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 primary reason Alfred Wegner’s idea of continental drift was rejected by his peers was that he provided no mechanism to explain why the continents moved.

Detailed explanation-3: -The processes of seafloor spreading, rift valley formation, and subduction (where heavier tectonic plates sink beneath lighter ones) were not well-established until the 1960s. These processes were the main geologic forces behind what Wegener recognized as continental drift.

Detailed explanation-4: -Because Wegener could not identify the cause of continental drift, most geologists rejected his idea. Continental drift was what Wegener invented. Wegener’s hypothesis was rejected from geologists because he couldn’t identify the cause of continental drift.

Detailed explanation-5: -Answer and Explanation: The initial continental drift hypothesis was rejected because Alfred Wegener could not identify a mechanism capable of moving the continents. This was because the presence of convection currents within the earth had not yet been discovered.