the picture you are looking at a trip family in Africa one at continental the continental divergent plate boundary form on land it can literally tear can opart when the lithoshere begins to stretch the two plates begin to separate hot rock then rises form beneath the earth is surface this causes cross to weaken when magma reaches the Earth is surface a rift valley is born some examples Refaeli is are the Rhine Valley in northwestern Europe and the Great Rift Valley in East Africa.