Question

Why was Wegner's theory of continental drift not accepted by the scientific community?

he had no friends in the community


he could not explain how the continents moved


his suggestion of land bridges was not accepted


he could not explain why the coastlines fit together like puzzle pieces

Answer 1

He could not explain how the continents moved

Step-by-step explanation:

His theory was not accepted at the time because he could not give a mechanism through which the movement was possible.

Answer 2

Wegner’s theory of continental drift failed to explain accurately the movement of continents because he could not explain how the continents moved

Answer: Option B

Explanation:

Before the plate tectonics theory, there was a theory about the Earth's surface and its horizontal motion. In 1912, researcher and astronomer Alfred Wegener introduced the theory of Continental drift to explain the motion of continents.

The main cause of Wegener theory's failure is that it couldn't explain the movement of continents with strong mechanical basis. Wegener's theory was based on the direct observations with no accurate equipment.

Whereas, the theory of plate tectonics was supported by the most accurate geological equipment and their readings such as seismographs, magnetometers etc. Hence, to prove the theory, accuracy and justifications were required that were lacking in Wegener's theory.