Abraham Ortelius, a Flemish scholar and geographer, is recognized for his significant contribution to our modern-day atlas. His knowledge and design of maps led to his theory of continents moving and separating from one another. He explained these movements to be a result of earthquakes and flooding. He believed the shape of the continents fit together like a puzzle. Although his theories would not be widely accepted and developed until much later, they are the basis for much of what we know today (age-of-the-sage.org, n.d.).
In 1912, Alfred Wegener expanded on Ortelius's theory in his book The Origin of Continents and Oceans. He introduced the idea of the supercontinent, Pangaea. Through multiple journeys to different locations, experiments using air balloons and kites, and thorough scientific study, Wegener was able to change how scientists looked at the earth. He based his theories on the research of many scientists before him and sound evidence, which he was able to support. By both supporting Ortelius's theories and further developing his own ideas, the theory of plate tectonics began to emerge. It took several decades later, but by 1958, hundreds of years of speculation were now being widely accepted by scientists. Plate tectonics are still being studied and their creation is still somewhat of a mystery. However, most of what Wegener presented was quite accurate (Pangaea, n.d.). These two men, along with many others contributed a great deal to what we know about how the movement of the continents, through earthquakes, shaped our earth.