Alfred wegener proposed the theory of continental drift the idea that earths. Alfred wegener the father of continental drift download. The day following his birthday, wegener and villumsen set off to deliver supplies to a small outlying camp which had been cut. Alfred lothar wegener b 1111880 in berlin, d 2111930 in greenland was born in germany where his father was a minister. Alfred wegener, german meteorologist and geophysicist who formulated the first complete statement of the continental drift hypothesis. Alfred wegener s most popular book is the origin of continents and oceans. First edition, journal issues in the original printed wrappers. Wegener is remembered today as the originator and one of the chief proponents of the theory of continental drift, which he conceived after being struck by the apparent correspondence in the shapes of the coastlines on the west and east sides of the. Greene places wegeners upbringing and theoretical advances in earth science in the context of his brilliantly eclectic career, bringing wegener to life by analyzing his published scientific work, delving into all of his surviving letters and journals, and tracing both his passionate commitment to science and his. His theory was rejected by most geologists during his lifetime but was resurrected and made a central feature of. D in astronomy from the university of berlin in 1904. Sc degree in geology, but was not aware that alfred wegener was not a geologist. He is celebrated as the father of the continental drift hypothesis, the forerunner of plate tectonics. Alfred lothar wegener 1 november 1880 november 1930 was a german scientist and meteorologist.
German climatologist and geophysicist who, in 1915, published as expanded version of his 1912 book the origin of continents and oceans. Because of the first world war, wegeners book went unnoticed. The wegener family of two adults and five children alfred was the youngest was welloff financially. He was famous with his kontinentalverschiebung or theory of continental drift that he made in 1912. Alfred wegeners continental drift hypothesis deskarati. During the years from 1912 to 19 wegener took part for the second time in an expedition to greenland. In 1912, alfred wegener proposed a theory that the continents had once been joined, and over time had drifted apart. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. He revised this book several times up to 1929, and it was translated into french, english, spanish, and russian. Not only did this discovery provide evidence of continental drift, it also was an early example of the study of paleomagnetism.
Mott greene s new and groundbreaking book on wegener, alfred wegener. He was the first scientist to introduce the theory of the continental drift. However, there are few detailed, scholarly works on wegener himself. The continental shelf of the americas fit closely to africa and europe, and antarctica, australia, india and madagascar fit next to the tip of southern africa. Science, exploration, and the theory of continental drift. In 1912, polar explorer and meteorologist alfred wegener first proposed the concept of continental drift, the geological theory that continents were once connected and had somehow spread apart across the earths surface over time. His ideas were initially rejected by other scientists. Essay about alfred wegener and the continental drift 698 words 3 pages. Little alfred wegener is born alfred wegener was born to his two parents, anna and richard wegener in berlin,germany jan 1, 1905.
Perhaps alfred wegeners greatest contribution to the scientific world was his ability to weave seemingly dissimilar, unrelated facts into a theory, which was remarkably visionary for the time. This recognition is rather recent since about the early 1970s, when plate tectonics became a unifying theory to explain the origins of continents, oceans, mountains, volcanism and many other geologic. His father, richard wegener, was a classical languages teacher and pastor. Alfred wegener download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. Richard taught classical languages in one of the most prestigious educational institute, evangelisches gymnasium zum grauen kloster, of germany. The present first edition is much rarer than the journal issue. Click download or read online button to get alfred wegener the father of continental drift book now. As a child he was always very keen on outdoor activities and loved hiking walking and skating. Science, exploration, and the theory of continental. Alfred wegener proposed the theory of continental drift the idea that the. First known illustration of the opening of the atlantic ocean, by antonio sniderpellegrini, 1858. Alfred lothar wegener was a german polar researcher, geophysicist and meteorologist. He is most notable for his theory of continental drift, which he proposed in 1912. The reaction to alfred wegeners theory tells us much about the workings of science.
Alfredwegenerinstitut at the beginning of 1912 he introduced to the public for the first time his considerations for the continental movement. Facts about alfred wegener were a meteorologist, polar researcher and geophysicist from germany. Wegener theorized that at one time the continents were one large landmass or pangaea that had drifted apart. The new view of the earth by seiya uyeda, 1978 by w. The scientific life of alfred wegener timeline timetoast. He was the fifth child of churchman richard and housemaker anna wegener. Because of the first world war, wegeners book went unnoticed outside germany. You have decided to write a letter to your fellow scientists in order to convince them of your theory.
In 1915, however, one of the most influential and most controversial books in the history of science provided a new solution. The story of wegener german expedition in 193031, as told by members of the exposition and the leaders diary. When german meteorologist alfred wegener first proposed his groundbreaking theory of continental displacement, later called continental drift, in 1912, his geologist peers rejected his theory because the field of geology at the turn of the century was based in 18th and 19thcentury observations about the nature of the earth and the planets development. In this book mott greene has ably explained every detail of wegeners ideas and. One of the best books, i have had an opportunity to read. The first material on wegener i remember reading was anthony hallams february 1975 article in scientific american. Alfred wegener and his colleague rasmus villumsen were last seen on wegeners 50th birthday, november 1, 1930.
In his work, wegener presented a large amount of very strong evidence in support of continental drift, but the mechanism remained elusive. Wegener was one of the first to realize that an understanding of how the earth works required input and knowledge from all the earth sciences. Alfred wegener was born on november 1, 1880, in germanys capital city, berlin. Alfred lothar wegener 1 november 1880november 1930 was a german polar researcher, geophysicist and meteorologist alfred wegene.
Greene places wegener s upbringing and theoretical advances in earth science in the context of his brilliantly eclectic career, bringing wegener to life by analyzing his published scientific work, delving into all of his surviving letters and journals, and tracing both his passionate commitment to science and his. The father of continental drift in 1986 originally published in german in 1980. Alfred wegener november 1, 1880november 1930 was a german meteorologist and geophysicist who developed the first theory of continental drift and. We cannot guarantee that alfred wegener the father of continental drift book is in the library, but if you are still not sure with the service, you can choose free trial service. Wegener attributed this to the movement of the poles followed the approximate path of the movement of his continents. This work was one of the first to suggest continental drift and plate tectonics. Today, alfred wegeners name appears in almost every geology textbook. Alfred wegeners most popular book is the origin of continents and oceans. In 1915 the first edition of the origin of continents and oceans, a book. Alfred wegener first thought of this idea by noticing that the different large landmasses of the earth almost fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.
Because of the first world war, wegener s book went unnoticed outside germany. On the shoulders of giants alfred wegener a geographic jigsaw puzzle resume of a revolutionary. Alfred wegener has 15 books on goodreads with 414 ratings. Pdf alfred wegener the father of continental drift. He was born on 1 november 1880 and passed away on november 1930. Alfred wegener turned topsyturvy the whole concept of geology.
Wegeners death and drifts hiatus the mountain mystery. Alfred wegener author of the origin of continents and oceans. Alfred wegener observed the apparent wandering of earths magnetic pole. Alfred wegener biography childhood, life achievements. Alfred wegener biography, facts and pictures famous scientists. You are trying to convince the scientific world of your findingsbut no one believes you.
In 1915 alfred wegeners seminal work describing the continental drift was first published in german. To learn more about plate tectonics, read the books i used as references listed below. Wegener is remembered today as the originator and one of the chief proponents of the theory of continental drift, which he conceived after being struck by the apparent correspondence in the shapes of the coastlines on the west and east sides of the atlantic, and. In 1922, however, a third revised edition was translated into.
This was the idea that the continents were slowly drifting. In this appealing biography, children will read about the fascinating life, theories, and discoveries of alfred wegener. Wegener explained various phenomena of historical geology, geomorphy. Alfred wegener was a german geophysicist and meteorologist who was a strong early proponent of continental drift as an explanation for the geological and biological similarities and differences between the continents. His theory was rejected by most geologists during his lifetime but was resurrected and made a central feature of modern geology as part of the theory of plate tectonics in the 1960s. Using this pioneering interdisciplinary approach, wegener wrote one of the most influential and controversial books in the history of science.
The origin of continents and oceans, published in 1915. While his ideas attracted a few early supporters such as alexander du toit from south africa and arthur holmes in england, the hypothesis was generally met with skepticism from largely conservative scientists, who were. The first material on wegener i remember reading was anthony hallams. Born on november 1, 1880, alfred lothar wegener earned a ph. In order to read online or download alfred wegener the father of continental drift ebooks in pdf, epub, tuebl and mobi format, you need to create a free account. March 1929 the german meteorologists alfred wegener, johannes georgi 18881972, fritz loewe 18951974 and ernst sorge 18991946 arrived to greenland, searching a site for a coastal base camp. From his time in greenland studying meteorology with hot balloons to his theory of pangea, readers will be eager to learn more about wegeners contributions to science and the strides he took towards developing the study of plate tectonics. And the man who first proposed this theory was a brilliant interdisciplinary scientist, alfred wegener.