The earth from 250million
years ago t0 today
A I MS
•L O O K A T T H E E A R T H ’ S C O N T I N E N T S 2 5 0 M Y E A R S
AGO
• COMPARE TO THE PRESENT AND THE FUTURE
•E X P L A I N H O W I T H A S C H A N G E D
•G I V E P R O O F
•T O U N D E R S T A N D T H E M O D E R N E X P L A N A T I O N
By Rory Horgan 4A
The earth today
250m years ago(Pangea)
250m years ago there was one supercontinent
It is known today as Pangea
Surrounded by the Panthallasic and Tethys seas
it was constructed of all the separate continents
we know today
Alfred Wegner was a German
meteorologist .
 He noted how the east coast of South
America fits together with the west
coast of Africa almost like a jigsaw.
 From these observations he formed a
theory that there was once one
continent, a supercontinent called
Pangea, he believed the continent
separated and drifted apart over time.
 He could never however provide an
explanation as to how such a thing
could have happened .
 He did however attempt to give proof.

Wegner provided four main pieces of
evidence to support his theory
They are:




The coastlines of different continents can be joined together like a
jigsaw
Soil studies in different parts of the world have produced soils of
identical content
Fossil remains have been found in different parts of the world
much like the soil samples
It provides an explanation for the proof of dramatic climate
change in areas such as Antartica


Wegner noted like others before him how the
coastlines of South America and Africa fit
together like a jigsaw
Other continents proved similar
Soil samples
Geological and scientific studies proved
that the soil and rock samples on the west
coast of Africa and the east coast of South
America had identical make ups
As with all of his proof there were further
examples found in various other
countries and continents
DINOSAUR
FOSSILS
The Mesosaurus
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The Mesosaurus was a Land dinosaur
it rarely, if ever, ventured into water
From this we know they could not have
swam great distances from land mass
to land mass
How then can it’s remains be found in
both Africa and South America
Pangea is currently the most realistic
explanation
CLIMATE
CHANGE
Ice sheets and glacial
deposits
Ice sheets and glacial deposits of the same age has been
found in Africa, South America, India and Australia
We know today that in order for these to have formed a
cooler climate would have been needed
It also explains why there has been evidence found to
suggest very different climates
were present in the past
Soil studies
in different
parts of the
world have
produced
soils of
identical
content
The coastlines
of different
continents can
be joined
together like a
jigsaw
• Fossil
remains
have been
found in
different
parts of the
world much
like the soil
samples
Ice sheets and
glacial
deposits of
the same age
has been
found in
Africa, South
America,
India and
Australia
Continental drift and Plate tectonics
Today we know that plates moving under the earths
surface caused and is currently causing the continents
to move
Thanks
for listening