegener a German meteorologist and geophysicist who noticed

Today, scientists think that several supercontinents like Pangaea

PRINCE NOEL A. MENDOZA

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