A dramatic geological transformation is quietly unfolding beneath East Africa, where scientists believe the continent is slowly splitting apart potentially giving rise to a brand-new ocean in the distant future.
This tectonic activity is centered in the Afar region, where three major plates the Nubian, Somali, and Arabian are pulling away from each other. The movement is occurring along the East African Rift System, a 5,000-kilometre-long fracture zone that stretches from the Red Sea to Mozambique. Experts say this slow rifting could eventually separate eastern Africa from the rest of the continent and allow seawater from the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden to rush in, forming Earth’s next ocean.
Recent satellite data and GPS measurements show that the Arabian Plate is moving away from Africa at a rate of about 2.5 centimeters per year, while the Nubian and Somali plates are gradually drifting apart as well. Although imperceptible in a human lifetime, these shifts build up over millions of years, reshaping continents.
In 2005, a powerful geological event highlighted the intensity of this process. A 56-kilometre crack opened in the Afar Desert in just ten days, giving researchers a rare view of the Earth’s crust splitting above ground. This event, linked to volcanic activity beneath the surface, confirmed long-held theories that new oceanic crust is already forming in this region.
Unlike most ocean-forming activity that happens deep beneath existing seas, the East African Rift is visible on land, offering scientists a unique opportunity to study the early stages of ocean basin creation.
If current trends continue, scientists predict that in the next 5 to 10 million years, the Horn of Africa comprising parts of Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, and Tanzania will detach and form a new island continent. The gap between this landmass and mainland Africa will then be filled with seawater, leading to the birth of a new ocean.
While the timeline spans millions of years, the discovery holds major scientific importance. It provides insight into the planet’s dynamic tectonic processes and helps researchers better understand the long-term evolution of continents and oceans.
With the world plastic pollution crisis and rising sea levels dominating today’s environmental concerns, this deep-time phenomenon offers a fascinating glimpse into the natural forces that continue to shape Earth surface often quietly, but powerfully.