The two massive tectonic plates forming Africa and Arabia are increasingly moving apart.
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8-meter wide crack. |
This finding comes from a study conducted by a team of international geologists who observed an earthquake and volcanic eruption in Ethiopia in September 2005.
The long-term result of this separation is that the northeastern part of Ethiopia and Eritrea will eventually be torn away from Africa, giving rise to a new, vast sea.
The earthquake, located in the Afar Desert at the southern tip of the Red Sea, produced little volcanic material but had significant implications for geological movement.
Using images provided by the European Space Agency’s Envisat satellites, geologists gained a first look at the event. An 8-meter wide rift formed in the Dabbahu volcanic region of Afar within just three weeks and was quickly filled with molten rock.
This movement disrupted the tectonic puzzle that constitutes the East African Rift System – a Y-shaped structure with its base at the Great Rift Valley and two branches leading to the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
The rifting process has been ongoing for 30 million years and will take millions more to complete. This is the largest rift ever observed to date.
M.T.
