Describe the three types of tectonic plate and how the processes lead to changes in Earth’s surface features. Evidence for the Continental Drift. This slideshow explains Wegener’s theory. In 1915, the German geologist and meteorologist Alfred Wegener (1880-1930) first proposed the theory of continental drift, which states that parts of the Earth's crust slowly drift atop a liquid core. Continental drift and plate tectonics are two theories explaining the geological evolution of the earth, specifically its crust. Continental Drift & Plate TectonicsContinental Drift & Plate Tectonics 2. Whether you get mountains or volcanoes depends on the type of tectonic plates and where they are colliding. From Continental Drift to Plate Tectonics, Geology 12 (Learning Outcomes Framework 2015), Learning Outcomes Framework: Science Grade 7 (2014), Experiential Science 10 - Terrestrial Systems, Experiential Science 30 - Freshwater Systems, Earth and Space Science, Grade 12, University (SES4U), The Earth and Space: Geological and Geological phenomena, Earth and Space Science – Earth’s Crust and Resources (EC), Earth Sciences 11 (British Columbia, June 2018, Science Grade 8 (British Columbia, June 2016). What was the evidence for Wegener’s theory? Alfred Wegener was a German scientist. Write. A combination of the seafloor spreading theory and the continental drift theory. about plate tectonics from Let's Talk Science. But geologists soundly denounced Wegener's theory of continental drift after he published the details in a 1915 book called \"The Origin of Continents and Oceans.\" Part of the opposition was because Wegener didn't have a good model to explain how the continents moved apart. Seafloor spreading occurs on the seafloor where oceanic plates are moving away from each other (diverging). This land mass eventually broke up and split to form 7 smaller land masses, which are now the continents we know today. (n.d.). Test. Continental drift (plate tectonics) The theory of continental drift was proposed at the beginning of the last century by German scientist Alfred Wegener. National Geographic. Match. It actually wasn’t changed. Wegener suggested that mountains formed when the edge of a drifting continent collided with another, causing it to crumple and fold. Oceanic plates are denser than continental plates. The theory of continental drift was proposed at the beginning of the last century by German scientist Alfred Wegener. Older supercontinents are also believed to have come before Pangaea. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. There are similar fossils on both sides of the Atlantic – including the fossil remains of land animals that would have been unable to swim across from one side to the other. In the early 20th century the prevailing wisdom regarding how mountain belts were formed and why the sea is deep was that the Earth started out as a molten blob and gradually cooled. These continents are in a state … He called this movement Continental Drift. Ms_AutumnGirl2. One piece of evidence Wegener provided was paleoclimatic indicators that linked South America and Africa (Plate Tectonics: Continental Drift). The plate tectonics theory is based on the continental drift theory in that it explains how the supercontinent drifted apart into several plates. The crust and upper part of the mantle are broken into tectonic plates. Forefront Teaching Resources Ltd, Washington, Tyne and Wear, UK. Looking at all of the continents he theorized that they had once been joined together as a supercontinent (which was later called Pangaea) around 225 million years ago (see Figure 4). Privacy Policy Terms of Use Accessibility. Alfred Wegener, in the first three decades of this century, and DuToit in the 1920s and 1930s gathered evidence that the continents had moved. It was not until the 1960s that evidence of convection currents within the mantle was discovered to support the theory fully. Same theory years for Wegener ’ s crust, which float on the drift... Each other this concept was an important precursor to the theories of continental drift continents Adrift an Introduction continental! Are moving divided into large, rigid pieces called plates the following hypothesis: continental to. Reptile Lystrosaurus have been found in rocks of the mantle pan, ” meaning Earth seafloor... By Alfred Wegener, which he called Pangea example, fossils of Mesosaurus a! 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