In a groundbreaking discovery earlier this year, scientists found that a new ocean is forming as Africa begins to split apart. The two parts of this massive continent are starting to separate, creating the potential for a new ocean to emerge. Countries like Zambia and Uganda may one day have their coastlines as this landmass continues to divide....CONTINUE READING
Geophysical Research Letters, a reputable scientific journal, has confirmed that the African continent is splitting in two, leading to the creation of a new ocean. Scientists have identified the exact location where the continent first began to open up, deep underground.
This separation is occurring along the borders of three tectonic plates that have been gradually moving away from each other.
Geologists have observed that this intricate tectonic process will eventually result in the formation of an entirely new body of water, although this will take millions of years.
The crack responsible for this transformation, known as the East African Rift, is currently 35 miles long and was first noticed in the Ethiopian deserts in 2005. It’s the only place on Earth where scientists can study the transition from a continental rift to an oceanic rift.
Christopher Moore, a Ph.D. doctoral student at the University of Leeds, used satellite radar technology to monitor volcanic activity in the East African region associated with the continent’s gradual break-up.
The East African Rift is situated at the boundaries of the African, Arabian, and Somali tectonic plates. Over the past 30 million years, the Arabian plate has been slowly moving away from the African continent.
This process previously created the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden between the two landmasses. Similarly, the Somali plate is also moving away from the African plate as it extends through the East African Rift Valley.
Through the use of GPS instruments, researchers have made precise measurements of these land movements. Ken Macdonald, a marine geophysicist and professor emeritus at the University of California, has noted that the Arabian plate is moving away from Africa at a rate of about one inch per year.
The African and Somali plates are breaking away at an even slower pace, around half an inch to 0.2 inches per year.
In the future, the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea will flood into the Afar region and the East African Rift Valley, creating a new ocean.
This part of East Africa will become a separate, smaller continent. While these tectonic plates are moving away from each other at varying speeds, they are collectively shaping Earth’s geological future..<<CONTINUE READING>>
