16 KiB
| created_at | title | url | author | points | story_text | comment_text | num_comments | story_id | story_title | story_url | parent_id | created_at_i | _tags | objectID | year | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-01-11T23:30:57.000Z | Africa 'witnessing birth of a new ocean' (2010) | http://www.bbc.com/news/10415877 | niccolop | 112 | 62 | 1484177457 |
|
13378480 | 2010 |
Africa 'witnessing birth of a new ocean' - BBC News
Accessibility links
[ Notifications
]7
BBC navigation
- Home
- Home
- News
- News
- Sport
- Weather
- Shop
- Earth
- Travel
- Capital
- iPlayer
- Culture
- Autos
- Future
- TV
- Radio
- CBBC
- CBeebies
- Food
- iWonder
- Bitesize
- Travel
- Music
- Earth
- Arts
- Make It Digital
- Taster
- Nature
- Local
- Tomorrow's World
- Menu
Search the BBC Search the BBC
BBC News Navigation
[
Sections
]37
- Home
- Video
- World
- US & Canada
- UK
- Business
- Tech
- Science selected
- Stories
- Entertainment & Arts
- Health
- In Pictures
- Reality Check
- World News TV
- Newsbeat
- Special Reports
- Explainers
- The Reporters
- Have Your Say
Africa 'witnessing birth of a new ocean'
By Matt McGrath BBC News Science reporter
- 25 June 2010
- Share this with Facebook
- Share this with Twitter
- Share this with Messenger
- Share this with Messenger
- Share this with Email
- Share
Share this with
These are external links and will open in a new window * [
Share this with Email ]57 * [
Share this with Facebook ]7 * [
Messenger
Share this with Messenger ]7 * [
Messenger
Share this with Messenger ]56 * [
Share this with Twitter ]7 * [
Share this with Pinterest ]7 * [
Share this with WhatsApp ]7 * [
Share this with LinkedIn ]7
Copy this link
http://www.bbc.com/news/10415877
These are external links and will open in a new window
Close share panel
Image caption A 60km crack opened in Ethiopia in 2005 and has been expanding ever since
**Africa is witnessing the birth of a new ocean, according to scientists at the Royal Society. **
Geologists working in the remote Afar region of Ethiopia say the ocean will eventually split the African continent in two, though it will take about 10 million years.
Lead researcher Tim Wright who is presenting the research at the Royal Society's Summer Exhibition, described the events as "truly incredible".
Used to understanding changes in the planet on timescales of millions of years, the international team of scientists including Dr Wright have seen amazing changes in Afar in the past five years, where the continent is cracking open, quite literally underneath their feet.
In 2005, a 60km long stretch of the earth opened up to a width of eight metres over a period of just ten days.
Hot, molten rock from deep within the Earth is trickling to the surface and creating the split.
Underground eruptions are still continuing and, ultimately, the horn of Africa will fall away and a new ocean will form.
'A smaller Africa'
Dr James Hammond, a seismologist from the University of Bristol - who has been working in Afar - says that parts of the region are below sea level and the ocean is only cut off by about a 20-metre block of land in Eritrea.
"Eventually this will drift apart," he told the BBC World Service. "The sea will flood in and will start to create this new ocean.
"It will pull apart, sink down deeper and deeper and eventually... parts of southern Ethiopia, Somalia will drift off, create a new island, and we'll have a smaller Africa and a very big island that floats out into the Indian Ocean."
The researchers say that they are extremely lucky to be able to witness the birth of this ocean as the process is normally hidden beneath the seas.
The team hope to conduct experiments in the area that will help understand how the surface of the Earth is shaped.
They believe that the information they glean from observing the shaping of the Earth will help scientists better understand natural hazards such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
Share this story About sharing
- [
How earthquakes happen
1 June 2009
]67
- [
Secrets of ocean birth laid bare
19 July 2006
]68
- [
Geologists witness 'ocean birth'
8 December 2005
]69
- [
Powerful quake rocks East Africa
6 December 2005
]70
- [
Volcanoes threaten to divide Africa
18 February 2002
]71
Related Internet links
- [
Afar Rift Consortium
]72
- [
The Royal Society's See Further Festival
]73
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external Internet sites
Top Stories
[ Trump blames Florida officer for shooting
Mr Trump says the officer "did a poor job" when he failed to intervene in last week's deadly shooting.
23 February 2018
]74 [ Armed teacher: 'I fear killing innocent child'
23 February 2018
]75 [ US to impose 'largest' N Korea sanctions
23 February 2018
]76
Features
[
Video
Seven things the NRA blames after Florida
The place where people disappear
How much screen time is 'too much'?
Quiz: And Salma's joke was... what?
Six things Billy Graham believed
[
Video
Would you eat meat recycled from landfill?
Opioid addiction mail-ordered to your door
Nationalism in heart of Europe needles EU
[
Video
South Korea's suicide river rescue team
BBC News Navigation
Sections
-
Science selected
BBC News Services
Explore the BBC
- Home
- Home
- News
- News
- Sport
- Weather
- Shop
- Earth
- Travel
- Capital
- iPlayer
- Culture
- Autos
- Future
- TV
- Radio
- CBBC
- CBeebies
- Food
- iWonder
- Bitesize
- Travel
- Music
- Earth
- Arts
- Make It Digital
- Taster
- Nature
- Local
- Tomorrow's World
- Terms of Use
- About the BBC
- Privacy Policy
- Cookies
- Accessibility Help
- Parental Guidance
- Contact the BBC
- Get Personalised Newsletters
- Advertise with us
- Ad choices Copyright © 2018 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
