Strain accommodation by slow slip and dyking in a youthful continental rift, East Africa

Eric Calais (), Nicolas d’Oreye, Julie Albaric, Anne Deschamps, Damien Delvaux, Jacques Déverchère, Cynthia Ebinger, Richard W. Ferdinand, François Kervyn, Athanas S. Macheyeki, Anneleen Oyen, Julie Perrot, Elifuraha Saria, Benoît Smets, D. Sarah Stamps and Christelle Wauthier
Additional contact information
Eric Calais: Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47906, USA
Nicolas d’Oreye: National Museum of Natural History
Julie Albaric: Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Université de Bretagne Occidentale
Anne Deschamps: Géosciences Azur, UNS/CNRS
Damien Delvaux: Royal Museum for Central Africa
Jacques Déverchère: Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Université de Bretagne Occidentale
Cynthia Ebinger: University of Rochester, New York, New York 14627, USA
Richard W. Ferdinand: University of Dar es Salaam, PO Box 35091, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
François Kervyn: Royal Museum for Central Africa
Athanas S. Macheyeki: Renard Centre of Marine Geology, Universteit Gent
Anneleen Oyen: National Museum of Natural History
Julie Perrot: Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer, Université de Bretagne Occidentale
Elifuraha Saria: Ardhi University, PO Box 35176, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Benoît Smets: Royal Museum for Central Africa
D. Sarah Stamps: Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47906, USA
Christelle Wauthier: Royal Museum for Central Africa

Nature, 2008, vol. 456, issue 7223, 783-787

Abstract: The Great Rift Valley: a dividing continent Africa's Great Rift Valley is geologically active: gradually the continent is being split in two. In July and August 2007 one of the discrete rifting events contributing to this continental break-up was recorded in the form of a seismic crisis in the Lake Natron area, Tanzania. This provided an opportunity to examine the respective roles of faulting and magmatism in the rifting process. Data from the local seismic network, GPS stations and the Envisat satellite reveal that initial ground deformation was due to aseismic slip on a fault on the eastern side of the rift, and then to the emplacement of magma into the crust. This points to strain accommodation by magma intrusion as a major factor — in addition to slow slip along normal faults — during the early stages of continental rifting.

Date: 2008
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DOI: 10.1038/nature07478

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