Unit 1.3: Drifting Continents

1. Unit 1.3: Drifting Continents The theory of Continental Drift as proposed by Alfred Wegener

2. Alfred Wegener • 1910: German scientist • Wegener did multiple expeditions to Greenland to explore the last unexplored portion and do meteorological research • Fought in WWI in Belgium

3. The Theory of Continental Drift • All the continents were once joined together in a single landmass and have drifted apart • This single large landmass was called “Pangea”, which means “All Land”

4. Evidence of Wegener’s Theory • Land Features • Fossils • Climate Change

5. Land Features • Mountain ranges on Africa and South America line up • European coal fields match up with coal fields in North America • Puzzle Pieces fit together

6. Fossil Evidence • Fossils of exactly the same prehistoric species were distributed where you would expect them to be if there had been Continental Drift

7. Climate • Toward the equator, the climate is warmer • Toward the poles, the climate is colder • Fossils of tropical plants are found in the Arctic Ocean Islands • Deep scratches in rocks show that continental glaciers once covered South Africa. Perhaps South Africa was closer to the South Pole • Glacial till deposits in the southern hemisphere: Continents would need to be in the Pangea formation to support this evidence