Continental Shapes

The theory of continental drift is that all the continents were once all connected. This theory came from the shapes of the continents of South America and Africa which are on either side of the Atlantic ocean. If these continents were placed side by side, alining the edges of their continental shelf, they would fit almost perfectly, like a jig-saw puzzle. This great fit of the continents suggests that they were once connected as one large land mass many million years ago and have since then drifted apart.

Evidence for Continental Drift

In 1915, German geologist and meteorologist, Alfred Wegener, proposed the theory of Continental Drift. The theory states that all the continents were once formed a single landmass called Pangea. This landmass all broke up into different pieces, drifting centimeter by centimeter over millions of years on the less dense materials of the earths crust until they reached there present positions.

This is what may have happened as the continents drifted.