Overview

• The June 2025 Nature Geoscience study confirms a plume of hot mantle beneath Ethiopia’s Afar region pulses rhythmically, actively thinning and rupturing the crust.
• Researchers identified distinct chemical banding in more than 130 volcanic rock samples, revealing how mantle surges interact with and are channelled by overlying tectonic plates.
• Analysis shows that pulse efficiency depends on plate thickness and spreading rate, with narrower, faster rifts like the Red Sea conducting surges more regularly.
• Dynamic upwellings focus volcanic activity and influence earthquake patterns across the converging Main Ethiopian, Red Sea and Gulf of Aden rifts.
• Follow-on studies will measure mantle flow speeds and pathways beneath Afar to refine models of plate–mantle coupling and forecast ocean basin formation.