The Anglo-Ethiopian Society
Lecture - Afar, Ethiopia: a new ocean in the making?
Professor Kathy Whaler
Tuesday 12th May 2009
13:00 to 14:00 (doors open 12:30)
The paradigm of plate tectonics is widely accepted, but we have little understanding of the processes and controls involved because they operate on geological timescales that are rarely amenable to human observation.
A recent volcanic eruption and rifting episode in the Afar region of northern Ethiopia is providing a unique opportunity to study the transition from continental break-up to seafloor spreading in an active setting, to document and model the magmatic and tectonic processes occurring, and to determine how the crust grows at divergent plate boundaries.
This talk will present the recent event and our current state of knowledge, and outline experiments being performed by a number of scientific groups to investigate further, with their preliminary results
More details about the Royal Astronomical Society's Public Lecture Series can be found on the RAS website.
The lectures are held at the Royal Astronomical Society, Burlington House (opposite 'Fortnum & Mason' on Piccadilly). Non-'Friends' of the RAS may not reserve tickets in advance but can collect tickets for any remaining seats on a 'first come first served' basis on the day of the lecture after the doors open at 12:30.