RIFT VALLEY FORMATION A rift valley is a large elongated depression in the Earth’s crust, bounded by parallel faults, that forms when the crust is pulled apart by tensional forces. This geological feature is a result of divergent plate boundaries where tectonic plates move away from each other, causing the crust to thin, crack, and sink. PROCESS OF FORMATION: 1. Initial Uplift – Mantle convection and heat buildup cause the lithosphere to bulge and stretch. 2. Crustal Fracturing – The brittle cru

The Rio Grande Gorge is more than a canyon; it's a window into Earth's dynamic history. Its formation began around 29 million years ago with the start of the Rio Grande Rift, a tectonic process that is slowly pulling the continent apart. For millions of years, during what geologists call the Pliocene and early Pleistocene epochs, the river was actually constructive, depositing up to 100 meters of sediment in the basin. It wasn't until about 400,000 years ago that the river's power shifted. In a