Collaborative Research: Active kinematics of lithospheric extension along the East African Rift

这项为期一年的合作方案旨在为整个东非地区的构造速度创建一个社区解决方案。这个地区是大陆裂谷的最典型的例子，非洲在这里伸展并分裂成两个部分，索马里和努比亚在东非裂谷和更远的地方。对大陆分裂速度和模式的观察是大陆裂谷作用的其他地球科学研究的框架，包括火山学、岩石学、地球化学和固体地球-气候相互作用。它们还为大陆的物质特性和板块如何形成、移动和变化的基本物理原理提供了一般结果的可能性。在科学之外，绘制东非地表变形的模式为地震和火山危险评估以及地热能源和水资源的开发提供了信息。该项目的最后一个贡献是促进美国和东非学术机构之间的数据共享和社区模型建设。我们建议的具体措施包括：1)正式将所有现有的先前研究的GPS结果与该地区任何其他可用的GPS数据结合起来，以获得完全自一致的大陆尺度解决方案，并确定未来的需求和数据获取策略；2)维护过去6年开发的现有大地测量资产，以延长GPS时间序列以减少速率不确定性；3)与东道国合作伙伴（埃塞俄比亚、厄立特里亚、肯尼亚、坦桑尼亚、莫桑比克）延长或建立协议（谅解备忘录）；4)在图尔卡纳坳陷的9个运动GPS站点测量第一个纪元，5)开发一个数据共享和数据产品开发框架，以服务于更广泛的非洲裂谷科学界。

This 1-year, collaborative proposal is aimed at creating a community solution for tectonic velocities throughout the East African region. This region hosts the foremost example of continental rifting, where Africa stretches and splits into a two pieces, Somalia and Nubia in the East African Rift and beyond. Observations of the speed and pattern of continental break-up serve as a framework for other geosciences research on continental rifting, including in volcanology, petrology, geochemistry, and solid earth-climate interactions. They also offer the possibility of general results for the material properties of continents and the basic physics of how plates are formed, move, and change. Beyond the science, mapping patterns of surface deformation in East Africa informs earthquake and volcano hazard assessments and development of geothermal energy and water resources. A final contribution of this project is to foster data sharing and community model building among academic institutions throughout the U.S. and East Africa. Specific initiatives we propose include: 1) formally combine GPS results from all available prior studies, along with any other available GPS data in the region for a fully self-consistent, continent-scale solution and to identify future needs and data acquisition strategies, 2) maintain existing geodetic assets developed over the past 6 years to extend GPS time series to reduce rate uncertainties, 3) extend or establish agreements (Memoranda of Understanding) with host-country partners (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zambia, and Malawi) for future joint initiatives, 4) measure a first epoch on nine campaign GPS sites in the Turkana Depression, and 5) develop a framework for data sharing and data product development to serve the broader African Rift scientific community.