Birth of an Ocean: The Evolution of Ethiopia's Afar Depression

Formation of an ocean is a rare event, one few scientists have ever witnessed. Yet this geophysical nativity is unfolding today in one of the hottest and most inhospitable corners of the globe. Visit the site in safety through this extraordinary photographic essay

AFAR DEPRESSION
This area marks the north end of the East African Rift, a3,500-kilometer-long zone of tectonic turmoil that is tearing the continent in two (arrows on globe) The detail shows a segment of the depression.