Collaborative Research: Active Kinematics of Lithospheric Extension Along the East African Rift

这项为期一年的合作提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。该地区拥有大陆裂谷的最典型例子，非洲在那里伸展并分裂成两部分，索马里和努比亚在东非裂谷及更远的地方。对大陆裂解速度和模式的观察为其他地球科学研究大陆裂谷提供了框架，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性质和板块如何形成、移动和变化的基本物理提供了一般结果的可能性。除了科学之外，东非地表形变的测绘模式为地震和火山灾害评估以及地热能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各地学术机构之间的数据共享和社区模式建设。我们建议的具体举措包括：1)将所有可用的先前研究的GPS结果与该地区任何其他可用的GPS数据正式结合起来，以实现完全自我协调的大陆范围的解决方案，并确定未来的需求和数据获取战略；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)延长或与东道国合作伙伴(埃塞俄比亚、厄立特里亚、肯尼亚、坦桑尼亚、莫桑比克、赞比亚和马拉维)就未来的联合举措达成协议(谅解备忘录)；4)在图尔卡纳凹陷的9个GPS战役地点测量第一纪元。以及5)制定数据共享和数据产品开发框架，为更广泛的非洲裂谷科学界服务。

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.