continental drift Flashcards
1
Q
what is continental drift?
A
that the continents are constantly moving apart over millions of years
2
Q
who was the first person to create a theory of continental drift?
A
alfred wegener
3
Q
what did alfred wegener suggest about continental drift?
A
- that the earth used to be a supercontinent over 250 million years ago, which he named pangaea
- he says that this supercontinent then split up into two named; laurasia and gondwanaland
- these two masses divided and drifted over millions of years to form their present day position
4
Q
what was alfred wegeners biological evidence for continental drift?
A
- the mesosaurus was discovered on two different sides of the earth
- it was found it southern america and western africa
- this was evidence towards c.d because the mesosaurus was a freshwater animal and couldn’t fly and wasn’t adapted to swim long distances
5
Q
what was alfred wegeners geological evidence for continental drift?
A
- he discovered the same rock distribution, age and type of rock across different mountain ranges in the earth
- for example the appalachain mountains in america and the caledonian mountains in europe
6
Q
what was alfred wegeners climatological evidence for continental drift?
A
- glacial striations in the tropical rainforest
- coal can only be found in tropical climates due to the vegetation, but there’s evidence of coal being in antarctica
- this shows c.d because coal can only be formed in tropical vegetation therefore antarctica must have been closer to the equator millions of years ago
7
Q
what did arthur holmes suggest about continental drift?
A
8
Q
what did maurice ewing discover/suggest about continental drift?
A
9
Q
what were harry hess’ discoveries/suggestions about continental drift?
A
10
Q
what did fred vine discover/suggest about continental drift?
A
