&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "A new ocean in the making: This as Africa continues to split into two on east coast")
There's a new ocean in making in the world as Africa - one of the largest continents in the world is splitting apart at its East coast. The process, despite being slower in general sense, could change the Earth's geography drastically in comparison to what is visible today. The process would also make Red Sea and Gulf of Aden meet with the new ocean in a rare tri-junction of large water bodies. The event, when occurs, would be similar to how the early Atlantic ocean was created when South America drifted from Africa millions of years ago.
Where is the new ocean being made up?
The new ocean is in the process of making on the East coat of Africa where countries namely Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are situated. The process is being carried out underneath the Earth surface on the above mentioned area where East African Rift lies. It starts from Ethiopia's Afar region and stretches to Tanzania and Mozambique in South East of the continent while passing through Kenya.
The African plate in the region divides into the Nubian block on the west side and Somali block on the east. The crack in the rift are widening each year and eventually would pave the way for a new ocean which would also meet Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
How a ocean is created?
The process of making of a new ocean starts lava underneath the rift comes up due to various reasons including earthquake. The Afar region lies on a fault line which means frequent earthquakes. Once the lava flows, magma opens up the intrusions called dikes. These dikes push the rocks made by cooled down lava to the side and the fault line deepens. The Earth crust above becomes thin and eventually seawater flows in to make the narrow basin a spreading ridge.
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What is the timeline of making a new ocean in Africa?
The rate of cracks widening is a few millimeters per year. While this number may seem too small in general, it is shape-changing in terms of Earth's geography. The current East African Rift may take about 5 to 10 million years to tear apart and an ocean to run through it at the current rate as per the scientists.
