Seismic Shifts

More than 70 scientists from Ethiopia, Europe, and the United States began one of history's largest seismic surveys in Africa's 2,200 mile Rift Valley this past weekend. The project -- known as Operation EAGLE (Ethiopia Afar Geo-Scientific Lithospheric Experiment) -- is studying a slow-motion, tectonic split along the volcanic valley, which stretches from the Red Sea to Tanzania.

The scientists are trying to find out exactly why the split is happening, and whether the activity will eventually result in a new ocean where the Rift Valley is now. British geophysicist Peter Maguire set the possible timetable for ocean formation at millions of years, and also said that if a full-scale separation does occur, "…the result would be…very similar to the one that initially separated Africa from America." He went on to explain that studying how continents break apart is essential to understanding the processes that shape the Earth's surface.

Operation EAGLE involves drilling deep holes over two 250-mile axes that run along the Valley. Charges are planted and detonated in the holes, and then 1,000 highly-tuned instruments pick up and analyze the seismic waves caused by the explosions. According to the scientists, preliminary results from the project will be available by July of this year.

Learn more about our Earth's surface and the continent of Africa in the following books!

Plate Tectonics: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Earth
By Jon Erickson and Ernest H. Muller
From the top of Mount Everest to the very bottom of the Marianas Trench, the Earth's surface is shaped by plate tectonics: the constant movement of the Earth's crust. Now, neophytes will be able to clearly understand this infinitely important science in this intelligent and non-technical discussion. Authors Erickson and Muller start their book with a historical overview of plate tectonics, then provide an insightful overview of anything and everything about the science and its effects on climate, life, and history.

The Life and Death of Planet Earth: How the New Science of Astrobiology Charts the Ultimate Fate of Our World
By Peter Ward and Donald Brownlee
A fascinating biography of the planet Earth and its diverse inhabitants. In their exciting and remarkable new book, Ward and Brownlee introduce astrobiology: the science of how planets and organisms live and die. Astronomer Brownlee has studied the ends of other worlds, and Ward's science of paleontology is partially concerned with the end of life on Earth. Together, they are able to show how our planet was born, explain the complex cycles that allow Earth to sustain itself, and explore the possible events that will lead to Earth's eventual demise.

A Day in the Life of Africa
Edited by David Cohen and Lee Liberman
The latest edition in the popular and altogether wonderful Day in the Life series. On a single day in February of 2002, 100 of the world's top photographers scattered throughout Africa's 53 countries for a historic photo shoot meant to capture the essence of daily life on the continent. What they accomplished is a brilliant and spectacular portrait of a land truly infinite in its variety and contrasts. The book includes a foreword by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and an introduction by Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan.

When the World Began: Stories Collected from Ethiopia
By Elizabeth Laird
The award-winning Laird presents 20 classic Ethiopian folktales; many of are seeing print for the first time. The stories are short, straightforward, and often strikingly similar to Aesop's imaginative fables and the Brothers Grimm's dark and violent nightmarish stories. Four different but delightful artistic styles give the book a distinct feel. Recommended for children in grades 3 to 6.

The Devil That Danced on the Water: A Daughter's Quest
by Aminatta Forna
A January/February 2003 Book Sense 76 Pick!
"Forna eloquently describes her processing of her father's historic struggles as an activist in Sierra Leone. She grasps the reality of how he was surrounded by people who were not ready for democracy and possibly are not prepared for it now." - A.M. Dirks, Tattered Cover, Boulder, CO

The Red Sea Sharks
By Herge
It's the familiar Herge brand of high adventure, as Tintin and Captain Haddock head to the imaginary Mid-East country of Khemed to rescue their friend the Emir from a turbulent coup d'etat! Along the way, they get shipwrecked in the middle of the Red Sea, and tangle with sharks, cheetahs, and drug-and arms-smugglers. First written during the 1930s, Herge's comics are obviously dated in some ways, but strikingly contemporary in others.