An upwelling of rock beneath the Atlantic may drive continents apart

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge may play a more active role in plate tectonics than thought

false-color map of Mid-Atlantic Ridge

An upsurge of material deep below the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a seafloor rift seen in the middle of this false-color map, may be actively widening the Atlantic Ocean by a few centimeters every year.

NOAA

An upsurge of hot rock from deep beneath the Atlantic Ocean may be driving the continents on either side apart.