Diane Joy Galos

Just when we thought our planet's oceans were all mapped out, Earth is gearing up for a geography reboot. 

Say hello to the potential sixth ocean that's making waves in more ways than one.

Photo Courtesy of Adobe Stock.

In a monumental geological shift, scientists predict that Earth’s sixth ocean is on the horizon—this transformation is driven by the separation of tectonic plates, reshaping the African continent and potentially altering global geography.

As the African continent slowly splits apart, the Earth’s crust is undergoing a process that could create a new ocean. 

The Arabian plate has been moving away from Africa for 30 million years, while the Somali plate is also separating, contributing to a rift in East Africa.

Ken Macdonald, a marine geophysicist at the University of California, explained, “The Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea will flood in over the Afar region and into the East African Rift Valley and become a new ocean, and that part of East Africa will become its own separate small continent.”

This tectonic activity involves three major plates: the African, Arabian, and Somali plates. Their slow separation is laying the foundation for a future ocean, transforming the region in ways that could fundamentally alter the continent's geography.

Thanks to advancements in technology, scientists can now track these movements with incredible precision. GPS instruments allow them to measure tectonic shifts down to millimeters per year, providing critical data on the ongoing geological processes.

Macdonald said, “With GPS measurements, you can measure rates of movement down to a few millimeters per year. As we get more and more measurements from GPS, we can get a much greater sense of what’s going on.”

These technological advancements are pivotal in understanding how this ocean is forming. 

The eventual formation of the sixth ocean will have implications. If the process continues, landlocked countries like Zambia and Uganda could eventually gain coastlines, changing their geographic and economic landscapes forever.

The slow but steady tectonic activity that is splitting the African continent will eventually result in an entirely new ocean. This process, though gradual by human standards, will unfold over millions of years, creating new coastlines and potentially impacting global climate patterns.

This event serves as a reminder of Earth’s ever-changing nature. The birth of a new ocean not only alters the physical landscape but also deepens the understanding of the dynamic forces shaping our planet.

Geography textbooks are about to get thicker. The sixth ocean? Just the start of Earth’s next chapter.