Afar Dallol Drilling - ONset Of Sedimentary Processes In An Active Rift Basin (ADD-ON)

The Afar triangle is an ideal area to study the breaking up of continents via continental rifting and potential future oceanic rifting. The Danakil Depression to the north, is part of the active rift and has been flooded by the adjacent ocean several times over the last 33 million years.  The project aims to aquire deep continues cores to validate our very limited knowldegde on basin dynamics and volcanic activity in this understudied area.  A better understanding of fluid flow in these active geothermal systems could provide an energy source but also lead to better earthquake and volcanic event monitoring. Additionally information gained from the cores would further our understanding in East-African climate changes and Hominid evolution in the area.