September 29, 2008 | 23 comments

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

By Eitan Haddok   

 
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HELLISH HEAT Birth of an Ocean: The Evolution of Ethiopia's Afar Depression :: Formation of an ocean is

CLICK TO ENLARGE + Eitan Haddok

HELLISH HEATOne hundred kilometers north of Erta Ale, near the Eritrea border, is the Dallol crater. There molten magma simmering below the surface fuels a vast plumbing network of superheated water. The result is a 1.6-kilometer-wide field of hydrothermal vents, geysers and hot springs that call to mind the similar but more accessible environment in Yellowstone National Park in the western U.S.
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