Which force is responsible for drifting of continents?

Which force is responsible for drifting of continents?

Wegener thought that the continents were moving through the earth’s crust, like icebreakers plowing through ice sheets. According to him the movement responsible for the drifting of the continents was caused by pole-fleeing force (Centrifugal force due to rotation of the earth) and tidal force.

What causes the movement of the plates?

The plates can be thought of like pieces of a cracked shell that rest on the hot, molten rock of Earth’s mantle and fit snugly against one another. The heat from radioactive processes within the planet’s interior causes the plates to move, sometimes toward and sometimes away from each other.

How did he came up with this continental drift theory?

Alfred Wegener proposed that the continents were once united into a single supercontinent named Pangaea, meaning all earth in ancient Greek. He suggested that Pangaea broke up long ago and that the continents then moved to their current positions. He called his hypothesis continental drift.

Why do continents drift apart according to Arthur Holmes?

Holmes advocated the theory of continental drift fostered by Alfred Wegener at a time when it was profoundly unfashionable with conformist. Holmes primary contribution was his proposed theory that convection occurred within the Earth’s mantle, which explained the push and pull of continent plates together and apart.

What force causes continents to move?

convection currents
The theory of plate tectonics suggests that it is convection currents in the mantle of the earth that causes the movement of the continental plates.

What proves continental drift?

The evidence for continental drift included the fit of the continents; the distribution of ancient fossils, rocks, and mountain ranges; and the locations of ancient climatic zones.

What force causes most of the plate movement?

Research has shown that the major driving force for most plate movement is slab pull, because the plates with more of their edges being subducted are the faster-moving ones. However, ridge push is also presented in recent research to be a force that drives the movement of plates.

What are three causes of plate movement?

Mantle dynamics, gravity, and Earth’s rotation taken altogether causes the plate movements. However, convectional currents are the general thought for the motion.

Who came up with the theory of continental drift?

scientist Alfred Wegener
The theory of continental drift is most associated with the scientist Alfred Wegener. In the early 20th century, Wegener published a paper explaining his theory that the continental landmasses were “drifting” across the Earth, sometimes plowing through oceans and into each other.

What was Wegener’s theory of continental drift?

Continental drift was a theory that explained how continents shift position on Earth’s surface. Set forth in 1912 by Alfred Wegener, a geophysicist and meteorologist, continental drift also explained why look-alike animal and plant fossils, and similar rock formations, are found on different continents.

How did Harry Hess think the continents moved apart?

Photo: Harry Hess argues that the continents had once been one, and have drifted apart. In 1962, he added a geologic mechanism to account for Wegener’s moving continents. It was possible, he said, that molten magma from beneath the earth’s crust could ooze up between the plates in the Great Global Rift.

What force was big enough to move the continents?

Gravity Moved Continents on Early Earth.

Where does the idea of continental drift come from?

The Continental Drift Idea. The easiest link is between the eastern Americas and western Africa and Europe, but the rest can fit together too (Figure 1). Alfred Wegener proposed that the continents were once united into a single supercontinent named Pangaea, meaning all earth in ancient Greek.

What was the fatal flaw in the continental drift theory?

Continental Drift Theory:The Fatal Flaw. He proposed two different mechanisms for this drift. One was based on the centrifugal force caused by the rotation of the earth and another a ‘tidal argument’ based on the tidal attraction of the sun and the moon. These explanations could easily be proven inadequate.

How did seafloor spreading contribute to the theory of plate tectonics?

When the concept of seafloor spreading came along, scientists recognized that it was the mechanism to explain how continents could move around Earth’s surface. Scientific data and observation now allows us to merge the ideas of continental drift and seafloor spreading into the theory of plate tectonics.

How did Wegener’s continental drift relate to seafloor spreading?

Hess’s theory of “seafloor spreading” offered a compelling driving mechanism for Wegener’s continental drift, but it needed more proof. a. are mostly flat with some random ridges and valleys. b. have deep valleys and ridges that parallel continental coasts.