Sage-Tips

What will happen to the East African Rift in the future?

However, researchers are uncertain about the future of the East African rift—whether the split will continue and an ocean will eventually be formed. At the rate at which the Afar rift is splitting, it will take tens of million years for an ocean to eventually be formed.

What will happen to the Great Rift Valley in Africa eventually?

“The Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea will flood in over the Afar region and into the East African Rift Valley and become a new ocean, and that part of East Africa will become its own separate small continent,” Macdonald said. The three plates are separating at different speeds.

How can a rift valley form a new ocean?

As tectonic plates move away from one another at mid-ocean ridges, molten rock from the mantle may well up and harden as it contacts the frigid sea, forming new oceanic crust at the bottom of the rift valley.

Where will the next ocean form?

Scientists believe Earth’s next ocean could form in the East African Rift Zone, where a rising plume of searing hot rocks is slowly forcing apart a swath of land along the continent’s eastern coast, explains Cynthia Ebinger, a geophysicist at Tulane University who has conducted extensive research in the region.

What will happen to the East African Rift in 5 million years?

“The Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea will flood in over the Afar region and into the East African Rift Valley and become a new ocean, and that part of East Africa will become its own separate small continent,” Macdonald said.

How will Earth’s processes and water movement affect Earth’s surface along the East African Rift Zone?

The picture shows tectonic and water features in Africa. How will Earth’s processes and water movement affect Earth’s surface along the East African rift zone? rises through plate fissures. Fossil evidence has been used to understand the movement of continental plates.

What causes the East African Rift Zone?

The East African Rift is one of the great tectonic features of Africa, caused by fracturing of the Earth’s crust. The Somalian plate—which is moving away in the other direction—lies to the other side and includes the Horn of Africa.

How was the East African Rift Valley formed?

Twenty-five million years ago, as plate tectonics began to pull apart eastern Africa, the landscape that would eventually be home to the first humans began to take shape. The East African Rift Valley, as the region is known, formed where the Somalian and Nubian plates are pulling away from the Arabian Plate.

How is the East African Rift Valley formed?

The East African Rift Valley, as the region is known, formed where the Somalian and Nubian plates are pulling away from the Arabian Plate. The eastern branch of the rift passes through Ethiopia and Kenya, and the western branch forms a giant arc from Uganda to Malawi.

How was Great Rift Valley formed?

Geologists know that the Rift Valley was formed by violent subterranean forces that tore apart the earth’s crust. These forces caused huge chunks of the crust to sink between parallel fault lines and force up molten rock in volcanic eruptions.

What ocean is next to Africa?

Atlantic Ocean
The continent is bounded on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, on the north by the Mediterranean Sea, on the east by the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, and on the south by the mingling waters of the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

What ocean is to the east of Africa?

The Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean lies between North and South America on the west and Europe and Africa on the east.