The French like volcanos (Tazieff, the Krafts), so Nyiragongo was on the French news (Antenne 2) tonight-same stuff as on Mary's link, except video. They said the lava was only flowing at 5 km/hr-but it may have been far faster closer to the volcano. These volcanos are in the northern part of the west branch of the east African rift system, where the crust is stretching. The west branch runs through the great lakes Tanginyika and Malawi/Nyasa. The tectonic earthquakes have been as large as M7 in the last 13 years (6.6 in Malawi, and 7 or larger along a lineament that links the east and west branches). The east branch runs through northern Tanzania, Kenya, and Ethiopia. Where the east Branch meets the ocean is the Afar triangle, where the crust has split apart to the point where there is little continental crust left, and seafloor speading is more-or less occurring. The question is whether this will continue in the future until an ocean like the Red Sea forms between Nubia and the eastern block (I forget its name), or if the extension decreases and it becomes a failed rift (as has happened in these parts of Africa before). Kind of like whether the Gulf of California will propagate up into Nevada or not....Chris