Continental Drift

A continent is a large distinct landmass.

There are seven continents on Earth.

Continents remain the same shape and size over time.

Continents cover two-thirds of Earth’s surface.

Continents are always moving.

All seven continents have always been in the same locations on Earth as they are today.

When a meteorite crashed onto the planet, it broke the giant supercontinent Pangaea into smaller landmasses.

The seven continents on Earth drifted until they formed one giant supercontinent, which Wegener called Pangaea.

Over tens of millions of years, the giant supercontinent Pangaea began to slowly drift apart, forming the continents as they are known today.

Explorers noticed that the continents were far apart from one another.

Mountain ranges line up when some continents are placed side by side.

The same animals and plants can currently be found in South America and Antarctica.

South Africa was once covered by glaciers, according to geologic evidence.

Explorers and mapmakers noticed that the continents fit together like puzzle pieces.

250 million years

2,500 years

25 thousand years

250,000 years

when satellites began taking pictures of Earth from space

when Alfred Wegener proposed the idea of continental drift

when early explorers traveled from Europe and Asia to the Americas

when geologists first started examining the fossil record of South America

Pangaea existed two hundred thousand years ago.

The landmass of Pangaea split into separate continents over time.

Pangaea was discovered by Christopher Columbus.

Pangaea was surrounded by the waters of the ocean.

The coastline of Pangaea stayed consistent over time.

Deserts line up when continents are pushed together.

Mountain ranges often appear on the edges of continents.

Fossils of the same animals appear on different continents.

Tropical plants currently appear in both Antarctica and South America.

Wegener’s theories were accepted by most geologists in the 1960s.

Mountains were formed when Earth’s crust cooled and Earth shrank.

Mountain ranges were formed when continents collided.

Mountain ranges did not exist millions of years ago.

Mountain ranges were formed only by glaciers.

mountains

glaciers

coal fields

tropical plant fossils

0.005 mm/year

0.05 mm/year

5 mm/year

50 mm/year

500,000 meters east

50,000 meters west

5,000 meters east

500 meters west

volcanic islands

volcanic mountains

new ocean floor

mountains