To what extent does the theory of plate tectonics provide an explanation for the earths major surface featuresPlate tectonics is a theory pioneered by the German meteorologist Alfred Wegener. His idea of continental drift suggested continents moved around earth like rafts. Wegener proposed the idea that the continents were once joined together in a large supercontinent called Pangea. He stated that the continents drifted apart from the central land mass. Wegeners Pangea split into two continents- Laurasia in the North and Gondwanaland in the South. There is a lot of evidence pointing to plate tectonics as an explanation for the earths major surface features. Geological features play a main part of the proof, the continental shelf outlines of the worlds continents, if pieced together, fit near perfectly with very little overlap. South America and Africa seem like a perfect fit on the continental shelf demonstrating that once these two continents were joined. Moreover evidence of the glaciation of the late carboniferous period which is 290 million years old is shown by deposits found in South America, India and Antarctica. The distance between these locations currently would lead to the assumption that they were once joined. Evidence of striations, grazing caused by ice, can be found on rocks in Brazil and West Africa. There is also evidence of striations near Chanda in Central India again showing the current plates may have been joint. Fossil remains of a small freshwater reptile called Mesosaurus have been found in Africa and South America. It is very unlikely that this species could have migrated across the ocean or that the same species evolved on two different continents, again proof for plate tectonic theory. Fossils of Glossopteris, a seed fern from 270Ma can be found along the southern continents. Furthermore, another feature is the coal found in Antartica. Coal does not form at the current latitude of Antarctica as it requires tropical climates and dense vegetation to form both of which the location lacks. Plate tectonic theory provides an explanation for why this may be the case. Basalt lava flows are located where the continents have been tore apart. When Africa and South America disjointed, large volumes of flood basalt erupted. This shows that these two continents could once have been joined together. However there are alternatives to the theory that have been offered. The most widely spread theory before plate tectonics was called geosyncline uplift. It did explain why marine sediments could be found in mountains