Massive crack will one day split the continent of Africa, researchers say

Key Points:

• Scientists predict that Eastern Africa will eventually split from the rest of the continent along the Turkana Rift, creating a new ocean between the two landmasses.
• The Turkana Rift, spanning Kenya and Ethiopia, is the only active rift exhibiting "necking," a late-stage geological process where new ocean basins begin to form due to significant thinning of the Earth's crust.
• Research indicates that the rift system is nearing a critical breakup stage, with the Afar region in northern Ethiopia showing early signs of oceanic crust formation, suggesting the continent could split in a few million years.
• The study utilized seismic reflection data to reveal that continental rifting in Eastern Africa is more advanced than previously believed, providing new insights into the geological processes shaping the region.
• The Turkana Rift area is not only geologically significant but also historically important as the site of the Cradle of Humankind, where over 1,200 hominin fossils have been discovered, with rifting possibly contributing to fossil preservation.