Northern section of the Great Rift Valley. The Sinai Peninsula is in center and the Dead Sea and Jordan River valley above

The Great Rift Valley is a vast geographical and geological feature that runs north to south for some 5,000 km, from northern Syria in Southwest Asia to central Mozambique in East Africa. The valley varies in width from 30-100 km and in depth from a few hundred to several thousand metres. It has been created through the rifting and separation of the African and Arabian tectonic plates that began around 35 million years ago in the north, and by the ongoing separation of East Africa from the rest of Africa along the East African Rift, which began about 15 million years ago. It was named by the explorer John Walter Gregory. From NASA Photo taken during Gemini XI mission. ... From NASA Photo taken during Gemini XI mission. ... Sinai Peninsula, Gulf of Suez (west), Gulf of Aqaba (east) from Space Shuttle STS-40 The Sinai Peninsula (in Arabic, Shibh Jazirat Sina شبه جزيرة سيناء) is a triangle-shaped peninsula lying between the Mediterranean Sea (to the north) and Red Sea (to the south). ... The Jordan River flowing into the Dead Sea The Dead Sea (Arabic البحر الميت,Hebrew ים המלח) is the lowest point on the Earths surface. ... This article is about the Jordan River in western Asia. ... A map showing Southwest Asia - The term Middle East is more often used to refer to both Southwest Asia and some North African countries Southwest Asia, or West Asia, is the southwestern part of Asia. ... East Africa is a region generally considered to include: Djibouti Eritrea Ethiopia Kenya Somalia Tanzania Uganda [[Image:Example. ... Fljótsdalur in East-Iceland A valley is a landform, which can range from a few square miles (square kilometers) to hundreds or even thousands of square miles (square kilometers) in area. ... In geology, a rift is a place where the Earths lithosphere is expanding. ... The African Plate is a continental tectonic plate covering the continent of Africa and extending westward to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. ... The Arabian Plate is a continental tectonic plate covering the Arabian peninsula and extending northward to Turkey. ... Categories: Geology stubs | Plate tectonics ...

The northernmost part of the Rift forms the valley of the Jordan River, which flows southward through the Hula Lake and the Sea of Galilee in Israel to the Dead Sea. From the Dead Sea southwards, the Rift is occupied by the Wadi Arabah and then the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea. This article is about the Jordan River in western Asia. ... The Hula Valley is an agricultural region in northern Israel with abundant fresh water. ... The Sea of Galilee with the Jordan River flowing out of it to the south and into the Dead Sea The Sea of Galilee is Israels largest freshwater lake, approximately 53 kilometers (33 miles) in circumference, about 21 km (13 miles) long, and 13 km (8 miles) wide; it... The Jordan River flowing into the Dead Sea The Dead Sea (Arabic البحر الميت,Hebrew ים המלח) is the lowest point on the Earths surface. ... The Arabah (Standard Hebrew Wadi Arava; Arabic Wadi Arabah) is the section of the Great Rift Valley lying between the Dead Sea in the North and the Gulf of Aqaba/Gulf of Elat in the South. ... Sinai Peninsula, Gulf of Suez(west), Gulf of Aqaba(east) viewed from Space Shuttle STS-40. ... Conshelf II in the Red Sea (Sudan) The Red Sea (Arabic البحر الأحمر Baḥr al-Aḥmar, al-Baḥru l-’Aḥmar; Hebrew ים סוף Yam Suf) is a gulf or basin of the Indian Ocean between Africa and Asia. ...

The southern end of the Red Sea marks a fork in the rift. The Gulf of Aden is an eastward continuation of the rift - before the rift opened, the Arabian Peninsula was attached to the Horn of Africa - and from this point the rift continues as part of the Mid-oceanic ridge of the Indian Ocean. In a southwest direction the fault continues as the Great Rift Valley, which split the older Ethiopian highlands into two halves. The Gulf of Aden is located in the Indian Ocean between Yemen on the south coast of the Arabian Peninsula and Somalia in Africa. ... Courtesy USGS The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is an underwater mountain range of the Atlantic Ocean that runs from Iceland to Antarctica, and is the longest mountain range on Earth. ...

In eastern Africa the valley divides into two, the Eastern Rift and the Western Rift.

The Western Rift, also called the Albertine Rift, is edged by some of the highest mountains in Africa, including the Virunga Mountains, Mitumba Mountains, and Ruwenzori Range, and contains the Rift Valley lakes, which include some of the deepest lakes in the world (up to 1,470 meters deep at Lake Tanganyika). Lake Victoria, the second largest freshwater lake in the world, is considered part of the Rift Valley system although it actually lies between the two branches. The other Great Lakes are also formed by the rift. The Virunga Mountains are a chain of volcanoes in East Africa, along the northern border of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda. ... The Ruwenzori Range is a small mountain range of central Africa, often referred to as Mt. ... The Rift Valley Lakes are a group of lakes formed by the Great Rift Valley of eastern Africa. ... A lake is a body of water surrounded by land. ... Fishermen on Lake Tanganyika Lake Tanganyika is a large lake in central Africa (3° 20 to 8° 48 South and from 29° 5 to 31° 15 East). ... Lake Victoria, as seen from space Lake Victoria or Victoria Nyanza is one of the Great Lakes of Africa. ... The Great Lakes of Africa are a series of lakes in and around the Great Rift Valley. ...

In Kenya the valley is deepest to the north of Nairobi. As the lakes in the Eastern Rift have no outlet to the sea, these lakes tend to be shallow and have a high mineral content as the evaporation of water leaves the salts behind. For example, Lake Magadi is almost solid soda (sodium carbonate), and Lake Elmenteita, Lake Baringo, Lake Bogoria, and Lake Nakuru are all strongly alkaline, while Lake Naivasha needs to be supplied by freshwater springs to support its biological variety. Nairobi skyline Nairobi is the capital of Kenya. ... Minerals are natural compounds formed through geological processes. ... Lake Magadi is one the southern most lake in the Kenyan part of the rift valley. ... Sodium carbonate or soda ash, Na2CO3, is a sodium salt of carbonic acid. ... Lake Baringo is, after Lake Turkana, the most northern of the Great Rift Valley lakes of Kenya, with a surface area of about 130 sq km. ... Lake Borgoria is north of Lake Baringo, Kenya, and is not a fresh water lake. ... Lake Naivasha is a freshwater lake in Kenya, part of the Great Rift Valley. ...

The formation of the Rift Valley continues, probably driven by mantle plumes and ultimately a result of the African superswell. The associated geothermal activity and spreading at the rift has caused the lithosphere to thin from a typical 100 km thickness for continents to a mere 20 km. Within a few million years, the lithosphere may rupture and eastern Africa will split off to form a new landmass. If spreading continues, this will lead to the formation of a new mid-ocean ridge. Mantle plumes are a geological phenomenon originally proposed by W. Jason Morgan in 1971. ... The lithosphere (from the Greek for rocky sphere) is the solid outermost shell of a rocky planet. ... A mid-ocean ridge is an uplifting of the ocean floor that occurs when convection currents beneath the ocean bed force magma up, while two oceanic crusts diverge. ...

The volcanic activity at this site and unusual concentration of hotspots has produced the volcanic mountains Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, Mount Karisimbi, Mount Nyiragongo, Mount Meru and Mount Elgon as well as the Crater Highlands in Tanzania. The Ol Doinyo Lengai volcano remains active, and is currently the only natrocarbonatite volcano in the world. A hotspot is a center of high activity within a larger area of low activity. ... Kilimanjaro is a mountain in northeastern Tanzania. ... Mount Kenya is the highest mountain in Kenya, and the second-highest in Africa (after Mount Kilimanjaro). ... Mount Karisimbi is a dormant volcano in the Virunga Mountains of Rwanda. ... Mount Nyiragongo is a dormant volcano in the Virunga Mountains associated with the Great Rift Valley or East African Rift. ... Mount Meru and Ngurdoto Crater (image top) from space Mount Meru is an active volcano located just 70 kilometers (44 miles) west of Mount Kilimanjaro. ... Mount Elgon is an extinct volcano on the border of Uganda and Kenya. ... Ol Doinyo Lengai is a volcano located in Tanzania. ... A volcano is a geological landform (usually a mountain) where magma (rock of the earths interior made molten or liquid by high pressure and temperature) erupts through the surface of the planet. ...

The Rift Valley has been a rich source of anthropological discovery, especially in Piedmont. Because the rapidly eroding highlands have filled the valley with sediments, a favourable environment for the preservation of remains has been created. The bones of several hominid ancestors of modern humans have been found there, including those of " Lucy", a nearly complete australopithecine skeleton, which was discovered by anthropologist Donald Johanson. Richard and Maeve Leakey have also done significant work in this region. Anthropology (from the Greek word άνθρωπος = human) consists of the study of humankind (see genus Homo). ... Piedmont is a region of northwestern Italy. ... Genera Subfamily Ponginae Pongo - Orangutans Gigantopithecus (extinct) Sivapithecus (extinct) Subfamily Homininae Gorilla - Gorillas Pan - Chimpanzees Homo - Humans Paranthropus (extinct) Australopithecus (extinct) Sahelanthropus (extinct) Ardipithecus (extinct) Kenyanthropus (extinct) Pierolapithecus (extinct) (tentative) The Hominids (Hominidae) are a biological family which includes humans, extinct species of humanlike creatures and the other great apes... Binomial name Australopithecus afarensis Johanson & White, 1978 Lucy is a 3. ... Species A. afarensis (Lucy) Formerly Australopithecus, now Paranthropus Australopithecines (genus Australopithecus) are a group of extinct Hominids that are closely related to humans. ... Donald Carl Johanson (born June 28, 1943) is an American paleoanthropologist known for his discovery of the skeleton of a 3. ... Richard Leakey Richard Erskine Frere Leakey (born December 19, 1944), son of Louis Leakey and Mary Leakey, is a renowned British paleontologist and conservationist and archaeologist Paleontology Leakey started his career following in the footsteps of his famous parents with discoveries of early hominid fossils in East Africa. ...

External links

• Small simple-coloured map (http://anthro.palomar.edu/hominid/images/map_of_great_rift_valley.gif)
• Maps from the Albertine Rift Programme (http://www.albertinerift.org/arift-protectedareas)