Continental Drift and

Tectonic Plates
Report by : Desiree Bless V. Salazar
• Continental drift was a revolutionary scientific theory developed
in the years 1908-1912 by Alfred Wegener (1880-1930), a German
meteorologist, climatologist, and geophysicist, that put forth the hypothesis
that the continents had all originally been a part of one enormous
landmass or supercontinent about 240 million years ago before
breaking apart and drifting to their current locations.

• The speculation that continents might have 'drifted' was first put forward by
Abraham Ortelius in 1596.
• Some 250 million years ago the continents were joined together in the giant super-continent of
Pangea (which is Greek and means, "all the earth"). About 200 million years ago Pangea slowly began to
break up.

• By 135 million years ago Pangea had split into two main land masses, known as
Gondwandaland and Laurasia. North America and Europe split apart, and about 120
million years ago India began to drift north toward Asia.

• Over the next 120 million years the continents drifted into their present-day positions. The Americas moved
away from Europe and Africa; India joined on to Asia; and Australia and Antarctica split apart.

• 150 million years from now, the earth might look very different again. Africa will probably split in two, and the
larger section will drift north to join Europe. Antarctica may join on to Australia. California will be crumpled up
against Alaska.
• "Urkontinent"
• Plate tectonics is the theory of how and why the earth's plates
move. At their boundaries, the plates may be colliding, pulling apart, or
sliding past each other. These different types of motion build mountains,
cause earthquakes and volcanoes, and create deep-sea trenches.

• Plates that form the ocean floor are called oceanic plates.
• The plates that form the land masses are called the continental plates
There are nine major plates, according to World
Atlas.

1.North American 6.indian

2. Pacific 7. Ausralian
3.Eurasian 8.South america
4.African 9. Antarctic
5.Indo-Australian,
• Transform Faults

• Transform faults are boundaries where two plates are sliding past each other.
Earthquakes often occur at this type of boundary, as the plates slip and
judder past each other. The San Andreas Fault in California, USA, is a
transform fault.
Convergence
• When two continental plates collide, the earth's crust often buckles and
folds as they push past each other, forcing up great mountain ranges. The
Himalayas and the Andes were formed by colliding plates.
•
• The formation of a mountain range and valley by the operation of tectonic
forces at a convergent plate boundary
• Subduction Zone
• When two plates collide, one plate sometimes rides over the other, forcing
it down into the mantle.This type of boundary, called a "subduction zone",
often occurs at the edges of oceans where the thicker continental plate rides
over the thinner oceanic plate. Deep ocean trenches form at these
boundaries.
Ridges and Rifts

• Where two plates are pulling apart, molten rock from the mantle rises to fill
the gap, creating new crust. When this type of boundary occurs beneath the
sea, mid-ocean ridges form. On land, these boundaries create steep-sided rift
valleys.
 What makes the earth's tectonic plates shift
around?
• Convection Theory
Heat generated deep inside the earth creates convection currents in the mantle. These currents
slowly push the overlaying plates around.
• Gravity Theory
The plates are about 2 to 3 km (1 to 2 miles) higher at mid-ocean ridges than at ocean rims, so
they could simply be sliding slowly downhill under the force of gravity.
• Weight Theory
Hot rock rising at mid-ocean ridges cools down as it moves further away from the ridge. As it
cools it becomes heavier and sinks, pulling the rest of the plate down with it.
• Fascinating Facts About Continents and Plates
• Europe and Africa combined would fit into Asia with room to spare
• Europe and the Americas currently drift about 4 cm (1.6 inches) further
apart every year
• The African Rift Valley grows about 1 mm wider every year
• Fossils of tropical plants are fond as far north as Alaska, because the North
American land mass was once to be found in the tropics
• Continental plates are up to 43 miles (72 km) thick, but the oceanic plates are
only about 3 miles (5 km) thick
The tectonic plates move at different rates
along their margins, and some plates move
faster than others. The average rate of
movement is approximately 2.5 cm (1
inch) every year. That's about as fast as the
average person's fingernails grow!
• . The Proportions of Land Per Continent
• Of the total land mass of the earth's non-oceanic surface areas, the proportions of
the different continents can be expressed as relative percentages.

• Asia occupies 30% of the earth's land surface

• Africa takes up 20% of the land surface of the earth
• North America covers 16% of the land masses
• South America boasts 12% of land coverage
• Antarctica occupies 9% of the continental earth
• Europe takes up 7 %
• and Australasia is the smallest, covering a mere 6% of the earth's land surface
 Proofs
• Wegener observed that the continents and their rock strata fit together like
pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, particularly the east coast of South America and
the west coast of Africa, specifically the Karoo strata in South Africa and
Santa Catarina rocks in Brazil.
• Fossil remains of similar organisms on widely disparate continents support
the theories of continental drift and plate tectonics.
• Lystrosaurus and the fossil plant Glossopteris
• The theories of continental drift and plate tectonics are the foundation of modern
geology. Scientists believe that there were several supercontinents like Pangaea that
formed and broke apart over the course of Earth's 4.5-billion year lifespan.
Scientists also now recognize that Earth is constantly changing and that even today,
the continents are still moving and changing. For example, the Himalayas, formed
by the collision of the Indian plate and the Eurasian plate is still growing, because
plate tectonics is still pushing the Indian plate into the Eurasian plate. We may even
be heading toward the creation of another supercontinent in 75-80 million years
due to the continued movement of tectonic plates.