As per the continental drif theory of Alfred Wegener which among the following is/are correctly matched? (A) Super continent - Pangaea (B) Mega ocean - Panthalasa (C) Southern continental mass - Laurasia Select the correct answer from the codes given below : Code:

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is 4:

The Continental Drift Theory, proposed by Alfred Wegener in 1912, hypothesizes that the continents were once joined together in a single landmass before drifting apart to their current positions. Wegener gave specific names to these ancient geological structures. Statement (A) is correct: the single supercontinent was indeed named Pangaea, which means "all earth" in Greek. Statement (B) is also correct: the massive single ocean that surrounded Pangaea was called Panthalassa, meaning "all sea." Therefore, both the definitions of the supercontinent and the mega ocean are correctly matched as per Wegener's theory. Since both A and B are correct, Option 4 (A and B) is the right answer.

The incorrect option is 1 (A, B and C):

This option incorrectly includes statement (C) as correct. According to the Continental Drift Theory, Pangaea first split into two large continental masses: Laurasia in the North and Gondwanaland in the South. Therefore, Laurasia represents the Northern continental mass, not the Southern one. The Southern continental mass was Gondwanaland. Since statement (C) wrongly identifies Laurasia as the Southern continental mass, this option is incorrect.

The incorrect option is 2 (A and C):

This option is incorrect because while it correctly identifies A (Supercontinent - Pangaea), it incorrectly includes C (Southern continental mass - Laurasia). As explained, Laurasia was the Northern part of the broken-up Pangaea, consisting mainly of present-day North America, Europe, and Asia. Gondwanaland was the Southern continental mass.

The incorrect option is 3 (Only C):

This option is incorrect because it claims that only statement C (Southern continental mass - Laurasia) is correct. This is factually wrong on two counts: first, statement C itself is incorrect as Laurasia was the Northern landmass, and second, statements A and B are both correct matches according to the theory.