Chapter 3: The Origin of Ocean Basins

Alfred Wegener 1915

Proposed his hypothesis of continental drift based on the fit of continental outlines, fossil evidence, and geologic evidence

Sea floor spreading demonstrates that

The sea floor moves apart at the oceanic ridges and new ocean crust is added to the edges

Geomagnetic field

Magnetic field of the earth

Magnetometers

Detect and measure Earth’s magnetic field

Harry Hess 1960

Proposed the ocean floor was broken into large blocks that moved relative to one another

Frederick Vine and Drummond Matthews 1963

New sea floor is magnetized in the direction of the then current field