PAGES Ethiopia

Welcome to PAGES Ethopia

Due to its complex volcanic-tectonic evolution over the past 15 million years (Mohr 1971), the Ethiopian region is characterised by considerable changes in elevation within short distances. The highlands, which rise to altitudes exceeding 4000 m above sea level, form an extensive uplifted plateau, delimited by pronounced escarpments on both the east and west (Fig. 1). In southern Ethiopia the 1000 km-wide uplifted volcanic province is divided asymmetrically into north-western and south-eastern plateaux by the Main Ethiopian Rift which runs SSW-NNE and represents the northern end of the continental East African Rift. Eastward, the continental Afar Rift (Ethiopia and Republic of Djibouti) sits astride the Gulf of Aden-Red Sea sea-floor spreading axis, with several areas below sea level (e.g. -155 m at Lake Asal). These marked altitudinal gradients result in a wide variety of climates and environments, making the region particularly suitable for investigating past environmental change. The region is subjected to the seasonal migration of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and is very sensitive to monsoon variability. Several studies have revealed climate variability from millennial to inter-annual timescales during the Late Quaternary (Gasse 2000, Nyssen et al. 2003; Mohammed et al. 2004).