New Continent likely to form in Africa

Although the expected big split is not likely to happen in our lifetime, the impacts are showing. Ever since the volcanic eruption in 2005, Afar has transformed dramatically. The desert has fissures packed with molten rock that has cooled down.

Thanks to advanced satellite data, scientists can now see clear signs of this transition taking place. You see, as the tectonic plates peel apart, material from deep inside the Earth starts to move up to the surface and form oceanic crusts in the ridges.

This is a treat since most of these things happen in the sea, making researchers have a hard time observing it. But thanks to the fissure in the Afar desert, they can learn more about tectonic plate movements.

Birth of a new ocean: University of Bristol seismologist Dr. James Hammond has been working in Afar desert. He says that parts of the area are below sea level and the ocean is just blocked by a 20-meter block of land in Eritrea.

If the ocean manages to flood in the fissures, this will start to create a new ocean. The flooding will sink down and pull apart some parts of Ethiopia. They have estimated that Somalia and some parts of southern Ethiopia would drift off and become islands of the Indian Ocean.