PLATE TECTONICS

Continental Drift
• In 1915, Alfred Wegener, a German scientist, came up with
the theory Continental Drift. Wegener suggests that 300
million years ago all of Earth’s land masses, which were in
constant motion collided to from form one supercontinent
called Pangaea. (Pangaea=all lands)
• Roughly 200 million years ago Pangaea began to breakup,
separating the supercontinent into smaller pieces eventually
taking the form of our seven continents today.
Wegener’s
Four Evidences
#1: Jigsaw

Wegener saw the almost

perfect fit between
continents like South
America and Africa.
Wegener’s
Four Evidences
#2: Fossils

Wegener discovered the

same fossils and plants
located in both South
America and Africa.
Wegener’s
Four Evidences
#3: Mountains

Wegener noted that there

are similar types of
mountains in both age and
structure on both sides of
the Atlantic Ocean – ex.
Appalachian Mountains.
Wegener’s
Four Evidences
#4: Ice Sheets

Ice sheets covered parts of

southern Africa, India,
Australia and South America
about 250 million years ago.
Plate Tectonics

• By 1968, a new, more complex theory

known as plate tectonics had been
developed by Canadian geophysicist John
Tuzo. This theory helps to explain most
geologic processes. The theory states that
Earth’s outer shell is made up of about 20
plates. These plates are floating on a layer
of hot rock, several hundred kilometres
below Earth’s surface, which flows like
slow moving plastic. The movement of
these plates is likely the convection
currents caused by the unequal
distribution of heat within Earth’s core.
Seven Major Plates
• North America Plate
• Pacific Plate
• South America Plate
• Africa Plate
• Australia Plate
• Antarctic Plate
• Eurasia Plate
Plate Boundaries

While all the plates appear to be moving at

different relative speeds and independently
of each other, the whole jigsaw puzzle of
plates is interconnected. No single plate can
move without affecting others, and the
activity of one can influence another
thousands of miles away.
Divergent Boundary
Game of Throne filming site in Iceland
Convergent Boundary
Himalaya Mountains
Transform Plate Boundary
San Andrea’s Fault – Los Angeles