190 million years ago, Africa and South America were linked by what is now the Atlantic Ridge, an underwater volcanic mountain range that divides the Atlantic Ocean from north to south. Today, Africa is linked to Asia by the Suez Isthmus and geographically separated from the European continent by the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.
This vast continent is considered the cradle of humanity, since our species, Homo sapiens , would have arisen 300,000 years ago, and then spread throughout the rest of the world. Currently 15% of the human population lives in Africa, and the continent is also home to many UNESCO World Heritage sites.
Africa is a very compact continent with few peninsulas and few rivers, although of considerable magnitude. The tropical climate predominates and we can find a great variety of ecosystems: deserts, savannas, jungles, great volcanic mountain ranges … for all this, its natural landscapes are as varied as they are impressive, and they represent the refuge of the mythical wild fauna that illustrates the children’s stories children from all over the world: wildebeest, elephants, lions, antelopes, gazelles, giraffes, leopards, rhinos, zebras … For example, the photo above corresponds to an image of the Serengeti National Park, in Tanzania, famous for migrations thousands of wildebeest annually and in which you can also see all these animals listed above. Near the park is also the famous Olduvai Gorge, rich in paleontological and prehistoric sites and where Mary and Louis Leakey made the discoveries of hominid remains that made them world famous.
A few years ago, Africa made headlines for the appearance of a huge rift in the Great Rift Valley. Is Africa splitting in two? In reality, Africa has been splitting for at least 20 million years. The region delimited by the Rift is separating from the rest of the continent at a rate of 6 or 7 millimeters per year, but the break will not be complete for 10 million years. When this happens, it is expected to create a large island seven times the size of Madagascar.
