EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -The main reason that Wegener’s hypothesis was not accepted was because he suggested no mechanism for moving the continents. He thought the force of Earth’s spin was sufficient to cause continents to move, but geologists knew that rocks are too strong for this to be true.

Detailed explanation-2: -The main issue with Wegener’s Continental Drift Theory was he did not have a mechanism behind the drifting of continents. He had a substantial amount of evidence that made sense; nonetheless, without a driving force behind it, the scientific community simply discredited his entire idea.

Detailed explanation-3: -Wegener published his theory in full in 1915, but his contemporaries mostly found it implausible. By 1930 it had been rejected by most geologists, and it sank into obscurity for the next few decades.

Detailed explanation-4: -Although now accepted, the theory of continental drift was rejected for many years, with evidence in its favor considered insufficient. One problem was that a plausible driving force was missing. A second problem was that Wegener’s estimate of the speed of continental motion, 250 cm/year, was implausibly high.

Detailed explanation-5: -The drift according to him, might have occurred due to centrifugal forces of earth or astronomical changes. Continents could not possibly the way he described it because he did not provide any hard evidence that would give the ultimate cause or mechanism for the continents to move.