East Africa is slowly witnessing one of the rarest natural phenomena: the continent split in two and the emergence of a new ocean due to a series of faults stretching over thousands of kilometers, which could lead to the emergence of a new ocean in the future, according to scientists.
But how did these faults form? How will it divide the continent and when? Here are the most important things to know about this unique phenomenon.
How do faults occur?
Contrary to what seems to be seen, the land surface is not static; millions of years ago the world map was not what it looks like today, and it will not be as distant as it is today due to the slow and continuous movement of tectonic plates.
These plates form Earth's lithosphere of crust and mantle top, moving relative to each other at varying speeds, sliding over a sticky layer of melted magma. But the mechanisms behind this movement, which may include internal convection currents and forces generated at the boundary between plates, are still debated among scientists.
In addition to moving plates, these forces can also cause cracks that cause them to tear and form new plates. According to scientists, the East African Rift System is the most prominent example of the possibility of this geological phenomenon in the future.
East African fault system associated with significant volcanic activity due to the movement of tectonic plates and the rise of magma from the mantle (Free Peak)
What is the East African Rift System?
The East African Rift System, or Rift Valley in East Africa, is a boundary separating differentiated developed plates in the east of the continent. In that region, the eastern part of Africa, called the Somali Plate, moves away from the Nubian Plate, one of the continent's most important components. At the same time, the Nubian and Somali plates are moving away from the Arab plate in the north, creating a Y-shaped fault system in Ethiopia's Afar region at what is known as a "triple junction."
Formed in the Miocene period about 25 million years ago, the rift currently extends 3500,<> kilometers from the Red Sea in the north to Mozambique in the south, and consists of two main branches that are widely paralleled: the Eastern Rift that runs through Ethiopia and Kenya, and the Western Rift that extends curved from Uganda to Malawi.
The Somali plate is located east of the East African Rift System and moves eastward away from the Nubian Plate at a slow speed of only a few millimeters per year. The separation of these two plates causes the widening of the Rift Valley and contributes to the expansion of the continental crust, along with volcanic and seismic activities, especially in the northern part of it.
The eastern branch of the fault is characterized by greater volcanic activity, while the western branch is characterized by much deeper basins containing large lakes and lots of sediment, including Tanganyika Lakes, the second deepest lake in the world.
The East African fault system is associated with significant volcanic activity due to the movement of tectonic plates and the rise of magma from the mantle. It is also characterized by frequent seismic activity as plates continue to diverge.
The Rift Valley where the Somali Plate moves, away from the Nubian Plate (NASA-Michigan Technological University)
How will the rift divide Africa?
Scientists believe that mantle plumes carrying hot magma from deep underground toward the surface play a crucial role in the formation of the Great Rift Valley, by weakening the crust and making it thinner and thinner, pushing tectonic plates to separate.
Beneath this valley, scientists have found geological evidence of a giant mantle shaft dubbed the "African Super Well", weakening the lithosphere on the surface as a result of increased temperature, expansion and refraction.
According to Geology.com, the upward heat flow from the mantle caused thermal "swells" in central Kenya and the Afar region in north-central Ethiopia. These bulges formed the high terrain of the southern and eastern African plateaus on both sides of the fault and broke the fragile outer crust and created a series of cracks that today form the Rift Valley in East Africa.
The researchers revealed that the valley floor in the Afar region has become covered with volcanic rock, suggesting that the lithosphere in this area has thin to the point of almost total collapse.
The Somali plate slowly separates from the rest of Africa, forming a new ocean millions of years later (NASA)
What are the consequences of the division of the continent of Africa?
As the Rift Valley in East Africa continued to widen, over millions of years many lakes formed in depressions resulting from the expansion of the Earth's crust. Scientists predict that over time, these bodies of water could merge and lead to the creation of a new ocean separating the two plates – Somali and Nubian.
The African continent will also become smaller and there will be a large island in the Indian Ocean consisting of parts of Ethiopia and Somalia, including the Horn of Africa. It is estimated that it could take another 5 to 10 million years.
The division of Africa will dramatically reshape global geography, as the new ocean will not only change existing land masses, but will also create new coastlines and marine environments.
The splitting of the African continent will also have an impact on global tectonic plates, according to World Atlas, as it will affect the movement and interaction of other tectonic plates around the world. This may lead to changes in the frequency and intensity of geological events, such as earthquakes and volcanic activity, in other areas.
With the breadth of the Rift Valley, a number of lakes (Earth Imajiko) formed over millions of years
What are the effects of separation on climate and the environment?
Scientists predict that the division of the African continent and the formation of a new ocean will have a significant impact on global climate patterns. The new ocean could alter ocean currents and atmospheric circulation, potentially leading to changes in temperature, rainfall, storm patterns and far-reaching climate shifts.
The division of Africa will also lead to significant shifts in the habitats of many species and in biodiversity, as species adapt to changing natural systems or migrate to more suitable habitats. This process could also create opportunities for the emergence of new species, as well as the potential extinction of others.
For scientists, the East African Rift System is a unique field laboratory to study a modern and sophisticated fault system and understand how continents have disintegrated over millions of years and the impact this has on the ecosystems around them.