Meteorologist: Alfred Wegener

ALFRED WEGENER (1880-1930) German climatologist and geophysicist who, in 1915, published as expanded version of his 1912 book The Origin of Continents and Oceans. This work was one of the first to suggest continental drift and plate tectonics. He suggested that a supercontinent he called Pangaea had existed in the past, broke up starting 200 million years ago, and that the pieces ``drifted'' to their present positions. He cited the fit of South America and Africa, ancient climate …

…also figured in Wegener's second namesake. Ice crystals often form in the frigid air just above the Greenland ice cap and can produce spectacular halos. In a 1926 article, Wegener explained two relatively rare arcs that appear opposite the sun and are now named in his honor. Copyright 1994 by Heldref Publications. Text may not be copied without the express written permission of Heldref Publications. Hughes, Patrick. "The Meteorologist Who Started a Revolution," Vol. 47, Weatherwise, 1 April 1994, pp 29.