Wegener, Alfred Lothar
Wegener, Alfred Lothar (1880-1930), a German explorer and meteorologist. He led expeditions to Greenland (1906-08, 1912-17, and 1929-30), and studied the thermodynamics (mechanics of heat) of the atmosphere. He argued that the continents of the earth had once been joined in a single gigantic landmass, or supercontinent, and had since drifted apart. This theory of continental drift was given little consideration by most earth scientists until the 1960's, when extensive supporting evidence began to be uncovered.