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Alfred Wegener www.assignmentpoint.com
Alfred Wegener (1880 -1930) was a German meteorologist and geophysicist who developed the first theory of continental drift and formulated the idea that a supercontinent known as Pangea existed on the Earth millions of years ago. His ideas were largely ignored at the time they were developed but today they are very well accepted by the scientific community. www.assignmentpoint.com
Pangea Who was the scientist that developed the theory of continental drift, plate tectonics, and Pangea. www.assignmentpoint.com
Alfred Wegener proposed the theory of continental drift – the idea that Earth’s continents move. Despite publishing a large body of compelling fossil and rock evidence for his theory between 1912 and 1929, it was rejected by most other scientists. It was only in the 1960s that continental drift finally became part of mainstream science. www.assignmentpoint.com
Alfred Wegener was born on November 1, 1880, in Germany’s capital city, Berlin. His father, Richard Wegener, was a classical languages teacher and pastor. His mother, Anna Wegener, was a housewife. The Wegener family of two adults and five children – Alfred was the youngest – was quite well-off financially. Alfred was an intelligent boy. He received a conventional education, attending grammar school in Berlin. His academic ability at school marked him clearly for a university education. www.assignmentpoint.com
In 1902 he began working towards a Ph.D. degree in astronomy, spending a year at Berlin’s famous Urania Observatory, whose purpose was, and still is, to bring astronomy to a wider public. Alfred Wegener completed his astronomy Ph.D. in 1905, at the age of 24. www.assignmentpoint.com
Although he was now intellectually prepared to be a professional astronomer, he decided to abandon astronomy. He felt he might not discover anything new or interesting in astronomy. He believed he could make a greater contribution in meteorology – studying weather and climate. www.assignmentpoint.com
