What is the Great Rift Valley

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Q.� Other features

A.� In East Africa, the Western Rift contains a series of the deepest lakes in the world (up to 1,700ft deep). One of them, Lake Victoria, is only some 650ft deep, but is the second largest mass of water in the world after Lake Superior. Extinct or inactive volcanoes line its route.

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Q.� So what is its route

A.� Starting in Jordan, the Great Rift follows the course of the Jordan River to the Dead Sea. It passes through the Gulf of Aqaba and along the Red Sea into Ethiopia at the Danakil Depression, sometimes known as the Hellhole of Creation.�

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The Kenyan Rift comprises many small lakes: Baringo, Bogoria, Nakuru, Elmentaita, Naivasha and Magadi. Lake Victoria lies between the eastern wall and west wall. In some places, such as in the Mau Escarpment in Kenya, the valley walls rise as high as 9,000ft and provide some of the valley's most spectacular scenery. Many of Africa's highest mountains - including Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Kenya, and Mount Margherita - are in ranges fronting the Rift Valley.

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Q.� Moving on...

A.� Near the Kenyan border, the valley splits. The eastern branch enters Kenya at Lake Rudolf and proceeds into Tanzania at Lake Natron. The western branch follows the border between Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, and the Congo and includes Lakes Albert, Edward, Kivu, and Tanganyika, and the Virunga-Rwenzori forest and mountain range. The branches converge at Lake Rukwa in Tanzania, where the reunited valley continues through Malawi to the coast of the Indian Ocean near Solada in Mozambique.

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Q.� When did the Great Rift happen

A.� During mid Miocene and Pliocene-Recent phases. It is known as a left lateral (or sinistral) strike-slip fault, which caused an offset of 66 miles between similar geological features on either side of the Rift Valley. The valley is deepest in Kenya, where the earth's upward thrust was most powerful.

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However, in geological terms, the Rift Valley is still being formed. The original violent crack weakened the earth's crust most where the valley is deepest. This area still features major volcanic activity that has produced formations, giving Kenya such beautiful landscapes.

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Q.� Are any volcanoes still active

A.� The most impressive of the volcanoes are Mt Kilimanjaro, Mt Kenya, Mt Meru, Mt Elgon, the Virunga Volcanoes and the Crater Highlands. Virunga, in Zaire, erupted in 1979.

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Steve Cunningham