Dead Sea Transform Fault System

Modern Approaches in Solid Earth Sciences
Zvi Garfunkel
Zvi Ben-Avraham
Elisa Kagan Editors
Dead Sea
Transform
Fault System:
Reviews
Dead Sea Transform Fault System: Reviews
Modern Approaches in Solid Earth Sciences
VOLUME 6
Series Editors
Yildirim Dilek, Department of Geology and Environmental Earth Science, Miami

University, Oxford, OH, USA
Franco Pirajno, Geological Survey of Western Australia, The University of Western
Australia, Perth, Australia
M.J.R. Wortel, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
For further volumes:

http://www.springer.com/series/7377
Zvi Garfunkel • Zvi Ben-Avraham
Elisa Kagan
Editors
Dead Sea Transform Fault

System: Reviews
Editors
Zvi Garfunkel Zvi Ben-Avraham
The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric
Institute of Earth Sciences and Planetary Sciences
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Tel Aviv University
Jerusalem, Israel Tel Aviv, Israel
Charney School of Marine Sciences
Elisa Kagan
University of Haifa
Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric
Mount Carmel, Haifa, Israel
and Planetary Sciences
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv, Israel
Responsible Series Editor: Y. Dilek
ISSN 1876-1682 ISSN 1876-1690 (electronic)

ISBN 978-94-017-8871-7 ISBN 978-94-017-8872-4 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-8872-4
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Preface
The ca. 1,000 km long Dead Sea Transform is a prominent geologic-physiographic

feature, including the topographically lowest land area on Earth. It has attracted geol-
ogists’ attention for more than 150 years, as it offers an excellent opportunity to study
a variety of important topics. It is one of the largest and most accessible zones of strike
slip faulting, associated with spectacular pull-apart basins which are some of the
largest on earth. As well, the Dead Sea Transform has transpressional structures, which
allow the studying of how such fault lines and associated secondary structures devel-
oped. The Dead Sea Transform was formed by the mid-Cenozoic breakup of a region
with a long stable history; therefore, the breakup processes are uncomplicated by
previous modifications of the lithosphere. It also offers an opportunity to study how
seismic shaking affects sediments and contains a high-resolution paleoseismic archive.
The sediments that accumulated continuously in the land-locked pull-apart basins
also provide a detailed archive of paleoclimate variations and how they influenced the
water chemistry of the lakes. The Dead Sea Transform also offered a major pathway
for human migration out of Africa, evidenced by many prehistoric remains, thus
providing an understanding of the ancient geographic and environmental settings as
recorded by sediments and ancient structures. These are important for understanding
the history of mankind. Because of these and other research opportunities, the Dead
Sea Transform was, and still is, the object of extensive research in many directions.
As geologic studies advanced, many papers and several collections of review
articles on various geological aspects of the Dead Sea Transform were published.
The present collection of papers includes updated summaries of recent advances
in the study of major aspects of the Dead Sea Transform. The need for this summa-
rized review arose in view of the significant expansion and diversification of research
in the last 10–20 years. There have been major advances in the understanding of
previously studied topics, and also new vistas have opened on topics that were only
modestly studied before. This book is intended for the use of those interested
specifically in the Dead Sea Transform, particularly in geologic-geodynamic aspects,
as well as for those who view the Dead Sea Transform in the broader framework of
major strike-slip fault zones and continental breakup processes dominated by lateral
motion, including other aspects such as environmental and seismic hazards.
v
vi Preface
The aim is to review and synthesize the present state of knowledge of some
major topics in which significant advances were achieved. Obviously, a single vol-
ume cannot do justice to all the relevant directions of research; therefore, due to the
limitations of space, this book includes only studies that are based on observations
along the Dead Sea Transform. Within this framework, it is not possible to include
studies regarding its relations with the bordering areas, the role of large-scale
regional processes, and achievements in theoretical interpretations.
The papers represent the recent major increase in the application of geophysical
and related methods, such as seismic, paleomagnetic, and GPS studies, as well as
absolute dating and geochemical studies to the research of the Dead Sea Transform
and the surrounding regions. The results greatly expanded the database regarding
the deep structure along the Dead Sea Transform, its history, and the ongoing
dynamic processes along it that supplement past and ongoing geological studies.
Also represented are recent advances in the analysis of the historic and the paleo-
seismic record, one of the longest available on Earth, and on the development of the
present-day Dead Sea Lake and of precursor lakes that existed along the transform.
The findings of these studies provide important and unique insights into these issues
which are not only of great scientific interest but are also important for the assess-
ment of environmental and geological hazards which are of great significance to the
population living near the transform. The papers collected in this book summarize
and synthesize the major achievements of these studies.
We are very grateful to Y. Dilek who realized the significance of recent research
and prompted us to undertake a compilation of papers reviewing some of the major
advances. Special thanks go to Petra van Steenbergen, her staff, and Springer for the
encouragement, advice, and guidance during the preparation of this book.
Givat Ram, Jerusalem, Israel Zvi Garfunkel

Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel Zvi Ben-Avraham
Tel Aviv, Israel Elisa Kagan
Contents
1 Geophysical Studies of the Crustal Structure

Along the Southern Dead Sea Fault ...................................................... 1
Zvi Ben-Avraham
2 Geophysical Studies of the Lithosphere
Along the Dead Sea Transform .............................................................. 29
Michael Weber, Khalil Abu-Ayyash, Zvi Ben-Avraham,
Sungchan Choi, Jaser Darwish, Radwan El-Kelani,
Zvi Garfunkel, Hans-Jürgen Götze, Abraham Hofstetter,
Ivan Koulakov, Gabi Laske, James Mechie, Uwe Meyer,
Ayman Mohsen, Alexei Petrunin, Ernesto Meneses Rioseco,
Trond Ryberg, Georg Rümpker, and Stephan V. Sobolev
3 The Seismogenic Thickness in the Dead Sea Area ............................... 53
Freddy Aldersons and Zvi Ben-Avraham
4 The Dead Sea Transform and the Volcanism
in Northwestern Arabia .......................................................................... 91
Yishai Weinstein and Zvi Garfunkel
5 Lateral Motion and Deformation
Zvi Garfunkel
6 Pleistocene Strain Partitioning During Transpression
Along the Dead Sea Transform, Metulla Saddle,
Northern Israel ........................................................................................ 151
Ram Weinberger
7 Review of On-Fault Palaeoseismic Studies
Along the Dead Sea Fault ....................................................................... 183
Shmuel Marco and Yann Klinger
vii
viii Contents
8 Pre-Instrumental Earthquakes Along the Dead Sea Rift .................... 207

Amotz Agnon
9 Instrumental Data on the Seismic Activity
Abraham Hofstetter, Catherine Dorbath, and Louis Dorbath
10 The Evolution of Neogene-Quaternary Water-Bodies
in the Dead Sea Rift Valley ..................................................................... 279
Mordechai Stein
11 The Story of Saline Water in the Dead Sea Rift – The Role
of Runoff and Relative Humidity .......................................................... 317
Abraham Starinsky and Amitai Katz
Index ................................................................................................................. 355

Contributors
Khalil Abu-Ayyash Natural Resources Authority, Amman, Jordan

Amotz Agnon The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences, The
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Givat Ram, Jerusalem, Israel
Freddy Aldersons Seismological Consultant, Bellevue, Switzerland
Zvi Ben-Avraham Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric and Planetary
Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel
Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Mt. Carmel, Haifa, Israel
Sungchan Choi Christian-Albrechts-Universitaet zu Kiel, Kiel, Germany
Jaser Darwish Natural Resources Authority, Amman, Jordan
Catherine Dorbath Ecole et Observatoire des Sciences de la Terre, University
of Strasbourg, Esplanade, Strasbourg, France
IRD, UMR 154, Toulouse, France
Louis Dorbath Ecole et Observatoire des Sciences de la Terre, University
of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
Radwan El-Kelani An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine
Zvi Garfunkel The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences, The
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Givat Ram, Jerusalem, Israel
Hans-Jürgen Götze Christian-Albrechts-Universitaet zu Kiel, Kiel, Germany
Abraham Hofstetter Geophysical Institute of Israel, Lod, Israel
Ecole et Observatoire des Sciences de la Terre, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg,
France
Amitai Katz The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences, The
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
ix
x Contributors
Yann Klinger Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Univ.
Paris Diderot, Paris, France
Ivan Koulakov Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics, Novosibirsk,
Russia
Gabi Laske University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
Shmuel Marco Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences,
Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel
James Mechie Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ, Telegrafenberg,
Potsdam, Germany
Uwe Meyer Bundesanstalt fuer Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe, Hannover,
Germany
Ayman Mohsen Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ, Telegrafenberg,
Potsdam, Germany
Alexei Petrunin Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ, Telegrafenberg,
Potsdam, Germany
Ernesto Meneses Rioseco Leibniz-Institut fuer Angewandte Geophysik, Hannover,
Germany
Georg Rümpker Goethe-Universitaet, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Trond Ryberg Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ, Telegrafenberg, Potsdam,
Germany
Stephan V. Sobolev Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ, Telegrafenberg,
Potsdam, Germany
Abraham Starinsky The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences,
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
Mordechai Stein Geological Survey of Israel, Jerusalem, Israel
Michael Weber Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ , Telegrafenberg,
Potsdam, Germany
Ram Weinberger Division of Geological Mapping and Tectonics, Geological
Survey of Israel, Jerusalem, Israel
Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Ben-Gurion University
of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
Yishai Weinstein Department of Geography and Environment, Bar-Ilan University,
Ramat-Gan, Israel
Chapter 1
Geophysical Studies of the Crustal Structure
Along the Southern Dead Sea Fault
Zvi Ben-Avraham
Abstract The Dead Sea Fault (DSF) is an active transform fault linking opening in
the Red Sea with collision in the Taurus/Zagros Mountains. Motion is left-lateral
and estimated at approximately 5–7 mm/year. The fault is seismically active. The
extensional regime combined with the dominant lateral motion along the DSF
resulted in the formation of a series of deep pull-apart basins. These basins are
among the largest and deepest in the world. The crustal structure of the DSF and its
surroundings played a significant role in the development of the physiography and
the architecture of the basins. The subsurface structure of the southern DSF
has been studied quite intensively by various geophysical methods over the past few
decades. This review summarizes the main geophysical findings of the crustal struc-
ture under the deep basins along the southern DSF, comparing the three deep basins
against each other in contexts of various geophysical properties, and discussing
their tectonic implications. A simulation of faulting processes along the northern
DSF and the Levant margin suggested that the formation of the DSF could be
explained as a result of simultaneous propagation from the north and south.
Normally most basins are bordered only on one side by a strand of the DSF, leading
to their asymmetry. Where asymmetry occurs basins do not extend to great depth. In
areas where the deep basins occur, two strands of the DSF overlap in an en-echelon
pattern. This situation is quite rare along the DSF. It is suggested that in these places
an isolated block of lithosphere has dropped into the mantle. Simulations of this
mechanism indicate that the resulting basin is rhomb-shaped and that with time it
grows by the addition of distinct segments to its edges.
Z. Ben-Avraham (*)
Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences,
Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa,
Mt. Carmel, Haifa 3190501, Israel
e-mail: [email protected]
Z. Garfunkel et al. (eds.), Dead Sea Transform Fault System: Reviews, 1

Modern Approaches in Solid Earth Sciences 6, DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-8872-4_1,
2 Z. Ben-Avraham
Keywords Dead Sea Fault • Crustal structure • Geophysics • Basin structure •

Sedimentary basins
1.1 Introduction
The Dead Sea Fault (DSF), a plate boundary of the transform type, is characterized
by a distinct topographic expression. It forms a narrow and elongated valley with
uplifted shoulders showing asymmetry which changes along the length of the fault
(Picard 1987; Wdowinski and Zilberman 1997).
The structure along the DSF varies greatly, as expressed in its physiography.
Structurally, it can be divided into two segments: south and north of lat. 33°10′N. The
southern segment, which is the topic of this paper, is marked by an almost continuous
valley, most of which is underlain by a series of deep basins that are separated by less
pronounced saddles (Garfunkel 1981; Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham 2001). These
structures are controlled by longitudinal en-echelon faults on which lateral motion
takes place. Normal faults produce the morphologic boundaries of that valley.
Transverse faults are also present, but less conspicuous. In a map view, the segment has
an arcuate shape, and the strike of the major longitudinal faults varies gradually from
approximately 25°NE in the south to nearly N-S in the north, which is in accordance
with the kinematics of Arabia-Africa plate separation (Ben-Avraham et al. 2008).
The main basinal areas along the DSF are the Gulf of Elat (Aqaba), the Dead Sea
and the Sea of Galilee–Bet Shean (Fig. 1.1). In these areas the basins are quite deep
and narrow and quite often the width/depth ratio is less than one. The central part of
the southern DSF is associated with lower crustal seismicity and low heat flow.
Crustal structure of the DSF and its surroundings played a significant role in the
development of the physiography and the architecture of the basins. The subsurface
structure of the southern DSF has been studied quite intensively by various geophysical
methods over the past few decades. Ben-Avraham et al. (2008) reviewed the subsurface
structures of each of the deep basins along the DSF focused on specific properties for
each basin. This review, however, is a summary of the main geophysical findings of the
crustal structure under the deep basins along the southern DSF, presented in a com-
parative mode: a comprehensive review of the three deep basins against each other in
contexts of several geophysical properties and discussing their tectonic implications.
1.2 Physiography
The DSF forms along most of its length a rather narrow valley with steep slopes
on its margins. The development of the DSF was accompanied by uplifting and
igneous activity on a regional scale. Uplifting was greatest away from the plate
boundary itself – maximal at distances of several tens of kilometers on both sides
of the transform. Elevations are quite variable, but often reach 0.7–1.5 km, while
in places topography rises to 2–3 km above sea level. Igneous activity, mainly
basaltic volcanism, occurred on a regional scale, mostly east of the transform
1 Geophysical Studies of the Crustal Structure Along the Southern Dead Sea Fault 3
Fig. 1.1 Location and tectonic setting of the Dead Sea Fault (DSF) (Note the basinal areas of the
Gulf of Elat (Aqaba), the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee). Red arrows mark regional tectonic
plate movement
(Ben-Avraham et al. 2008; Garfunkel 1989). Relatively large basinal areas exist
along the DSF. These are, from south to north, the Gulf of Elat (Aqaba), the Dead
Sea basin and the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee)–Bet Shean basin (Fig. 1.2). To the
north lays another smaller basin, the Hula Basin.
4 Z. Ben-Avraham
Fig. 1.2 Bathymetry of: (a) Gulf of Elat (Aqaba) (Modified after Ben Avraham (1987), Hall and
Ben-Avraham (1978)). Location of the geophysical profiles along the axis of the basin
(Fig. 1.7) marked by a solid line; location of the seismic refraction profiles IS and IN (Fig. 1.6)
marked by heavy dots. (b) Dead Sea (Modified after Hall 1979). (c) Sea of Galilee (Modified
after Ben-Avraham et al. 1990)
The Gulf of Elat (Aqaba) is about 180 km long and 20 km wide. It is the largest
depression along the fault and is comprised of three elongated, en-echelon, actively
subsiding pull-apart basins, which strike N20°–25°E (Ben-Avraham et al. 1979;
Ben-Avraham 1985; Ben-Avraham and Garfunkel 1986). Bathymetric undulations
within the basins form a series of distinct deeps: the Tiran and Dakar deeps in
the southern basin, the Arnona and Aragonese deeps in the central basin, and the
Elat Deep in the northern basin. The Hume Deep lies to the south of the Straits of
Tiran and connects the Gulf to the Red Sea. The northern basin is the largest and
shallowest with average water depth of ~900 m. The central basin is the deepest
with average water depth of ~1,500 m and the southern basin has an average water
depth of ~1,100 m.
The Dead Sea basin is the lowest continental depression (about 424 m below
mean sea level) and is one of the largest pull-apart basins on Earth. It is about
150 km long, 15–17 km wide, and extends from the northern Arava Valley to Jericho
(Neev and Emery 1967; Freund et al. 1970; Garfunkel 1981, 1997; ten Brink et al.
1993; Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham 1996; Lazar et al. 2006). It is divided into two
main basins, a northern basin and a southern basin, separated by the Lisan Peninsula.
The northern basin is occupied by a terminal lake known as the Dead Sea. The average
water depth of the deep lake floor is ~300 m (Neev and Hall 1979). The southern
basin was once covered by a very shallow lake (part of the Dead Sea), is now
exposed and is used by the Dead Sea Works (Israel) and by the Arab Potash Company
(Jordan) as artificial evaporation ponds.
The Kinneret-Bet Shean Basin is located north of the Dead Sea. The Sea of
Galilee (Lake Kinneret) is located at the northern section of the basin. It is a fresh-
water lake ~12 km at its widest point and ~20 km long. Its surface is approximately
210 m below mean sea level and has a maximum water depth of 46 m (Ben-Avraham
et al. 1990). North of it the rather small and exposed Hula Basin is located. It is
~22 km long, ~7 km wide, and lays about 800 m below its surrounding mountains.
1.3 Architecture of Sedimentary Fill
Large sedimentary sequences were accumulated within the basins. Their shape
varies along the length of the basins. In most cases the sedimentary fill is asymmetric
in cross section, but occasionally it is symmetrical.
1.3.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)
Within the narrow sea arm of the Gulf of Elat (Aqaba) three large sedimentary
basins are expressed in the sea floor bathymetry. The basins are mostly asymmetrical
in cross section. Ben-Avraham (1985) has suggested that the asymmetry of the
strike-slip basins within the gulf of Elat is probably due to the fact that the basins
6 Z. Ben-Avraham
are bounded only on one side by a strand of the Dead Sea transform fault. Thus,
only one of the longitudinal faults is characterized by a strike-slip component, while
the other longitudinal fault is predominantly normal. The basin is asymmetric
toward the transform fault. This idea is supported by geological and geophysical
evidence such as the offset of certain sedimentary sequences and magnetic anomalies
(Ben-Avraham 1985). The asymmetry within the basins suggests that in the southern
basin and the southern part of the central portion of the gulf the active strike-slip
motion is taking place primarily on the western boundary faults of the basins, while
in the northern portion of the gulf it is taking place primarily along the eastern
boundary fault (Fig. 1.3). The only place where an en-echelon arrangement of
strands of the DSF exists is in the central portion of the Gulf where the configuration
of the basin is symmetric. Interesting, this is also where the sedimentary sequences
are folded, suggesting that the area is under compression.
1.3.2 Dead Sea
The Dead Sea basin is divided into two deep basins, the northern and the southern
basins. A remarkable feature of the sedimentary sequences in the northern portion
of the southern basin and the southern portion of the northern basin is their sym-
metry (ten Brink and Ben-Avraham 1989; Al-Zoubi et al. 2002). Deformation in the
Dead Sea basin takes place mainly along the transverse and longitudinal faults,
while the basin fill is relatively undeformed and hardly tilted (Fig. 1.4). The basin
has widened by the collapse and tilting of arcuate block from the western margin but
the original shape is a full-graben (ten Brink and Ben-Avraham 1989). They further
noticed that the basin is divided into 20–30 km long segments by transverse faults.
The most impressive transverse fault is the Amazyahu fault, dividing the southern
basin into two segments. Advanced processing of seismic reflection profiles in the area
indicated that the Amazyahu fault, as well as the Boqeq fault that forms the northern
boundary of the southern basin, are in fact normal faults. These faults cut through the
sedimentary section down to the crystalline basement, similar to the eastern and
western boundary faults of the basin (Ginzburg et al. 2006).
At the northern edge of the northern basin the Jericho sub-basin, that extends
from the lake northward onto land, is asymmetric towards the Jericho fault, which
is the active strand of the DSF in this area (Lazar et al. 2006). The Jericho sub-basin
is much shallower than the sub-basins in the central part of the Dead Sea basin
where they are symmetrical.
1.3.3 Sea of Galilee
The Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinneret) basin forms the northern portion of the Kinneret –
Bet Shean basin. The Kinneret basin itself is divided into two distinct parts. The
southern part, which includes the southern lake and the Kinarot Valley, located
Fig. 1.3 (a) Structure of the Gulf of Elat. Segments of the Dead Sea Fault are shown with
bold lines and arrows, other faults in the gulf are shown with thin lines. The strike-slip faults, both
longitudinal and transverse, also have a normal component (After Ben-Avraham 1985;
Ben-Avraham and Tibor 1993). (b) and (c) Continuous seismic profiles across the northern and
southern basins of the Gulf of Elat (Modified after Ben-Avraham 1992) (Note the asymmetry of
the basin fill to the east (Elat Deep) and to the west (Dakar Deep)). Profiles were scanned from
analog seismic data acquired in the 1970s
8 Z. Ben-Avraham
Fig. 1.4 Seismic profiles across and along the southern basin of the Dead Sea. Interpreted E-W
seismic lines (a) and (b) show the main structural elements on both sides of the southern Dead Sea
basin: Rim Blocks, Intermediate Blocks, Deep Sunken Block and the faults that separate them
(Note that the Sedom Deep-1 is projected into line (a) to a position that fit the stratigraphy of the
deep block). Color code: yellow, Pleistocene; purple, Pliocene salt; orange, Miocene; green,
Cretaceous; blue, Jurassic (Modified after Al-Zoubi et al. 2002). (c) Interpreted pre-stack depth
migrated seismic profile. Layer 1 is the pre-fill Cretaceous basement, layer 2 comprises the Hazeva
Formation, layer 3 is the Pliocene evaporite series, and layer 4 comprises the Plio-Pleistocene
sediments of the basin fill (Modified after Ginzburg et al. 2006). Profile locations are marked on
map (Modified after Ginzburg et al. 2006) at top right-hand side
farther south, is narrow, deep and symmetrical, whereas the northern part is wider,
shallower and asymmetrical to the east (Fig. 1.5). In the south, two strands of the
DSF border the basin, while in the north only the eastern strand exists (Ben-Avraham
et al. 1996; Reznikov et al. 2004). This situation is similar to the Gulf of Elat, where
the central basin, bordered by two strands of the DSF, is symmetric and the northern
basin, which is bordered by only one strand of the DSF, is asymmetric to the east.
Another interesting similarity to the Gulf of Elat is observed in the narrowest part of
the Sea of Galilee, where two strands of the DSF border the basin, and the sedimentary
Fig. 1.5 Seismic profiles across the Sea of Galilee. (a) Migrated seismic line across the northern
part of the lake: EMF eastern marginal fault; MSF median step fault, which separates the western
part of the basin from the deep eastern part; WMF proposed continuation of the west marginal
fault, which delimits the basin in the west; TCB top cover basalt. A possible intrusion of material
into the overlying sediments is marked on the east (Modified after Reznikov et al. 2004) (Note the
asymmetry to the east of the basin fill). (b) Seismic reflection profile across the southern part of the
lake: WMF western marginal fault, EMF eastern marginal fault (Modified after Hurwitz et al.
2002) (Note the symmetry of the basin fill). Profile locations are marked on the insert map
10 Z. Ben-Avraham
sequences are folded (Hurwitz et al. 2002) indicating that the area is under
compression. Reznikov et al. (2004) have suggested that the deepest sub-basin is
bordered by deep normal transverse faults, similar to the situation in the deepest
sub-basin of the Dead Sea. A complex zone of deformations delimits the northern
sub-basin to the west.
1.4 Crustal Structure
1.4.1 Seismic Refraction
During the 1970s a series of seismic refraction profiles were obtained along the DSF
and on its margins (Ginzburg et al. 1979a, b, 1981). These data show that the DSF is
associated with a crustal structure which is slightly different than its surroundings. The
seismic data obtained in the experiment were first evaluated using first-arrival informa-
tion (Ginzburg et al. 1979a). The high quality of the data made possible an evaluation
of later arrival information resulting in a detailed velocity structure of the crust under-
neath the rift and the adjacent areas (Ginzburg et al. 1979b). An interesting observation
is the existence of a 5 km thick transition zone along the DSF within the lower crust,
above the crust-mantle boundary, in which the velocity increases rapidly and smoothly
from about 6.72 km s−1 to upper mantle velocity (~7.9 km s−1). The profiles outside the
rift valley show a different velocity structure in the crust. Here, no transition zone was
found to exist in the base of the lower crust (Ginzburg et al. 1979b).
A revised interpretation of the seismic refraction data was presented by Ginzburg
et al. (1981). The structural models of the rift profiles were plotted on a longitudinal
section from the Sea of Galilee to the Red Sea (Fig. 1.6). On the same section the
relative Bouguer anomaly is shown. As can be seen the regional gravity gradient is
conformable with crustal thinning from Elat northward and particularly southward
in the direction of the Red Sea. The crust thins considerably to the south along the
Gulf of Elat. The observed thinning is of some 8 km, down to a thickness of only
27 km, some 80 km north of the Red Sea. The gravity observations indicate a
continuing thinning to the south beyond the point where seismic refraction control
is available. This is compatible with available data on the structure of the Red Sea
(Ben-Avraham 1987; Lazar et al. 2012). Important point stated by Ginzburg et al.
(1981) is that the rift and its immediate surroundings are underlain by a thinner than
usual crust.
In the last few years several seismic refraction-reflection studies were carried out
across the southern DSF. They were focused on the DSF segment between the
Dead Sea and the Red Sea. These include several interdisciplinary efforts, including
the DESERT project (DEad SEa Rift Transect), the DESIRE project (Dead
Sea Integrated REsearch project), which are presented by Weber et al. (2014, this
volume) and the USGS profile (ten Brink et al. 2006). The DESERT profile cut
across the central Arava Valley, while the DESIRE and USGS profiles across the
southern Dead Sea basin.
Fig. 1.6 Crustal model along the DSF from the Sea of Galilee (N) to the Red Sea (S), calculated
from seismic refraction profiles. Coinciding elevation (solid line) and relative Bouguer gravity
anomaly (dashed line) are also plotted (Modified after Ginzburg et al. 1981)
The three seismic profiles crossing the DSF from the Mediterranean to the
Jordanian highlands demonstrate an increase in Moho depth from about 25 km to
about 35 km, with only a small asymmetric topography of the Moho beneath the
DSF at the Arava Valley. In the southern Dead Sea basin proper the imaging of
the Moho is complicated by its relatively narrow width while crossing it in EW
direction. Nevertheless, Weber et al. (2014, this volume) and ten Brink et al. (2006)
concluded that the Dead Sea basin is a mostly upper crustal feature with a decoupling
zone at about 20 km depth.
1.4.1.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)
As a part of the seismic refraction survey of Ginzburg et al. (1979a, b), a profile was
obtained on land along the western shore of the Gulf of Elat. In the northern part of
the Gulf, the depth to Moho is about 32 km. From the middle part of the Gulf, the
Moho shallows quite sharply until the southern edge where it is about 8 km shallower
than in the north. The uplift of the Moho is also reflected in the gravity, magnetic
and heat flow data (Fig. 1.7). The seismic refraction data where used along with the
gravity and heat flow data to model the structure of the crust in the Gulf of Elat.
1.4.1.2 Dead Sea
A seismic refraction experiment was conducted along a north–south profile in

the northern basin of the Dead Sea (Ginzburg and Ben-Avraham 1997). It involved
the use of 9 OBS (Ocean Bottom Seismometers) and 11 portable seismic land
12 Z. Ben-Avraham
Fig. 1.7 Geophysical profiles along the Gulf of Elat (see Fig. 1.2 for location). Top to bottom: heat
flow, Bouguer gravity anomaly, free air gravity anomaly, magnetic anomaly, bathymetry and depth
to Moho on the western margin (After Ben-Avraham 1987)
stations which were placed north and south of the lake. The interpretation of the
results indicates that the basement lies at 6–8 km under the northern basin. South of
the basin, a major fault affecting the basement was detected with apparent sense of
motion to the south. This major faulting which downthrows the basement some
4–5 km to the south, forms the northern boundary of the southern basin (Fig. 1.8).
The basement at the northern part of the southern basin, away from the boundary
fault, was found to be at about 14 km depth, making this area one of the deepest
pull-apart basins in Earth.
Fig. 1.8 Velocity-depth section along the Dead Sea. The section is calculated from N-S trending
seismic refraction profile. The 2.0 km/s velocity represents the Pleistocene fill of the basin. The
4.2 km/s velocity is associated with Pliocene evaporites. The 6.0 km/s velocity represents the top
of the crystalline basement, while the overlaying 3.0–3.8 km/s is associated with the Tertiary to
pre-Cretaceous sediments (Modified after Ginzburg and Ben-Avraham 1997)
1.4.1.3 Sea of Galilee
Two shallow seismic refraction lines were obtained across the Sea of Galilee in the
north and south (Ben-Avraham et al. 1981). Seismic explosives were placed in shot-
holes at either end of each line below the water table. The signals were picked up by
hydrophones and were transmitted to the shore based recording stations by TelseisR
transmitters. Although penetration was limited to about 600 m, the two reversed
refraction profiles show large differences in the velocity structure between the various
parts of the lake. The southern part is more homogeneous than the northern one. In
the north, the northwest section is quite different than the northeast section. It seems
thus that the lake is divided into at least three separate regions with different sedi-
mentary sequences. Drilling south of the lake and potential field studies (see below)
have provided valuable information on the deep structure of the basin.
1.4.2 Gravity and Magnetics
1.4.2.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)
Overall, the northern half of the Gulf of Elat has a larger amount of magnetic anomalies
than the southern half, although on land over eastern Sinai the area off the southern
half has a much more disturbed magnetic field than the area off the northern half of
the Gulf (Ben-Avraham 1985). In the southern third of the gulf the magnetic field
is rather smooth (Fig. 1.9) and its shape almost follows the bathymetric contours.
Ben-Avraham (1987) proposed that crustal spreading processes propagate from the
Red Sea into the southern gulf and caused a remagnetization of the crust in this area.
14 Z. Ben-Avraham
Fig. 1.9 Magnetic anomaly maps. (a) Gulf of Elat; contour intervals 10 nT (Modified after
Ben-Avraham 1985, 1987). (b) Dead Sea; contour intervals 5 nT; survey track lines indicated by
dots (Modified after Frieslander and Ben-Avraham 1989). (c) Sea of Galilee. Hatched areas mark
negative anomalies; contour intervals 50 nT (Modified after Ben-Avraham et al. 1980; Ginzburg
and Ben-Avraham 1986)
Fig. 1.10 Bouguer gravity anomaly maps. (a) Gulf of Elat; density: ρ = 2,670 kg m−3 (Modified
after Ben-Avraham 1985). (b) Dead Sea; cropped and modified after ten-Brink et al. (2001); density
ρ = 2,670 kg m−3. (c) Sea of Galilee; densities: ρ = 2,150 kg m−3 below 150 mbsl; ρ = 2,550 kg m−3
above 150 mbsl (Modified after Ben-Avraham et al. 1996)
The free air gravity anomaly map shows two large elongated lows, the southern
one reaches −200 mGal and the northern one −170 mGal. The Bouguer anomaly
map (Fig. 1.10) also shows two lows, the northern one reaches −110 mGal and the
southern one −100 mGal. At similar water depths in the Red Sea, the free air anoma-
lies are around 0 mGal and the Bouguer anomalies are around +150 mGal. This
indicates a large mass deficiency under the Gulf of Elat as well as under the basinal
areas north of it, as is shown below.
16 Z. Ben-Avraham
1.4.2.2 Dead Sea
The magnetic field over the Dead Sea is quite smooth (Frieslander and Ben-Avraham
1989). Most of the magnetic anomalies have long wavelengths and low amplitudes
(Fig. 1.9). However, a few short wavelength anomalies exist, some of which have
high amplitudes. A comparison between the magnetic anomaly map of the Dead Sea
and aeromagnetic maps over the land areas to the west and east, shows that the
magnetic anomalies extend uninterrupted from the land area to the west into the
basin. In the east the magnetic contours are discontinuous across the eastern margin
of the basin. This suggests throughout most of development of the basin, the eastern
bounding fault acted as a strike-slip fault.
Gravity studies indicate that the Dead Sea basin becomes shallower and narrower
to the north and south (Fig. 1.10). Based on the gravity data ten Brink et al. (1993)
suggested that the basin sags toward its deepest part in the center. These data also
show faulted blocks, several kilometers in width, along the western side of the
basin, while the eastern side is being occupied by a wide graben. These blocks were
interpreted as evidence for passive collapse into the deepening graben (ten Brink
et al. 1993). Gravity also suggests that the Moho is not significantly elevated under
the basin, with deformation being limited to the crust. The gravity data indicate the
division of the basin into sub-basins along its length.
1.4.2.3 Sea of Galilee
Several magnetic surveys have been conducted over the Sea of Galilee and its vicinity
(Ben-Avraham et al. 1980; Ginzburg and Ben-Avraham 1986). The data of a recent
new magnetic survey, which was carried out using a denser grid and an advanced
system, are now being analyzed (Rofe et al. 2014). The magnetic map (Fig. 1.9)
shows considerable anomalies near the margins of the lake, especially the northern
margin, which are probably caused by fault-controlled occurrences of volcanic
rocks, while the central portion of the lake is magnetically quite.
Gravity data (Fig. 1.10) indicate that the Sea of Galilee can be divided into two
distinct sections (Ben-Avraham et al. 1996). The largest gravity anomaly is located
over the southern section which is narrow and bordered by two N-S-trending faults
(Fig. 1.5). This structure is thus the deepest part of the basin. It lies south of the
bathymetric low. Gravity data suggest that the southern sub-basin may extend
southward into the Kinnarot Valley south of the lake. The southern sub-basin is
probably a pull-apart, which formed as a result of the transform motion along the
main faults.
The wider northern section of the basin was probably formed as a result of
interactions between the main N-S and secondary NW-SE- to E-W-trending fault
systems (Ben-Avraham et al. 1981), i.e., rotational opening and transverse normal
faulting. The northeastern part of the basin is occupied by an asymmetrical (to
the east) half-graben structure (Fig. 1.5) which differs from the deep asymmetrical
sub-basin of the southern section (Ben-Avraham et al. 1996; Hurwitz et al. 2002;
Fig. 1.11 Heat flow profile along the Red Sea (pink rectangles; After Ben-Avraham and Von
Herzen 1987), Gulf of Elat, Dead Sea and Sea of Galilee (blue diamonds After Ben-Avraham et al.
1978) Heat flow profile along the Dead Sea Fault (red line; Modified after Shalev et al. 2012)
superimposed on data from Ben-Avraham et al. (1978) on bottom right, and compared with depth
to basement on top right (Modified after Shalev et al. 2012)
Reznikov et al. 2004). Although bathymetrically this is the deepest part of the lake
and thus, probably the most actively subsiding area, gravity data suggest that the
basin here is shallower than in the southern section.
1.4.3 Heat Flow
The average measured heat flow in the northern Dead Sea Basin is 38 mW/m2
(Ben-Avraham et al. 1978; Ben-Avraham 1997) and it is 42 mW/m2 (Eckstein and
Simmonsi 1977) west of the basin. These values are very similar to the uniform heat
flow measured in the eastern Mediterranean (Erickson 1970). A recent re-evaluation
of the heat flow data (Shalev et al. 2007) confirmed this low value. A heat flow
profile from the Sea of Galilee to the Red Sea (Fig. 1.11) show relatively high values
in the Sea of Galilee area dropping to anomalously low values in the Dead Sea area
and then increasing again in the southern part of the Gulf of Elat (Fig. 1.7) towards
the Red Sea which is characterized by high and variable values.
A new comprehensive study of the surface heat flow distribution in Israel was derived
from well measurements spread all over the country (Shalev et al. 2011). This study
shows that the surface heat flow in Israel is indeed low over most of the country, only
40–45 mW/m2 on the average. The Dead Sea basin, though, is not exceptional in this
respect. Recent update to heat flow data estimated from xenoliths (Shalev et al. 2012,
Fig. 1.11) suggests that the temperature gradient at the Dead Sea basin is relatively low,
18 Z. Ben-Avraham
resulting in low heat flux (<40 mW/m2) and a relatively deep seismicity extending to
lower crustal depths, in agreement with earthquake depths (>25–30 km) (Aldersons
et al. 2003). Higher heat fluxes were estimated at the Sea of Galilee (70 mW/m2) and at
the Gulf of Elat (65 mW/m2). A comparison of earlier (Ben-Avraham et al. 1978; Ben-
Avraham and Von Herzen 1987) and recent (Shalev et al. 2012) heat flow data is pre-
sented in Fig. 1.11, demonstrating a consistency of heat flow results among these works.
1.4.4 Seismicity
The DSF is associated with deep crustal seismicity in the area from the northern
Gulf of Elat to the Sea of Galilee (Aldersons et al. 2003; Shamir 2006; Aldersons
and Ben-Avraham 2014, this volume). The deepest seismicity, just above the Moho,
occurs under the Dead Sea basin.
Aldersons et al. (2003) studied the seismicity along the DSF between Elat-Aqaba
and the Sea of Galilee for the period 1984–1997. Out of 2,283 earthquakes routinely
recorded by the network of the Geophysical Institute of Israel (GII) and expanded
with stations from the Jordan Seismological Observatory (JSO), the location and
depth of 410 earthquakes were recomputed. Within the Dead Sea basin itself, 42 well-
constrained microearthquakes were relocated from seismograms repicked by hand.
60 % of these earthquakes nucleated at depths between 20 and 32 km and more than
40 % occurred below the depth of peak seismicity situated at 20 km. With the Moho
at 32 km, the upper mantle appeared to be aseismic during the 14-year data period.
The depth distribution of background seismicity, in agreement with an average
heat flow of 40–45 mW/m2, suggests a seismogenic thickness TS of 28.4 ± 2.2 km in
the Dead Sea area (Aldersons and Ben-Avraham 2014, this volume). This value is
much higher than previously assumed.
1.5 Discussion
The DSF is associated with several of the deepest pull-apart basins on Earth. It is
also associated with lower crustal seismicity and low heat flow. The formation of
these basins must be linked somehow with the processes that have led to the forma-
tion of the DSF itself. The origin of the DSF was the topic of several studies. Earlier
models (Steckler and ten Brink 1986) have suggested that the rifting activity along
the DSF propagated from the northern Red Sea in the south to the north. Indeed, at
the southern part of the DSF, within the Gulf of Elat, geophysical data indicate that
seafloor spreading processes propagate from the Red Sea northward (Ben-Avraham
1987). More recent studies, however, have suggested that stresses generated at
the collision belt along the Taurus Mountains are responsible for the formation
of the DSF. A simulation of faulting processes along the northern DSF and the
Levant margin (Ben-Avraham and Lyakhovsky 1992) suggested that the formation
of the DSF could be explained as a result of simultaneous propagation from both
north and south. Recently Ben-Avraham and Schubert (2006) and Ben-Avraham
et al. (2010) have suggested that the two tips of the propagating cracks from north
and south met in the area where the Dead Sea basin was developed.
1.5.1 Geometry of Deep Basins
An en-echelon arrangement of the main faults with a full graben configuration of

the basin in-between is quite rare along the DSF. In most other cases the basins are
asymmetrical (Figs. 1.3 and 1.5) with the main strand of the transform occurring on
one side, while the other is bounded mainly by normal faults (Ben-Avraham 1992;
Ben-Avraham and Zoback 1992). This situation also characterizes basins along
other continental transforms. For example, basins along the El Pilar fault in Venezuela,
such as the Cariaco basin (Schubert 1984), are strongly asymmetric.
A notable exception is in the Dead Sea basin. Here, strands of the DSF are
located on the east and west (ten Brink and Ben-Avraham 1989; Al-Zoubi et al.
2002; Larsen et al. 2002). These are the Sedom Fault on the west and Ghor Safi
Fault on the east. Fault plane solutions indicate that both faults are strike–slip in this
area (van Eck and Hofstetter 1990). As a result, the basin here is symmetric with an
original shape of a full-graben. The basin has widened with time by the collapse and
tilting of blocks from the eastern and western margins. The only other two places
where such a situation occurs along the DSF are the Aragonese Deep at the central
part of the Gulf of Elat (Ben-Avraham 1985) and the southern Sea of Galilee at the
central part of the Kinneret–Bet Shean basin (Ben-Avraham et al. 1996; Fig. 1.12).
The transverse faults bordering the basins on their north and south sides and
within the basins are less clear. Very few of them are well imaged by seismic
reflection profiles. One of the best studied transverse faults is the Amazyahu fault
on the southern margin of a deep segment within the southern sub-basin of the Dead
Sea. The trace of this fault is expressed on the surface as an easily recognized
escarpment in the southern sub-basin of the Dead Sea. Several surveys of seismic
reflection lines were shot across this fault over the last 35 years. Earlier profiles
led to new models about the nature of transverse faulting in the Dead Sea basin.
These models describe it as a major listric fault which reaches the basement. These
old profiles were in the time domain.
The results of processing recent seismic reflection data across the Amazyahu
fault using advanced techniques shed new light on the nature of the fault (Ginzburg
et al. 2006). The pre-stack depth migration gives a much better definition of the
faults and better continuity of the pre-fill reflections, thus enabling the study of
the basement faulting and its role in the internal structure of the basin. It indicates
that the Amazyahu fault, which was previously interpreted as a listric fault, is a deep
basement fault. Ginzburg et al. (2006) also noted that the Boqeq Fault, at the northern
margin of the southern sub-basin of the Dead Sea, cuts through the deeper part of
the young fill and the Cretaceous and older beds, probably to the crystalline basement.
It appears thus, that at least in several cases the transverse faults are deep normal
faults cutting deep into the base of the basins.
20 Z. Ben-Avraham
Fig. 1.12 En-Echelon arrangement of the strands of the Dead Sea Fault. Left: Gulf of Elat
(Modified after Ben-Avraham 1985; Ben-Avraham and Tibor 1993). Middle: Dead Sea (Modified
after Ben-Avraham 1997); Hatched areas are salt bodies. Right: Sea of Galilee (Modified after
Ben-Avraham et al. 1996; Reznikov et al. 2004; Hurwitz et al. 2002)
1.5.2 Depth of Basins
The basins along the southern DSF vary in size and depth. The deepest segments are
the ones where en-echelon arrangement of the strands of the DSF exists. A particular
deep segment is the northern part of the southern basin of the Dead Sea graben. Here,
seismic refraction and reflection profiles and gravity data indicate that the basin is
12–15 km deep with a ratio of width/depth of less than one. This unusual situation is
unique to the entire length of the DSF. In the southern Sea of Galilee the ratio of
width/depth is also less than 1 (Fig. 1.13). In this area the basin is 6–8 km deep. In the
Gulf of Elat the basins reach a depth of 6 km under relatively deep water column.
The geometry of the southern Dead Sea basin is anomalous compared to the rest
of the DSF. Here, the northern segment is bounded by deep vertical faults on all sides.
Fig. 1.13 Crustal structure models of the Gulf of Elat and the Sea of Galilee based on gravity data.
(a) Elat Deep. Faults within the basin are based on continuous seismic profiles. The model was tied to
refraction data along the western coast of the Gulf of Elat (Ginzburg et al. 1979a, b, 1981); densities (ρ)
in kg m−3; seismic velocities (v) in km s−1. See location on map at top (Modified after Ben-Avraham
1985). (b) Sea of Galilee. Observed (dashed line) free air gravity data compared with calculated gravity
(solid lines) from 2-D density-depth models presented below; densities (ρ) in kg m−3; black layers rep-
resent basalt flows; arrows mark the boundaries of the lake. See location on map at top (Modified after
Ben-Avraham et al. 1996, 2008) (Note the different depth scale of each model; horizontal scales are
similar). A crustal structure model for the Dead Sea is presented in Fig. 1.14
22 Z. Ben-Avraham
These are the transverse Boqeq and Amazyahu faults in south and north, and the
longitudinal Sedom and Ghor Safi faults in west and east, which are the southern
and northern edges of the Jericho and Arava faults, respectively (Fig. 1.14). As a
result, the basin is symmetrical both in east–west and north–south directions. At the
surface the basin is about 30 km long and about 18 km wide; however, at the sub-
bottom it is about 20 km long and 13 km wide.
1.5.3 Processes of Basin Formation
As mentioned above, it was suggested that the formation of the DSF could be
explained as a result of simultaneous propagation from the north and south (Ben-
Avraham and Lyakhovsky 1992; Lyakhovsky et al. 1994). This concept was used in
an attempt to explain the formation of the deep basin in the northern part of
the southern basin of the Dead Sea by Ben-Avraham and Schubert (2006). They
have suggested that it was formed as a “drop down” basin during early stages of the
evolution of the DSF when the tips of propagating faults, one from the collision
front in the north and one from the Red Sea in the south met in this area. The fault
tips overlapped and curved towards each other, isolating a block of crust and litho-
sphere that dropped into the mantle. The low heat flow and deep seismicity in the
Dead Sea area support the brittle behavior of the lower crust.
In contrast, Sobolev et al. (2005) and Petrunin and Sobolev (2006) presented
results of a three-dimensional thermo-mechanical model of a pull-apart basin
formed at an overstepping of an active continental transform fault such as the Dead
Sea basin. They adopted the classical scheme of pull-apart basin formation and
demonstrated that the major parameter controlling basin length, thickness of
sediments and deformation pattern beneath the basin is the thickness of the brittle
layer. However, the average measured surface heat flow at the Dead Sea basin is less
than 40 mW/m2 (Ben-Avraham et al. 1978), well below the heat flow required for
their models. The low surface heat flow values along the DSF are also supported by
the depth distribution of local seismicity (Aldersons et al. 2003).
Ben-Avraham et al. (2010) simulated the formation of the deep segment of the
Dead Sea basin and other deep basins along the DSF and demonstrated that the
“drop down” mechanism of the Dead Sea basin formation suggested by Ben-
Avraham and Schubert (2006) is possible. Density heterogeneities formed in the
crust or upper mantle during a previous stage of regional magmatism, drop into the
upper mantle when strike-slip faults are created and detach them from the surround-
ing lithosphere. The simulations indicate that the resulting basin is rhomb-shaped
and that with time it grows by the addition of distinct segments to its edges. The
proposed mechanism could account for the formation and evolution of large
sedimentary basins along other strike-slip fault systems, such as the San Andreas
Fault and other continental transform faults.
This mechanism could also account for the fact that the large basins along the DSF
do not reduce in their width with time. Measurements of the geometric complexity
of faults (Wesnousky 1988, 1994; Stirling et al. 1996) demonstrate that the density
Fig. 1.14 Structural models of the Dead Sea basin. (a) A Digital Terrain Map (DTM) image showing
the main tectonic elements of the Dead Sea basin. Faults are marked as black lines (After Ben-
Avraham 1997). The Dead Sea basin is divided into two sub-basins, which are separated by the
Lisan Peninsula, which is a large buried salt diapir. The two basins are thought to be divided by a
large oblique normal fault, the Boqeq Fault. The two main strands of the DSF in this area are the
Jericho fault, which borders the northern sub-basin on the west, and the Arava Fault, which borders
the southern sub-basin on the east. Geological profiles shown in (b) and (c) are indicated by red lines
(background DTM by Hall 1996). (b) E-W geological cross section showing the deep sub-basin
(“Drop down basin”) located in the northern part of the southern Dead Sea basin. The section is
based on seismic reflection, seismic refraction, and borehole data (SD 1, Sedom Deep-1 borehole).
The deep sub-basin is bordered by deep vertical faults; the Sedom Fault in the west and the Ghor
Safi Fault (which does not extend to the surface) in the east. (c) N-S geological cross section based
on prestack depth migration seismic reflection profiles, as well as on the seismic refraction, gravity,
and borehole data. The section shows that the area of the deep sub-basin is the deepest part (“Drop
down basin”) of the Dead Sea basin. It is bordered by deep vertical faults, the Boqeq Fault in the
north, and the Amazyahu Fault in the south. Densities are given in kg m−3. Gravity models are shown
on top (Modified after Ben-Avraham and Schubert (2006) and Ben-Avraham et al. (2008))
24 Z. Ben-Avraham
of step offsets in the examined fault traces decreases as a function of cumulative

slip, showing an evolution with continuing deformation from a disordered network
of linked fault segments to simpler dominant localized fault zones. The same
phenomena have been demonstrated in analog modeling (e.g. Rahe et al. 1998; Wu
et al. 2009; Smit et al. 2008a, b, 2010). Indeed several small basins along the DSF
show localization of faulting. An interesting example is the Hula Basin north of the
Sea of Galilee. While the surface expression is of a rhomb shaped basin, a recent
study (Schattner and Weinberger 2008) showed that the basin is relatively shallow
and the main strand of the DSF in this area traverses the basin diagonally from
southeast to northwest. Nemer et al. (2008) recently studied the evolution of the
Yammouneh sedimentary basin along the main active branch of the DSF within the
Lebanese restraining bend and showed a very similar situation to that of the Hula
Basin. In the south, Ehrhardt et al. (2005) and Tibor et al. (2010) described a similar
situation in the northern Gulf of Elat. How then were the deep basins along the DSF
and other shear zones formed, when the tendency of the fault zone is to become
smooth and localized? The “drop down” mechanism might possibly be in part
responsible for this. The deep seismicity and low heat flow values suggest that the
deformation might be brittle in the lower crust in these areas.
Acknowledgements The help of Mor Kanari in preparing the figures as well as with other
technical aspects of the paper is greatly appreciated. I am very grateful to him for his effort.
Uri Schattner helped with earlier versions of Figs. 1.11 and 1.12.
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Chapter 2
Geophysical Studies of the Lithosphere
Along the Dead Sea Transform
Michael Weber, Khalil Abu-Ayyash, Zvi Ben-Avraham, Sungchan Choi, Jaser

Darwish, Radwan El-Kelani, Zvi Garfunkel, Hans-Jürgen Götze, Abraham
Hofstetter, Ivan Koulakov, Gabi Laske, James Mechie, Uwe Meyer, Ayman
Mohsen, Alexei Petrunin, Ernesto Meneses Rioseco, Trond Ryberg, Georg
Rümpker, Stephan V. Sobolev, and DESERT & DESIRE Groups
Abstract In this chapter we report on the deep structure of the Dead Sea Transform
(DST) as derived from geophysical observations and numerical modelling, cali-
brated by geological and geodynamic evidence.
We use seismics, seismology and gravity to study the crust and lithosphere of the
Dead Sea Transform (DST) system. These observations are integrated with 3D
thermo-mechanical modelling of the evolution of the DST through time to under-
stand the deeper structure of the DST. The three seismic profiles crossing the DST
M. Weber (*) • J. Mechie • A. Mohsen • A. Petrunin • T. Ryberg • S.V. Sobolev

Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ, Telegrafenberg, Potsdam 14473, Germany
e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];
[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]
K. Abu-Ayyash • J. Darwish
Natural Resources Authority, P.O. Box 7, Amman 11118, Jordan
e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]
Z. Ben-Avraham
Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Tel Aviv University,
Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa,
Mt. Carmel, Haifa 3190501, Israel
S. Choi • H.-J. Götze
Christian-Albrechts-Universitaet zu Kiel, Christian-Albrechts-Platz 4, 24118 Kiel, Germany
e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]
R. El-Kelani
An-Najah National University, P.O. Box 7, Nablus, Palestine
Z. Garfunkel
The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew University
of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra campus, Givat Ram, Jerusalem 91904, Israel

30 M. Weber et al.
from the Mediterranean in the West to the Jordan highlands in the East show an
increase in Moho depth from about 25 km to about 35 km; with only minor
topography. This depth increase of about 10 km of the Moho from West to East is also
found in tomographic images using regional and teleseismic events, which shows
additionally a N – S trending thickening of the crust under the Arava/Araba Fault
(AF). In the Dead Sea Basin (DSB) proper the imaging of the Moho is complicated by
the presence of the Lisan Salt dome. From these results and other evidence we con-
clude that the Dead Sea basin is a mostly upper crustal feature with a decoupling zone
at about 20 km depth. Using SKS waves we find below the Moho under the DST a
narrow, ca. 20 km wide, vertical decoupling zone reaching into the mantle, representing
the boundary layer between the African and Arabian plates. This observation agrees
with the results from the study of surface waves that also show a region of reduced
S-velocities under the DST, reaching down into the lithosphere. Whereas the litho-
sphere thins gradually east of the DST from N to S from ca. 80 to ca. 67 km, below
about 120 km depth little structure can be observed in tomographic images.
The abovementioned observational constraints can all be fitted with the classical
pull-apart model, if the lithosphere was thermally eroded to 80 km thickness about
20 Ma ago, combined with weak rheologies for crust and upper mantle. The most
likely explanation of the features described is thus a thinning of the lithosphere
around the DST in the Late Cenozoic, likely following by rifting and spreading of
the Red Sea.
A. Hofstetter
Geophysical Institute of Israel, Lod 71100, Israel
Ecole et Observatoire des Sciences de la Terre,
University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
I. Koulakov
Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics,
3, Akademika Koptyuga Prosp., Novosibirsk 630090, Russia
G. Laske
University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0225, USA
U. Meyer
Bundesanstalt fuer Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe,
Stilleweg 2, 30655 Hannover, Germany
E.M. Rioseco
Leibniz-Institut fuer Angewandte Geophysik, Stilleweg 2, 30655 Hannover, Germany
G. Rümpker
Goethe-Universitaet, Grueneburgplatz 1, 60323 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
DESERT & DESIRE Groups
Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, GFZ, Telegrafenberg, Postsdam 14473, Germany
2 Geophysical Studies of the Lithosphere Along the Dead Sea Transform 31
Keywords Geophysics • Modelling • Moho • Arava/Araba fault • Lithosphere

• Upper mantle
2.1 Introduction
The Dead Sea Transform (DST) represents a key site to study structure and evolution
of large plate boundaries. The DST is a left-lateral fault zone containing a series of
deep pull-apart basins, most prominently the Dead Sea Basin (DSB), and extends
from the Red Sea spreading centre in the South to the Zagros zone of plate conver-
gence in the North. The present-day relative motion along the DST is ~5 mm/year
(Klinger et al. 2000a; Wdowinsky et al. 2004; Bartov and Sagy 2004; Mahmoud
et al. 2005; Le Beon et al. 2008; Reilinger et al. 2006). For a review of its develop-
ment see Garfunkel (1988, 2014, this volume) and Ben-Avraham et al. (2008) and
references therein.
The DST is seismically active with catastrophic earthquakes with magnitudes
up to 7 (Garfunkel et al. 1981; Ambraseys et al. 1994; Amiran et al. 1994; Klinger
et al. 2000b; Ken-Tor et al. 2001; Migowski et al. 2004; Agnon et al. 2006;
Hofstetter et al. 2003; Grünthal et al. 2009). Its ongoing micro-seismic activity
has been documented by van Eck and Hofstetter (1989), Amrat et al. (2001),
Salamon et al. (2003), Aldersons et al. (2003), Alderson and Ben-Avraham (2014,
this volume), Grünthal et al. (2009), and Hofstetter et al. (2014, this volume).
Since the establishment of seismic networks in Jordan and Israel in about 1980,
seismicity can be monitored down to a magnitude of 2–3. For details see Hofstetter
et al. (2014, this volume).
The study presented here focuses on the DST segment between the Dead Sea and
the Red Sea (Fig. 2.1). It integrates results from several interdisciplinary efforts,
especially the DESERT project (DEad SEa Rift Transect) and the DESIRE project
(Dead Sea Integrated REsearch project). Here we focus on the results of lower
crustal and upper mantle structure, whereas the shallow structure of the DST is
presented by Ben-Avraham (2014, this volume). The general layout of the DESERT
and DESIRE experiments is given in Fig. 2.1. A description of the main results of
DESERT, including near surface studies and a comparison of the DST to other large
faults such as the San Andreas Fault, can be found in Weber et al. (2009, 2010).
A recent joint interpretation of DESERT and DESIRE results for crustal structure
can be found in Weber et al. (2009/2010).
In the next section we summarize the results of seismic, seismological and
gravity experiments for the DSB and the Arava/Araba Fault (AF) for deep crustal
and upper mantle structure. These results are then integrated with findings from
thermo-mechanical modelling, followed by the summary.
32 M. Weber et al.
Fig. 2.1 Setting of the Dead Sea Transform (DST) and location of geophysical experiments. The
red lines indicate the main branches of the DST, e.g. the Arava/Araba Fault (AF). Wide-angle
Reflection/Refraction (WRR) profiles of DESERT, USGS2004 and DESIRE are given in black,
from N to S. DESIRE – 235 km long, 11 shots, 600 receivers (Mechie et al. 2009), USGS2004 –
250 km long, 5 shots, 334 receivers (ten Brink et al. 2006) and DESERT – 260 km long, 13 shots,
99 receivers; (DESERT Group 2004; Mechie et al. 2005). Passive long-term deployments
(1–1.5 years) of seismological stations of DESERT (48 stations) and DESIRE (80 stations) are
shown as inverted and upright triangles, respectively. The blue box shows the area of the helicopter
gravity survey of DESIRE (Götze et al. 2010a, b). (Insert) Main faults of the Levant, see e.g.
Garfunkel (1981), Ben-Avraham (1985). The left lateral displacement of 107 km at the DST is
indicated by black arrows
2.2 Deep Crustal Structure
Figure 2.2 gives the P-velocity models derived along three wide-angle reflection/
refraction (WRR) profiles (from South to North, DESERT – DESERT Group 2004;
USGS 2004 – ten Brink et al. 2006; DESIRE – Mechie et al. 2009).
The DESERT experiments were performed in 2000, for parameters see the
caption of Fig. 2.1. The DESERT profile shows a Moho with a steady increase in
depth from about 26 km at the Mediterranean (NW) to about 39 km under Jordan
(SE) (Fig. 2.2c) with only a small but visible, asymmetric topography of the Moho
under the AF. In the NW the Moho depth at the coast is in agreement with the value
determined by Makris et al. (1983). Towards the SE the Moho has been continued
to dip to the SE as also indicated by El-Isa et al. (1987a, b), although the Moho
depths in El-Isa et al. (1987a, b) are a few kilometers less than those shown here.
In 2004 ten Brink et al. (2006) shot the USGS experiment located between the
DESERT profile and the Dead Sea (Fig. 2.1). They found a low-velocity zone, the
signature of the southern end of the DSB, down to the mid-crust. Similar to DESERT
the Moho depth increases smoothly from West to East from about 25 km at the
Mediterranean to about 35 km under Jordan (Fig. 2.2b). No significant topography
of the Moho was derived in their model.
The third WRR experiment across the DST was performed in 2006 through
the DSB proper (Mechie et al. 2009 and Fig. 2.1). The model of the P-wave
velocity structure in Fig. 2.2a shows a depth of the seismic basement, defined
here as the layer with P-wave velocities of at least 5.6 km s−1, beneath the south-
ern DSB of about 11 km, while an earlier experiment (Ginzburg and Ben-
Avraham 1997) suggested that the seismic basement reaches a maximum depth
of about 14 km, about 10 km south of the DESIRE profile. In contrast to this
strong topography in the upper crust the interfaces below about 20 km depth,
including the top of the lower crust and the Moho, probably show less than 3 km
variation in depth beneath the profile as it crosses the southern DSB. The models
of DESIRE and DESERT were forced to agree at their crossing point near the
Mediterranean (Fig. 2.1) and thus they are consistent there. No such boundary
condition was imposed for the USGS profile, and thus the misfit in Moho depth
between the USGS and DESIRE profiles at their crossing point (at about profile
kilometer 70 and 60 for DESIRE and USGS, respectively) is 6.5 km. Since a
model for the DESIRE profile with a similarly shaped Moho as in the USGS
profile provides a significantly worse fit to the data, we think the model pre-
sented in Fig. 2.2a is appropriate.
An alternative method to determine the depth of the Moho is the receiver function
method (RFM). It uses P-to-S converted phases which are produced as teleseismic
P waves cross a seismic discontinuity. Detailed descriptions of the RFM have been
reported in a number of papers (e.g. Vinnik 1977; Kind et al. 1995). Figure 2.3 gives
the results of two studies using the stations from DESERT and DESIRE (Fig. 2.1
left and right), respectively (Mohsen et al. 2005, 2011).
34 M. Weber et al.
Fig. 2.2 Crustal structure under the 235, 250 and 260 km long WRR profiles of DESIRE,
USGS2004 and DESERT (black lines in Fig. 2.1) from the Mediterranean coast (W) to the Jordan
highlands (E), respectively. (a) DESIRE: P-wave velocity model (Modified from Mechie et al.
2009). Velocities are in km/s. Triangles at the top represent the shot-points. Only the region within
the diagonal lines is resolved in this study. To the W the boundaries and P-wave velocities are
based on previous work by Ginzburg et al. (1979a) and DESERT Group (2004). WBF = Western
Fig. 2.3 Map of Moho depths derived with the Receiver Function Method (RFM; Mohsen et al.
2005, 2011). The circles indicate the conversion points at the Moho and their depths, see colour
code at top. White circles are locations where no Moho depth could be determined. The WRR
profile of DESERT is given as black dots, see Fig. 2.2 for depth-sections. The blow-up shows the
results of DESIRE in the vicinity of the Dead Sea in more detail. The smaller cluster (mostly red
and yellow) is located under the Lisan Peninsula; the larger cluster covers the Moho under the
eastern shoulder (Modified from Mohsen et al. 2005, 2011)
In the DESERT project (Fig. 2.3, left) the Moho depth increases smoothly across
the DST from about 31 km in the NW towards 34 to 38 km in the SE. As shown in
Mohsen et al. (2005, Fig. 2.10) the Moho depths of the WRR experiment, from
reflection seismics along the DESERT profile (DESERT Group 2004; Fig. 2.11) and
from the RFM shown in Fig. 2.3 (left), agree very well. The Moho east of the DST
forms a trough-like feature with the deepest parts along the WRR profile of DESERT
(dotted line in Fig. 2.3, left). This feature is limited to the DESERT profile, and no
Moho deepening north and south of the WRR profile is observed.
Along the DESIRE profile the Moho from the WRR experiment (Fig. 2.2a) and
the RFM (Fig. 2.3, right) generally agree better than 3 km (Mohsen et al. 2011,
Fig. 2.11). Unfortunately the vertical-incident reflection seismic experiments along
the DESIRE profile do not show a clear Moho (Weber et al. 2009/2010, Fig. 2.3).
Imaging problems due to the complicated 2-D/3-D structure of the DSB manifest
themselves in the 15 stations/piercing points on the western shoulder of the DSB in
Fig. 2.2 (continued) Boundary Fault, EBF = Eastern Boundary Fault. Note vertical exaggeration
of 2:1 (Modified from Mechie et al. 2009). (b) As (a) but for USGS2004 (Modified from ten Brink
et al. 2006). (c) As (a) but for DESERT. To the NW the boundaries and P-wave velocities are based
on previous work by Ginzburg et al. (1979a, b) and Makris et al. (1983) while to the SE the bound-
aries and the P-wave velocities are based on El-Isa et al. (1987a, b) (Modified from DESERT
Group (2004) and Mechie et al. (2005))
36 M. Weber et al.
Fig. 2.4 (a) Map of Moho depths derived from tomographic inversion using local and regional
earthquakes and local and regional stations (Koulakov and Sobolev 2006). Isolines of the Moho
depths in kilometres are shown and marked. The WRR profiles of DESIRE, USGS and DESERT
are shown with distance along the profiles (see also Fig. 2.1) (Modified from Koulakov and
Sobolev 2006). (b) Black lines – Moho along the three profiles according to the tomographic inver-
sion shown in (a). Red lines – Moho derived in the WRR experiments (DESIRE, USGS, DESERT
from N to S, respectively; see Fig. 2.2) (Note vertical exaggeration of 2.5:1)
Fig. 2.3(right) where no Moho could be determined (open circles). The locations
with good data fall into two groups. The larger group east of the DSB shows a gen-
eral agreement with the results of the WRR experiment in Fig. 2.2a. The smaller
cluster in Fig. 2.3(right) is centered on the Lisan peninsula, underlain by a large salt
dome. It seems to have a Moho which is shallower by 3–4 km, compared to the
Moho under Jordan. Since Fig. 2.2a does not show such a feature we speculate that
this discrepancy is due to 2-D/3-D effects, especially on and in the immediate
vicinity of the Lisan peninsula.
Using P- and S-wave picks from the ISC catalogue (ca. 250 stations and 3,000
events) in the eastern Mediterranean Koulakov and Sobolev (2006) derived a map
of Moho depths for this region (Fig. 2.4a). With this data set a larger spatial cov-
erage than in DESIRE + USGS + DESERT, albeit with lower resolution, could be
achieved. The general trend of increased crustal thickness from the Mediterranean
towards the East can again be seen. To be able to compare these results with those
from the WRR studies Fig. 2.4b shows depth sections along the three WRR pro-
files. The agreement between the ISC results (black lines in Fig. 2.4b) and the
WRR results (red lines in Fig. 2.4b) is usually better then 3–4 km. The biggest
discrepancies occur along the DESIRE profile. We attribute these discrepancies
to the strong lateral inhomogeneities in the DSB and its immediate vicinity,
since, as shown in Weber et al. (2009/2010), on a scale of a few kilometers
velocities might change by up to 50 % laterally down to a depth of several kilo-
meters. The robust feature of the tomographic image in Fig. 2.4 is the narrow, ca.
50 km wide band of crustal thickening under the AF between the Red Sea and the
Dead Sea. This structure is most likely associated with the minimum of litho-
spheric strength (Sobolev et al. 2005) and, therefore, explains the occurrence of
the Arava/Araba Valley.
Simultaneously with the Moho depth Koulakov and Sobolev (2006) also inverted
for the 3-D P- and S-velocity in the crust and upper-most mantle under the DST
(Fig. 2.5). The N-S stretching low-velocity anomalies above the Moho (left column
in Fig. 2.5) are interpreted as sediments and a zone of fractured and deformed rocks
in the middle and lower crust under the Arava/Araba valley between the Dead Sea
and the Red Sea. The anomalies in the upper mantle below the Moho (right column
in Fig. 2.5) are similarly interpreted as a zone of fractured and deformed rocks due
to the transform motion, for more details see also next chapter.
Further constraints on the deep crustal structure come from 3-D density
modeling (Götze et al. 2006, 2010a, b; Choi et al. 2011). The 3-D density model
is based on a newly compiled Bouguer anomaly map of this area, integrating
regional gravity data from Israel and Jordan, local ground-based gravity surveys
in DESERT and DESIRE and data from a recently acquired helicopter gravity
survey (blue box in Fig. 2.1, Götze et al. 2010a, b; Choi et al. 2011). Figure 2.6
shows a map of the Moho depth using constraints from the three WRR experi-
ments (DESIRE, USGS, DESERT; Fig. 2.2) and the RFM study by Mohsen et al.
(2005; Fig. 2.3). Except for the coastal area, where little seismic control is
available, the gravity and seismological results usually agree better than 2 km.
Again the most obvious feature is the gradual increase in Moho depth from West
to East. The most significant deviation from this gradual change in Moho depth
from the Mediterranean in the NW to the Arabian platform in the East is the
significant increase in crustal thickness at the SE end of the DESERT profile to
about 37 km.
Integrating the seismic (WRR profiles), seismological (RFM and regional
tomography) and gravity results we conclude that little variation exists in the depth
to the Moho or the top of the lower crust except directly under the DST. The main
difference in N–S direction is in the thickness of the upper crust. Following ten
Brink et al. (2006), Mechie et al. (2009), and Weber et al. (2009) we argue that the
Dead Sea pull-apart basin is essentially an upper crustal feature with predominantly
N-S upper crustal extension, associated with the left-lateral motion along the DST.
This motion is accompanied by side-stepping of the major strike-slip motion from
the east side of the valley at the southern end of the basin to the west side of the
38 M. Weber et al.
Fig. 2.5 P and S-velocities above and below the Moho derived from tomographic inversion
using local and regional earthquakes and stations (Koulakov and Sobolev 2006). The WRR pro-
files of DESERT, USGS and DESIRE are indicated by black lines (Modified from Koulakov and
Sobolev 2006)
valley north of the basin. The boundary between the upper and lower crust at about
20 km depth might act as a decoupling zone. Below this boundary the two plates
move past each other in essentially a shearing motion.
Fig. 2.6 Moho depth map beneath the 3D gravity modelling area (Götze et al. 2006, 2010a, b;
Choi et al. 2011). Constraints used in the gravity modelling are seismic velocities and interfaces
from the three seismic lines (DESIRE, USGS, DESERT; Fig. 2.2) and the results of the RF study
by Mohsen et al. (2005). The three profiles are indicated by three straight black lines (Modified
from Choi et al. 2011)
2.3 Upper Mantle Structure
Delineating plate boundary deformation in the sub-crustal lithosphere is difficult,

especially if these zones of deformation are vertical and narrow. The analysis of
shear-wave splitting of teleseismic phases (SKS) provides a tool to infer deforma-
tion and crystal alignment in the lithosphere in such situations. Rümpker et al.
Fig. 2.7 (Top) Map with topography and the locations of seismic stations (100 km profile) for
which the shear-wave splitting analysis was performed. The AF (red line) strikes at approximately
N20E. The bars indicate measured SKS splitting parameters for the period range of 2–5 s (blue) and
5–7 s (red). The orientation corresponds to the polarization direction of the fast shear wave (fast
polarization Ф) and the length is proportional to the delay time (δt–1) s. (Bottom) Preferred P wave
(2003) and Ryberg et al. (2005) used the recording of a large teleseismic event at a
closely spaced profile of DESERT (spacing ≈ 1 km) looking at frequency dependent
splitting effects (Fig. 2.7, top). A best fitting model of anisotropic structure in the
crust and upper mantle under the DST was determined from these data using local
optimization techniques and a global genetic algorithm search. This model is char-
acterized by three crustal blocks (Fig. 2.7, bottom) with the central one containing
the present day trace of the DST. Below the Moho a narrow, approximately 20 km
wide, vertical decoupling zone in the mantle is found. It is characterized by 20–60 %
higher anisotropy and an orientation which is different relative to the neighboring
blocks. This zone with a fault-parallel symmetry axis is interpreted as a vertical
boundary layer accommodating the transform motion between the Arabian and
African plates in the upper mantle.
As part of DESERT Laske et al. (2008) used fundamental mode Rayleigh waves
at intermediate periods to show that the sub-crustal S-velocity under the region of
the DST is, on average, 5 % lower than in the preliminary reference Earth model
(PREM) (Dziewonski and Anderson 1981). This velocity reduction reaches down
to at least 200 km (Fig. 2.8). Such a feature is in agreement with larger-scale stud-
ies such as Pasyanos and Nyblade (2007), indicating that such an area of reduced
velocities in the lithosphere stretches along the DST. As shown in Fig. 2.8 (top
row) Laske et al. (2008) found in this region a ca. 80 km thick lid of normal
S-velocity (blue colors) to the west of the DST indicative of thermally unaffected
crust and upper mantle. The eastern part in contrast is slow relative to PREM. We
would also like to point out that the whole region is underlain by an upper mantle,
down to 410 km depth, with 3–4 % reduced S-velocities compared to PREM
(Mohsen et al. 2006).
Complementary to the study of the upper mantle with surface waves Koulakov
et al. (2006) imaged the P-velocity in the upper mantle under the DST using a tomo-
graphic inversion of body waves recorded at the DESERT deployment (Fig. 2.1).
The low-velocities in the DSB are mapped down to a depth of ca. 40 km (Fig. 2.9).
Another large feature in Fig. 2.9 is the high-velocity P-wave anomaly of about
+1–2 % in the SE of the area covered, that spans the depth range from approximately
40–120 km depth. A possible explanation for this could be a slightly lower tempera-
ture (ΔT < ca. 100 °C) and/or a preexisting lithospheric compositional anomaly in
this region. Below about 120 km depth very little structure and anomalies can be
detected in the tomographic images, indicating that inhomogeneities and effects of
the plate-boundary DST are mostly limited to the top 100 km. This holds especially
for the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary that shows very little topography.
Fig. 2.7 (continued) velocity anisotropy model for crust and uppermost mantle under the DST on
the 100 km long profile perpendicular to the AF (at 0 km) (Rümpker et al. 2003; Ryberg et al.
2005). The azimuth of the symmetry axis and the magnitude of the anisotropy are given in each
block. The model is characterized by a central upper mantle zone of increased anisotropy, which is
differently oriented with respect to its neighbors. No vertical exaggeration (Modified from
Rümpker et al. (2003) and Ryberg et al. (2005))
42 M. Weber et al.
Fig. 2.8 Shear velocity variation in four sub-crustal layers (46–157 km depth) in a velocity
model derived from surface waves (Laske et al. 2008). The model is defined on a 0.05 deg grid
and then smoothed. The number in the upper left-hand corner in each panel denotes average
velocities in km/s in isotropic PREM (Dziewonski and Anderson 1981). The DST is given in red,
and the DESERT profile as a dotted black line for reference, respectively (Modified from Laske
et al. 2008)
This observation is confirmed by Mohsen et al. (2006, 2011) who used S-to-P
converted waves to delineate the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB). The
results for the DESERT deployment are given in Fig. 2.10(left) and those of
DESIRE in Fig. 2.10 (right) respectively. Very gradual thinning of the lithosphere
on the eastern side of the DST from ca. 80 km in the north of the Dead Sea to
about 67 km at the Red Sea can be observed. On the western side of the DST only
very few piercing points are available, since most of the events are located in the
NE quadrant, but the few data indicate a thin LAB of about 67 km. The dense
Fig. 2.9 P-velocity anomalies, see color bar at bottom, in horizontal sections from 20 to 200 km
depth. The stations from DESERT used are indicated by small black dots (Modified from Koulakov
et al. 2006)
deployment of DESIRE allows testing the values in block 5 of Fig. 2.10 (left)
since more than 350 piercing points cover the insert (Fig. 2.10, right). The LAB
value of 75 ± 5 km from DESERT agrees well with the values of 73 km derived
with DESERT data alone.
The observations presented in Fig. 2.10 support the conclusions of previous
studies based on xenolith data, heat flow observations, regional uplift history and
geodynamic modeling (Förster et al. 2004, 2007; Steinitz and Bartov 1991; Sobolev
et al. 2005; Petrunin and Sobolev 2006) that postulated that the lithosphere around
the DST has been significantly thinned in the Late Cenozoic, likely following rifting
and spreading of the Red Sea.
44 M. Weber et al.
Fig. 2.10 (Left) Distribution of Sp piercing points at 80 km depth. The area covered has been
divided into seven non-overlapping boxes denoted by numbers (1–7) and a blow-up area just east
of the Dead Sea. Each box (the blow-up) contains more than 20 (350) stacked traces, respectively.
The average thickness of the lithosphere is given in km beside each box (Modified from Mohsen
et al. 2006). (Right) The blow-up shows the Sp piercing points from DESIRE together with the
average lithosphere thickness and one standard deviation δ
2.4 Modeling and Interpretation
The more than 10 km thick Neogene Dead Sea Basin (DSB) has long been
considered as the classical pull-apart basin (Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham 1996, and
references therein). However, recently Ben-Avraham and Schubert (2006) and Ben-
Avraham et al. (2010) dismissed a pull-apart origin for the deepest, southern-most
part of the DSB. One major argument was the apparently anomalously cold crust of
the DSB, based on surface heat flow of below 50 mW/m2, and seismicity penetrat-
ing to the lower crust. Indeed, numerical thermo-mechanical models (Petrunin and
Sobolev 2006, 2008) suggest that the formation of a pull-apart basin is most likely
impossible in a lithosphere with steady state surface heat flow below 50 mW/m2,
because in such a lithosphere the entire crust is very strong and is mechanically
attached to the even stronger upper mantle. Petrunin et al. (2012) by means of 3D
thermo-mechanical modeling show however, that the observed surface heat flow,
seismic structure and distribution of seismicity in the lithosphere below the DSB
can be reconciled with the pull-apart origin of the DSB. The results of this study are
(1) a more realistic estimate of surface heat flow, unaffected by fluid-flow at the
flanks of the DSB, of 50–55 mW/m2, (2) a transient thermal structure of the litho-
sphere affected by lithospheric thinning, that has likely happened in the region at
about 20 Ma, and (3) a rheologically weak upper crust and uppermost mantle
beneath the DSB.
2.4.1 Apparently Contradicting Observations
Estimates of the present-day heat flow in the Dead Sea Transform area are contro-
versial. Heat flow lower than 50 mW/m2 is reported for Israel close to the
Mediterranean Sea (Eckstein and Simmons 1978; Eckstein 1979). Measurements at
the Dead Sea (Ben-Avraham et al. 1978) also indicate extremely low heat flow
(about 30 mW/m2) that could however be explained by active groundwater circula-
tion (Shalev et al. 2007). Heat flow higher than 60 mW/m2 is reported at the flanks
of the DSB (also likely affected by the groundwater circulation, Shalev et al. 2007)
and in Jordan closer to the Red Sea (Förster et al. 2007). Reasonable estimates for
the surface heat flow at the location of the DSB (unaffected by the fluid-flow) are
therefore likely to be around 50–55 mW/m2.
This heat flow of 50–55 mW/m2, if at steady state, corresponds to a thickness of
the lithosphere of more than 130 km (e.g. Förster et al. 2007). However, receiver
function studies (Mohsen et al. 2006) demonstrate, that present day lithospheric
thickness in the area is much less, i.e. between 60 and 80 km.
The DSB region is characterized by unusual seismicity pattern. Aldersons et al.
(2003) report that 60 % of the micro-earthquakes are located at depths of 20–32 km
(lower crust) and the peak seismicity is situated just below the upper-lower crustal
boundary (20 km). Double difference relative relocation suggests, that the seismic
activity at the DSB is mostly confined to the upper crust (0–20 km), and that it disap-
pears in the lower crust at depth of 25–26 km (Shamir 2006). In a more recent study
Braeuer et al. (2012) also find, that the seismicity is concentrated in the upper crust,
between 7 and 17 km depth, a result similar to Alderson and Ben-Avraham (2014). The
seismicity in the lower crust may indicate a low temperature there, which correlates
with the low values of the surface heat flow of about 50–55 mW/m2. However, both
these studies report an absence of earthquakes beneath the Moho, which is consistent
with an uppermost mantle temperature of more than 600 deg C (Hirth 2002) which
would, in turn, correspond to a steady-state surface heat flow of more than 60 mW/m2.
2.4.2 Model Reconciling Contradictory Observations
We have designed a 3D thermo-mechanical model addressing the apparently

contradicting observations mentioned above. The model includes a three-layer
crust and two-layer lithospheric mantle with visco-elasto-plastic rheology
(Fig. 2.11). Rheological models are taken from laboratory data and thermal proper-
ties according to the measurements on the rocks from the region (Förster et al.
2007). Brittle failure is simulated by a Mohr-Coulomb friction rheology with strain
softening (see Sobolev et al. 2005, for details). We also introduce weak seeds of
faults in the upper crust where the friction coefficient is lowered to 0.1. The model
setup, similar to the previous models by Petrunin and Sobolev (2006, 2008), is
shown in Fig. 2.11a. As in previous models we assume that strike-slip motion with
a velocity of 6 mm/year started at 17 Ma forcing a pull-apart basin to develop
between the nuclei of two pre-defined faults. The key new feature of the model is
46 M. Weber et al.
Fig. 2.11 Results of the numerical modelling of a pull-apart basin. (a) Setup of the thermo-mechanical
model. It is assumed that initially thick (120–180 km) lithosphere has been thermally eroded to
80 km at 20 Ma. Strike-slip motion with velocity of 6 mm/year has started at 17 Ma forcing a pull-
apart basin to develop between the nuclei of two pre-defined faults. Model features are similar to
models in Petrunin and Sobolev (2006, 2008). (b) Cross-section through the middle of the basin
after 105 km of strike-slip motion for models with different initial lithospheric thickness and differ-
ent rheology of the upper crust and upper mantle. Bars indicate normalized mechanical energy
dissipation in brittle regime, here used as a proxy for the seismic energy release. Numbers indicate
predicted present-day surface heat flow at the flanks of the basin. uc upper crust (Modified from
Petrunin et al. 2012)
the assumption that the initially thick lithosphere beneath the future DSB was
thermally eroded to about 80 km at 20 Ma.
We have carried out a set of numerical experiments with various initial thicknesses
of lithosphere from 120 to 180 km and different rheological models of the upper
crust and upper mantle. The aim of the models was to find whether rheological
models exist supported by experimental data that allow fitting the following set of
observations for the DSB, namely
1. A present day surface heat flow at the DSB flanks of 50–55 mW/m2,
2. A present-day lithospheric thickness of 80 km,
3. A thickness of the Cenozoic sediments in the basin of 8–12 km,
4. No prominent topography of the Moho and intra-crustal boundary and
5. No earthquakes in the mantle.
As a proxy for the seismic activity we use energy dissipation in the brittle
(Mohr-Coulomb friction plastic) deformation mode. For the mantle we also assume
that deformation is seismic if it is brittle and temperature is below 600 °C.
The modeling results are presented in Fig. 2.11b, where the lithospheric structure
at the central cross-section of the model after 105 km of strike-slip motion is plotted
for different initial lithospheric thickness and different rheology of the upper crust and
upper mantle. Models which fit the observations are marked with “OK”. The rheo-
logical models with the highest viscosities in both the upper crust (Gleason and Tullis
1995) and upper mantle (Hirth and Kohlstedt 2003), shown in Fig. 2.11b in the upper
row are not consistent with the heat flow constraint, but would fulfill all others con-
straints, if present day surface heat flow was slightly higher than observed (57 mW/
m2). However, if a lower-viscosity rheological model for the upper crust (Ranalli
1995) is used (Fig. 2.11b, middle row), then the entire set of observations is fulfilled
for the surface heat flow of 54 mW/m2. In the case when additionally the lower Peierls
stress rheological model for the upper mantle is employed, according to the recent
data by Katayama and Karato (2008), the entire set of observational constraints is fit-
ted, even at surface heat flows as low as 50 mW/m2 (Fig. 2.11b, lower row).
From our numerical experiments, we thus conclude, that the entire set of
observational constraints for the DSB including surface heat flow, magnitude of late
Cenozoic subsidence, lithospheric thickness and crustal structure as well as seis-
micity pattern can be fitted with the classical pull-apart model assuming that the
lithosphere has been thermally eroded to 80 km at about 20 Ma and the upper crust
and uppermost mantle have relatively weak rheologies, in agreement with experi-
mentally determined values for quartz (upper crust) and olivine (mantle).
2.5 Summary
Based on a multi-disciplinary study, involving seismics, seismology and gravity, we

find the following main characteristics for the deep crustal structure of the DST:
(1) an increase in Moho thickness from ca. 25 km at the Mediterranean in the West
to ca. 35 km in the Jordan Highlands in the East, (2) a strong local inhomogeneity
48 M. Weber et al.
overlying this general trend in the Dead Sea Basin, and (3) a North–south trending
crustal thickening in the middle of the Arava/Araba valley. In the upper mantle
under the DST we observe (1) an area of reduced S-velocities in the lithosphere
along the DST, (2) a narrow, ca 20 km wide, decoupling zone between the Arabian
and African plate characterized by fault parallel anisotropy and (3) that below ca.
120 km depth no significant inhomogeneities can be detected. Integrating these
results with xenolith data, heat flow studies, the lack of earthquakes in the mantle
and 3D thermo-mechanical modeling shows that a classical pull-apart model trig-
gered by the thinning of the lithosphere around the DST to about 80 km in the Late
Cenozoic is able to fit the observables and explain the evolution of the DST.
Acknowledgements The work presented here was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsge-
meinschaft (DFG) and the Deutsches GeoForschungs-Zentrum Potsdam (GFZ). We thank the edi-
tors Z. Garfunkel, Z. Ben-Avraham and E. Kagan, and W. Mooney for their comments to this
manuscript. We are grateful to U. ten Brink for providing the model of his studies of the DST and
A. Siebert for her help in drafting many of the figures, most of them created with the GMT soft-
ware (Wessel and Smith 1998). We thank the National Ministry of Infrastructure of Israel, the
Natural Resources Authority (NRA) of Jordan, the German embassies in Tel Aviv and Amman and
the An-Najah National University in Nablus, Palestine, for their support during the field work. We
thank our contractors the Geophysical Institute of Israel, the Site Group (Jordan) and the Chemical
and Mining Industries (Jordan) for their excellent work under difficult logistic conditions. The
instruments for the field work were provided by the Geophysical Instrument Pool of the GFZ. For
more information on DESERT and DESIRE, respectively, see:
http://www.gfz-potsdam.de/portal/gfz/Struktur/Departments/Department+2/sec22/projects/
past_projects/DESERT
http://www.gfz-potsdam.de/portal/gfz/Struktur/Departments/Department+2/sec22/projects/cur-
rent_projects/DESIRE
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Chapter 3
The Seismogenic Thickness in the Dead
Sea Area
Freddy Aldersons and Zvi Ben-Avraham
Abstract Four independent distributions of seismicity in the Dead Sea area underline
the occurrence of lower-crustal seismic activity down-to at least 27 km and possibly
as deep as 33.6 km. From these distributions, the seismogenic thickness is estimated
to be 28.4 ± 2.2 km. The existence of a seismogenic zone extending deep into the
lower crust is consistent with an average heat flow of only 40–45 mWm−2 over most
regions of Israel, and around 40 mWm−2 in the Dead Sea area in particular. The
seismogenic thickness in the Dead Sea area is thus nearly twice the average seismo-
genic thickness of 15 km observed in southern California. The fact that some
seismic activity occurs down-to the Moho in the Dead Sea area suggests that
the state of fully plastic deformation is probably not reached in the crust under the
seismogenic zone.
The ISC – GEM (Storchak et al. 2013) relocation of the MW 6.3 earthquake of 11
July 1927 from regional and teleseismic instrumental data resulted in a well-
constrained epicenter located in the Jordan Valley, not far from the epicenter
reported in the 1927 bulletin of the ISS. Since the causative fault of this earth-
quake is likely to be the Dead Sea transform, we propose a preferred epicenter at
31.92°N–35.56°E. The focal depth determined instrumentally by the ISC – GEM
relocation is 15 ± 6 km, and we found an average macroseismic depth of
21.5 ± 2.5 km. Our results as a whole underline also the seismogenic importance
of the transition between the upper and the lower crust in the Dead Sea area for
moderate and probably also for large earthquakes.
F. Aldersons (*)
Seismological Consultant, 29, ch. du pré des fourneaux, 1293 Bellevue, GE, Switzerland
Z. Ben-Avraham
Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Tel Aviv University,
Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Mt. Carmel, Haifa 3190501, Israel

54 F. Aldersons and Z. Ben-Avraham
Keywords Seismogenic thickness • Dead Sea • Seismicity • Depth • Rheology

• Heat flow • Brittle • Ductile • 1927 • 2004 • Earthquake • Macroseismic • Isoseismal
• Seismic moment
3.1 Introduction
The purpose of this chapter is to determine the seismogenic thickness or maximum

possible depth extent of rupture during moderate to large earthquakes in the Dead
Sea area. The seismogenic thickness is important to assess the downdip width of
faulting and hence to improve the estimate of realistic rupture area for a given fault
or faulting system. Whether the seismogenic thickness represents or not a significant
part of the crustal thickness has also direct implications regarding the prevailing
mode of deformation under the seismogenic zone. This in turn can provide precious
constraints on thermomechanical models in a given region. The question is particularly
relevant to the Dead Sea area where for a long time, it had been accepted that the
seismicity was entirely confined to the upper crust (Ben-Menahem et al. 1976).
We summarize the results of four independent studies of seismicity showing
each on its own that the ultimate decline in seismicity in the Dead Sea area occurs
in fact deep into the lower crust. We then use these depth distributions to estimate
the seismogenic thickness according to criteria defined in southern California
by Nazareth and Hauksson (2004). We also relocate the MW 5.3 earthquake of
11 February 2004 from the seismograms recorded by the GII and by the JSO.
Since Zohar and Marco (2012) published the macroseismic intensities determined
by Avni (1999) for the MW 6.3 earthquake of July 1927, we contour by kriging several
sets of intensities and determine the macroseismic depth of the earthquake according
to Medvedev’s (1962) and Shebalin’s (1973) methods. Thanks to the recent ISC –
GEM instrumental relocation (Storchak et al. 2013), there is no doubt left today that
the epicenter of the 1927 earthquake is well located in the Jordan Valley, not far
from the original ISS location.
Finally, we conclude that the existence of a seismogenic zone extending deep
into the lower crust is also quite consistent with the average heat flow over most
regions of Israel, and in the Dead Sea area in particular.
3.2 From Microearthquakes to Seismogenic Thickness
3.2.1 Instrumental Seismicity
Aldersons et al. (2003) studied the seismicity along the Dead Sea Transform (DST)
between Aqaba-Elat and the Sea of Galilee for the period 1984–1997. Out of 2,283
earthquakes, routinely recorded by the network of the Geophysical Institute of Israel
(GII) expanded with stations from the Jordan Seismological Observatory (JSO),
3 The Seismogenic Thickness in the Dead Sea Area 55
Fig. 3.1 Depth section of well-constrained seismicity (410 earthquakes, 1984–1997) along the
Dead Sea transform (DST) from Aqaba-Elat to the Sea of Galilee. The square grid fill defines the
Dead Sea Basin on the map. Conrad and Moho discontinuities from Ginzburg et al. (1981) (From
Aldersons et al. 2003)
a first selection resulted in 653 earthquakes with at least 8 bulletin P-readings

and an azimuthal gap smaller than 180°. To better exclude earthquakes with poorly
constrained depths, the epicentral distance to the nearest station was required to be
less than about twice the depth estimate according to an initial relocation. Four
hundred and ten earthquakes qualified and are displayed in Fig. 3.1.
In order to make sure that the abundant lower-crustal seismicity observed between
the Dead Sea basin and the Sea of Galilee was not an artifact produced by bulletin
phase picking inconsistencies, Aldersons et al. (2003) gathered a data set of seismo-
grams from the Dead Sea basin and carefully repicked the seismograms by hand. With
the same quality criteria as those defined above, 42 well-constrained earthquakes
(ML ≤ 3.2) were selected. Among those, 60 % nucleated at depths between 20 and
32 km and more than 40 % occurred below the depth of peak seismicity situated at
20 km. With the Moho at 32 km, the upper mantle appeared to be aseismic during the
14-year data period. A relocation involving the simultaneous use of three velocity
models revealed that this apparently anomalous distribution of focal depths was also
not an artifact created by strong lateral velocity variations (Aldersons et al. 2003). An
upper bound depth uncertainty of ±5 km was estimated below 20 km, but for most
earthquakes the depth uncertainty should not exceed ±2 km.
Several more recent publications provide well-constrained focal depths of
earthquakes in the Dead Sea area. We briefly summarize below the general purpose
and methodology of studies for which we could obtain sufficient details.
In a study of the active structure of the Dead Sea basin, Shamir (2006) used the
double-difference method (Waldhauser and Ellsworth 2000; Waldhauser 2001)
to relocate 176 earthquakes (2.5 ≤ ML ≤ 5.2) that occurred during the period
1984–2005. Shamir used bulletin phase data augmented by P and S first-arrivals
picked by hand. Waveform cross-correlation was not used.
Koulakov and Sobolev (2006) performed a large-scale local earthquake tomography

study of the Eastern Mediterranean. The purpose of their work was to create a
regional map of the Moho depth and 3-D velocity models of the crust and uppermost
mantle, more detailed than existing models. They performed an iterative simultaneous
inversion for source parameters, P- and S-velocities, and Moho depth using local
traveltimes reported by the International Seismological Center between 1964 and
2001 (I.S.C. 2001). About 3,000 well-constrained events (with at least 25 phase
picks and azimuthal gap not greater than 180°) within a radius of 6° around the Dead
Sea Basin qualified for the tomography. Hypocentral locations were determined in
three steps. In the first step, initial absolute locations were calculated according to a
1-D velocity model corrected for a variable Moho depth. In the second step, a relative
relocation was performed according to the double-difference method (Waldhauser
and Ellsworth 2000; Waldhauser 2001). Hypocentral locations were computed
simultaneously with the determination of velocity anomalies and the Moho depth
during the final tomographic inversions.
Braeuer et al. (2012b) performed a high-resolution local earthquake tomography
study of the southern Dead Sea basin within the framework of the DESIRE
project (DEad Sea Integrated REsearch project). The purpose of their work was to
draw a detailed image of the distributions of the P-wave velocity and the VP/VS
ratio, and to gain a better understanding of the deeper structure of the basin. During
the 18-months period between October 2006 and March 2008, a dense array of 65
3-C stations recorded 530 well-locatable earthquakes with coda magnitudes MD
ranging between −0.5 and 4.5, but with most magnitudes confined between 0.0 and
1.0 and a completeness magnitude (Rydelek and Sacks 1989) of only 0.5, a value
much lower than the completeness magnitude of about 2.0 for the GII catalogue
since 1984 (Shapira and Hofstetter 2002; Begin and Steinitz 2005). The study
started (Braeuer et al. 2012a) by the determination of 1-D velocity models (VP, VP/
VS and VS) and station corrections with Velest (Kissling et al. 1994; Kissling 1995).
Tomographic inversions for hypocentral parameters and velocities (VP and VP/VS)
were subsequently performed with Simulps (Thurber 1984) following a gradual
approach from 1-D to 2-D and from 2-D to 3-D (Braeuer et al. 2012b).
Finally, seismograms from the Geophysical Institute of Israel (GII) and from the
Jordanian Seismological Observatory (JSO), already used in part by Aldersons et al.
(2003), are further analyzed here. The complete dataset (1986–2001), principally
derived from 1-C vertical seismometers, was repicked for P-wave arrival times
and highly-consistent observation weights by the automatic picking system MPX.
MannekenPix or MPX (Aldersons 2004) is an advanced automatic phase picking
system satisfying the stringent quality requirements of high-quality studies. In
particular, it tackles in a most advanced way the delicate issue of picking uncer-
tainty (Küperkoch et al. 2012). MPX was successfully applied on a significant scale
during a local earthquake tomography study of Italy (Di Stefano et al. 2006, 2009),
and it has also been used more recently in several other projects involving large
datasets (Li et al. 2008; Diehl et al. 2009; Valoroso et al. 2013).
As a general background to the study of the local seismicity in the Dead Sea
region, it is important to know that gathering a high-quality dataset leading to truly
well-constrained earthquake locations in the Dead Sea basin and along the DST is
not as trivial as it might seem. A first problem results from the fact that along the
rather linear border between Israel and Jordan, the two national networks (GII and
JSO) operate nearly completely separately. Several stations close to, and on both
sides of the border, were well directly recorded by the neighbor network during the
year 1995 and afterwards. But this is apparently no longer true. As a consequence,
most earthquakes close to the DST and in particular those in the Dead Sea basin, are
recorded as separate events by each network, typically with high azimuthal gaps
around 180°. In order to make matters worse, a very unstable time signal was used
by the JSO until at least the year 2010, with severe clock errors commonly reaching
several minutes. When common stations (signals recorded by both networks at a
given station) are available for an event, very accurate corrections (± 5–10 ms) can
usually be determined by cross-correlation even when clocks differ by several minutes.
For most events, however, only very few stations from the JSO located close to
the border and directly recorded by the GII can sometimes be used. As a result, the
maximum epicentral distance for GII seismograms in our dataset is 200–300 km,
but typically less than 120 km for most JSO seismograms. For some events, however,
our data integrate a complete set of stations from the GII and from the JSO.
Our dataset includes 188 earthquakes (1986–2001) with coda duration magnitudes
ranging between 0.3 and 3.5 according to the GII. Only events with at least 8 accept-
able to good P-phases determined by MPX and an azimuthal gap smaller than 180°
were selected according to a preliminary relocation. We also relocated the MW 5.3
(Harvard CMT) earthquake of 11 February 2004, for which very different epicentral
locations have been computed and depth estimates range between 15 and nearly
29 km. A well-constrained focal depth for this earthquake is highly relevant to the
determination of the seismogenic thickness because this event is already a moderate
earthquake (5 ≤ M < 7; Hagiwara 1964; Lee and Stewart 1981) and as such, it does
not belong to the seismic background of micro-earthquakes. The crust in the Dead
Sea area is then certainly seismogenic down-to at least the true focal depth of
this earthquake, or any larger one like the MW 6.3 earthquake of July 1927 that
we treat separately due to the fact that its study involves both instrumental and
macroseismic data.
In order to determine hypocentral locations and related uncertainties as a function
of our approximate knowledge of the seismic velocity field, the final location for
each of the 189 earthquakes was determined statistically from perturbations applied
on a 1-D velocity model computed with Velest and called here the ‘Dead Sea 2013’
model. In other words, we did not relocate the dataset using a single 1-D velocity
model with a classical uncertainty ellipsoid as measure of location quality. Instead,
we relocated each earthquake according to a great number of different 1-D velocity
models and derived the final location and uncertainties for each event from the
distribution of individual results.
The Dead Sea 2013 P-Wave velocity model was derived with Velest from the best
events of our dataset. The selection criteria were: at least 10 acceptable to good P-phases
with at least 4 JSO phases, and an azimuthal gap not exceeding 150°. Fifty-two
events qualified and they represent a dataset of 1,038 P-phases, or 20 P-phases per
Table 3.1 Velocity model Dead Sea 2013 (in bold) and perturbations
Perturbation Bottom depth Perturbation
Layer Vp (km/s) (Vp, %) (km) (depth, %)
1 6,000 −4.0 7.000 −6.7
6,120 −2.0 7.250 −3.3
6,240 −0.0 7.500 +0.0
7.750 +3.3
8.000 +6.7
2 10.000 −9.1
6,240 −2.0 10.500 −4.5
6,370 −0.0 11.000 +0.0
6,530 +2.5 11.500 +4.5
12.000 +9.1
3 31.500 −1.6
6,530 +0.0 32.000 +0.0
6,750 +3.4 32.500 +1.6
33.000 +3.1
4 7,910 −1.5 Half-space
7,950 −1.0
7,990 −0.5
8,030 −0.0
event on the average. The MW 5.3 earthquake of February 2004 is one of the selected
events. Due to the smallness of this dataset, we did not compute station corrections.
Based on previous results (Aldersons et al. 2003), we explored models with 4 layers
and with 5 layers. Models with 4 layers displayed usually a lower global misfit than
models with 5 layers, and model Dead Sea 2013, the one with the lowest global
misfit, is also a model with only 4 layers (Table 3.1).
Model Dead Sea 2013 is certainly a good model, but it is not because it was
determined by Velest that it is an optimal minimum 1-D model. We will only be able
to derive a true minimum 1-D model for the Dead Sea region as a whole when sev-
eral hundreds of high-quality events will be available with a sufficiently balanced
number of GII and JSO stations. This is especially difficult to do for distant stations
of the JSO due to the clock problems affecting the vast majority of seismograms
from the JSO and preventing far too often an accurate merging between GII and
JSO seismograms.
From perturbations defined around model Dead Sea 2013 in Table 3.1, 7,200
models were applied on the full dataset of 189 earthquakes. The global average
RMS misfit on all the earthquakes relocated with the 7,200 models ranges, however,
only between 0.27 and 0.31 s. Out of the 7,200 models, we selected a broad pool of
the best models, those for which the global average RMS misfit was not higher than
0.28 s. Three thousand two hundred and ninety models qualified and, for each earth-
quake, we selected as final hypocentral location the median value of the 3,290 hypo-
centers relocated with Velest in single-earthquake mode. Similarly, we defined
hypocentral uncertainty limits at the 5th and 95th percentiles (90 % confidence) of
the 3,290 locations selected for each earthquake.
Table 3.2 Selected parameters for the MW 5.3 earthquake of 11 February 2004, 08 h 15 m,
according to various sources
Lat N Lon E Depth Gap RMS Nr
Source O.T. (s) JSO corr. (deg) (deg) (km) (deg) (s) phases
ISC (2011) 02.63 +6.000 s 31.711 35.452 26.2 ± 4.0 20 1.08 751
25 (pP)
EMSC 04.00 0 s 31.688 35.544 28.6 122 0.98 435
JSO (14 m) 0 s 31.694 35.581 21.8 167 0.20 12
57.70
EAT et al. N/A N/A 31.755 35.667 18 ± 5 72 N/A 42
(2006)
HOF (2008) 03.30 +6.000 s 31.700 35.557 17 ± 0.7 ~75 0.41 50
ELN et al. 02.10 N/A 31.666 35.678 15 ± 0.2 70 0.60 96
(2009)
This study 03.87 +6.125 s 31.691 ± 35.542 ± −1.4 75 0.35 39
(GII + JSO) 0.2 km 0.2 km 21.7
+1.1
Depth values in bold. JSO Corr. is the time correction applied to JSO phases
Before focusing on the distribution of depths from our data and from the other
datasets, we examine the relocation results for the MW 5.3 earthquake of 11 February
2004. Selected parameters determined by the most important sources are gathered
in Table 3.2 and corresponding epicenters are plotted in Fig. 3.2.
According to Fig. 3.2, there are four distinct locations for the MW 5.3 earthquake of
11 February 2004. First, a cluster of epicenters is located in or at the edge of the Dead
Sea basin. Solutions from the GII, the EMSC and from this study locate the epicenter
in the Dead Sea basin, while the JSO locates the epicenter close to the Eastern Dead
Sea fault. The solution of the ISC is located further west beyond the Jericho Fault.
Al-Tarazi et al. (2006) relocated this earthquake and its aftershocks far outside the
basin NE of the main cluster. Finally, Abou Elenean et al. (2009) relocated the earth-
quake at about the same longitude as Al-Tarazi et al. (2006) but further south.
In order to possibly explain why there is such a wide range of epicenters for an
MW 5.3 earthquake that should be very-well located and constrained, we examine
first the origin times as determined by the GII and by the JSO (Table 3.2, second
column). Assuming that the clock of the GII is accurate, the origin time of the
earthquake is 08 h 15 m 03.30 s (Hofstetter et al. 2008). The JSO origin time, on the
other hand, is 08 h 14 m 57.70 s (JSO time reported by the ISC), or 5.60 s earlier
than the GII origin time. We can thus reasonably suspect that the JSO clock was late
by a value roughly equal to the difference in origin times, or about 6 s. During the
merging of JSO seismograms with GII seismograms in our relocation, only station
AQBJ (Aqaba) from the JSO was available as an active common station recorded
by both the JSO and the GII. It was thus possible to determine that JSO phase
arrival times should be corrected by +6.125 s to match the GII clock according to
station AQBJ. Table 3.2 shows that the ISC corrected the JSO arrival times by
Fig. 3.2 MW 5.3 earthquake of 11 February 2004, 08 h 15 m. Epicenters according to ISC, EMSC,
JSO Bulletin, HOF: Hofstetter et al. (2008), EAT: Al-Tarazi et al. (2006), ELN: Abou Elenean et al.
(2009), GII + JSO: this study (separate locations from GII seismograms alone and from JSO
seismograms alone in dark grey, connected to final location by red lines). Israel Transverse
Mercator (ITM) grid coordinates (km)
+6.000 s, a value also applied by the GII to JSO arrival times according to details
available from the ISC. The JSO located the earthquake only from its own stations
and reported uncorrected times. The EMSC also did not correct the original JSO
times but used more than 400 phase readings from local to teleseismic distances.
Regarding Al-Tarazi et al. (2006) and Abou Elenean et al. (2009), it is not known
whether they corrected the JSO arrival times or not.
Our relocated epicenter (Fig. 3.2) is only 0.4 km away from the EMSC epicenter,
and it is also located about 2 km SW of the epicenter determined by Hofstetter et al.
(2008). In our location procedure detailed earlier, when only GII seismograms are
used, the epicenter shifts by about 1 km west, and by about 2 km toward the JSO
Bulletin location when only JSO seismograms are used (Fig. 3.2). This allows to
infer that the JSO Bulletin epicenter located slightly further east at the edge of the
basin can be explained by the absence of GII phases in the JSO location procedure
for this event. It is very difficult, however, to understand why the Al-Tarazi et al.
(2006) and Abou Elenean et al. (2009) solutions are located so far away from the
cluster of earthquakes in the Dead Sea basin where the agreement and the quality of
epicentral locations are quite good.
Figure 3.3 displays the hypocentral depth of the MW 5.3 earthquake of
11 February 2004 according to the sources listed in Table 3.2. Despite the consider-
able scatter of values, our well-constrained depth of 21.7 km, virtually identical to
the 21.75 km median value derived from all the estimates, suggests a focal depth in
the lower crust albeit near its top.
The complete distribution of depths for the 188 earthquakes of our MPX dataset
and for the MW 5.3 earthquake of 2004 is displayed in Fig. 3.4. The average depth
ELN HOF EAT ALD JSO pP ISC EMSC
15 15
Upper Crust
20 20
Depth (km)
Depth (km)
25 25
Lower Crust
30 30
Upper Mantle
ELN HOF EAT ALD JSO pP ISC EMSC
Fig. 3.3 MW 5.3 earthquake of 11 February 2004, 08 h 15 m. Depths and uncertainties according
to ELN: Abou Elenean et al. (2009), HOF: Hofstetter et al. (2008), EAT: Al-Tarazi et al. (2006),
ALD: this study, JSO Bulletin, pP (ISC), ISC and EMSC. Upper-crustal depths in yellow, lower-
crustal depths in dark blue
uncertainty is ±1.5 km in the upper crust with higher uncertainties close to the
surface. In the lower crust, the average depth uncertainty is only ±1.0 km.
Earthquakes from the MPX dataset (Figs. 3.4 and 3.5a) are distributed over the
whole crust from 0.0 to 31.4 km with the largest peak of seismicity at 12–14 km,
and a smaller one at 18–20 km right above the transition between the upper crust
and the lower crust. A region of increased activity occurs also between 8 and 12 km
in the upper crust, and another one in the lower crust between 24 and 28 km,
depth below which the number of earthquakes rapidly decreases. The MW 5.3
earthquake of 11 February 2004, relocated in the lower crust at 21.7 km, occurred
slightly below the peak of 18–20 km, a depth at which the seismic activity is only
average.
Depths from Shamir (2006; Fig. 3.5b) range from 3 to only 27 km and are bi-
modal with a broad peak between 7 and 11 km in the upper crust, and another one
between 17 and 19 km that seems to correspond to the 18–20 km peak in the MPX
dataset. The seismicity is largely upper crustal, with a flatter envelope in the upper
crust than in the MPX dataset. The lower crust is also seismogenic but the decline
in seismicity starts immediately at the transition between the upper crust and the
lower crust at 20 km depth.
The seismic activity in the Braeuer et al. dataset (2012b; Fig. 3.5c) extends
between 2.8 and 28.9 km with a strong peak at 14–16 km, where nearly 25 % of the
a Percentile
0 5 0
50
5 95 5
Depth (km)
Depth (km)
10 10
Upper Crust
15 15
20 20
Lower Crust
25 25
b 10 Percentile
5 10
50
Upper Crust
15 95 15
Depth (km)
Depth (km)
20 20
25 25
Lower Crust
30 30
Upper Mantle
35 35
Fig. 3.4 Depth distribution for the 188 earthquakes (1986–2001) of the MPX dataset in the Dead
Sea basin (0.3 ≤ ML ≤ 3.5), and depth of the MW 5.3 earthquake of 11 February 2004. (a) Upper-
crustal depths and uncertainties (90 % confidence). (b) Lower-crustal depths and uncertainties
(90 % confidence). MW 5.3 earthquake of February 2004 in red
micro-earthquakes occurred. In addition, two larger earthquakes of coda magnitude

4.3 and 4.5 respectively also nucleated in this narrow range of depths. A second
peak occurs between 8 and 10 km and it correlates with a similar peak in the MPX
dataset (Fig. 3.5a). In fact, the whole range between 8 and 16 km displays a good
similarity over the two datasets, even if the largest peak from Braeuer et al. (2012b)
occurs at 14–16 km or 2 km deeper than in the MPX dataset. The top of the lower
crust seems to be nearly depleted in seismic activity in Braeuer et al. (2012b), but an
increase of activity is then observed between 24 and 28 km as in the MPX dataset.
The seismic activity declines then rapidly and stops nearly at 29 km depth.
a % Earthquakes b % Earthquakes
0 5 10 15 20 25 0 5 10 15 20 25
0 0 0
10 10 10
Depth (km)
Depth (km)
20 20 20
5.3
30 30 30
0 5 10 15 20 25 0 5 10 15 20 25
c d
0 0 0
10 10 10
Depth (km)
Depth (km)
4.3
4.5
20 20 20
30 30 30
0 5 10 15 20 25 0 5 10 15 20 25
% Earthquakes % Earthquakes
Fig. 3.5 Focal depths of well-constrained seismicity in the Dead Sea basin (30°25′N < Lat < 32°12′N,
34°52′E < Lon < 35°40′E). Braeuer et al. (2012b) in the southern Dead Sea basin
(31°00′N < Lat < 31°28′N, 35°18′E < Lon < 35°39′E). (a) Depth distribution of 188 earthquakes
(0.3 ≤ ML ≤ 3.5) from the MPX dataset (This study). MW 5.3 earthquake of 11 February 2004 in
yellow. (b) Depth distribution of 176 earthquakes (2.5 ≤ ML ≤ 5.2) (Adapted from Shamir 2006).
(c) Depth distribution of 524 earthquakes (−0.5 ≤ ML ≤ 2.68) (Adapted from Braeuer et al. 2012b).
Depth of MD 4.3 and 4.5 earthquakes in yellow. (d) Depth distribution of 294 earthquakes (Adapted
from Koulakov and Sobolev 2006)
Finally, depths from Koulakov and Sobolev (2006; Fig. 3.5d) range from 0.0 to
33.6 km with a nearly flat envelope between 10 and 30 km. The seismicity is slightly
higher in the 12–14 km range and in the 22–24 km range. The lower crust appears to
be highly seismogenic in this dataset, especially toward the DST. A few earthquakes
were also located below 32 km and could have nucleated in the upper mantle. The
authors, however, consider these rare events as an exception or as belonging to the
lower crust rather than a distinct population of earthquakes occurring in the upper-
most mantle. They suggest also a simple explanation for the deepening of the seis-
micity they observe toward the DST. First, the failure stress in the brittle deformation
regime does not depend on the strain rate but increases with depth. Second, the flow
stress in the ductile deformation regime increases with the strain rate. Therefore,
closer to the DST, where the strain rate is expected to be higher compared to further
away, the increased strain rate moves the intersection between the failure stress and
the flow stress to a greater depth.
The four depth distributions differ in their details but they all suggest that the
ultimate decline in seismicity in the Dead Sea area starts in the lower crust between
20 and 30 km, with the deepest micro-earthquakes nucleating at a depth of at least
27 km and possibly as deep as 33.6 km. Similar results are also reported by Hofstetter
et al. (2012) in their study of the crustal structure of the Dead Sea basin from local
earthquake tomography.
It has been suggested already a while ago (Sibson 1982; Magistrale and Zhou
1996) that in southern California, the depth extent of rupture during major earth-
quakes can be reliably determined from the distribution of background seismicity.
More recently, Nazareth and Hauksson (2004) studied a dataset of about 250,000
earthquakes ranging in magnitude from 0.1 to 7.3. The authors assumed that the
maximum depth extent of rupture during moderate to large earthquakes defines the
seismogenic thickness TS. They determined that the depth above which 99.9 % of
the seismic moment release of background seismicity occurs is a reliable estimate
of TS, and that the depth above which 98.3 % of the background seismicity occurs
is also a good estimate of TS. The seismogenic thickness for the southern California
crust determined by this method is 15 km on the average but it is highly variable,
ranging from less than 10 km to about 25 km (Nazareth and Hauksson 2004).
In order to derive the depth distribution of the seismic moment M0 and to deter-
mine TS from the 99.9 % depth criterion (Nazareth and Hauksson 2004), we used
Bakun’s (1984) relation (Eq. 3.1) defined in central California to compute M0 from
the magnitude of microearthquakes:
M 0 = 10(
1.2 M +17 )
1.0 ≤ M ≤ 3.5 (3.1)

where M is either MD or ML. Among the four datasets, we determined the release of
seismic moment only for the Braeuer et al. (2012b) dataset and for the MPX dataset
(this study) due to the lack of magnitude details for the two other datasets. For all
datasets, we also derived TS directly from the depth distribution or 98.3 % depth
criterion (Nazareth and Hauksson 2004). Results are provided in Table 3.3. The
seismogenic thickness TS derived from the background seismicity (both criteria, all
datasets) ranges in the Dead Sea area from 25.1 to 30.9 km, with an average value
of 28.4 km ± 2.2 km at the 95.4 % confidence level according to a t-test. It is also
interesting to know that in the Braeuer et al. (2012b) dataset of micro-earthquakes
(−0.5 ≤ MD ≤ 2.68), the deepest earthquake occurred at a depth of 28.9 km with a
coda magnitude MD of 2.54 at the 99.2th percentile in magnitude. This single and
deepest earthquake accounts for more than 5 % of the total seismic moment released
by the micro-earthquakes of Braeuer et al. (2012b). Finally, Table 3.3 shows that all
datasets agree about the fact that the seismic activity is greater in the upper crust
than in the lower crust. With the exception of the dataset from Shamir (2006),
Table 3.3 Time span of each dataset, Relative Frequency of the seismicity in the upper crust and
lower crust, and Seismogenic Thickness TS according to two criteria
Time span U.C. L.C. TS (99.9 % M0) TS (98.3 % N)
Source (years) (%) (%) (km) (km)
Shamir (2006) 22 85 15 N/A 25.1
Braeuer et al. (2012b) 1.5 91 9 28.9 27.0
MPX dataset (this study) 16 75 25 29.7 28.7
Koulakov and Sobolev 38 61 39 N/A 30.9
(2006)
UC upper crust, LC lower crust, M0 seismic moment, N number of earthquakes. Results sorted by
increasing Seismogenic Thickness TS
Table 3.3 suggests also that datasets with a longer time span seem to report an
increased relative frequency of seismicity in the lower crust compared to shorter
datasets.
3.2.2 The Earthquake of 11 July 1927
The MW 6.3 earthquake that occurred on 11th July 1927 in the Dead Sea area is also
very important for the determination of the seismogenic thickness because it is the
largest earthquake in the Dead Sea area recorded instrumentally and because unfor-
tunately it was destructive, for which widespread macroseismic observations were
also reported. Until now, however, studies have dealt more specifically either with
the instrumental data (Ben-Menahem et al. 1976; Shapira et al. 1993) or with the
macroseismic effects caused by the earthquake (Vered and Striem 1977; Avni et al.
2002; Zohar and Marco 2012). Various epicenters have well been determined but
the instrumental and macroseismic results available did not allow to single out a
unique location among those that have been proposed so far.
Figure 3.6 displays the location of instrumental epicenters and macroseismic
epicentral regions for the 1927 earthquake according to various sources. The ISS
(1927) instrumental epicenter was not computed, however, from the arrival times
reported in the ISS (1927) bulletin despite the publication of about 120 residual
times. The bulletin states instead that the ISS epicenter was given by the observatory
of Ksara in Lebanon. Ksara is located only 205 km away (NNE 10°) from the ISS
epicenter. In 1927, the observatory operated two Mainka horizontal pendula. The
accuracy of the time signal of Ksara was usually excellent, regular corrections being
made by meridian transit observations (Wood 1921). Due to the strength of the 1927
earthquake occurring only about 200 km from Ksara, the NS pendulum stopped to
work less than 5 s after the P onset time and the pen of the EW component was
quickly destroyed, preventing any possible timing of the S arrival (Berloty 1927).
The analysis of the two truncated seismograms revealed however that the azimuth
of the epicenter was about SSW 185° from Ksara, on a great circle running through
Es-Salt in Transjordan. What became later on the ISS epicenter (Table 3.4; ISS
1927) according to Ksara, was in fact a preliminary location determined by the
200 250 300
700 700
650 650
600 600
550 550
200 250 300
Fig. 3.6 MW 6.3 earthquake of 11 July 1927: instrumental epicenters and macroseismic epicentral
regions. ISS (1927): instrumental; Vered and Striem (1977): macroseismic (red); Shapira et al.
(1993): instrumental; Zohar and Marco (2012): macroseismic (green); ISC-GEM: instrumental
(Storchak et al. 2013). Uncertainty ellipses in yellow. Israel Transverse Mercator (ITM) grid
coordinates (km)
Institut de Physique du Globe (IPG) of Strasbourg (Berloty 1927) derived from

several arrival times. The final and published IPG epicenter is however different and
located further north at 32.5 º N – 35.6 º E (Rothé 1928).
Gutenberg and Richter (1954) repeat the Ksara – ISS (1927) location, but they
provide a depth estimate of 35 km and an mb magnitude of 6.25. Ben-Menahem
et al. (1976) did not relocate the epicenter of the earthquake as they also repeat the
ISS location (Table 3.4), but they determined a well-constrained MS magnitude of
6.19 ± 0.05. They estimated the hypocentral depth to be 5–7 km according to spec-
tral amplitude of surface waves, a modeling technique by which they also d etermined
complete source parameters according to some assumptions (Table 3.5). From
Table 3.5, the motion was determined by Ben-Menahem et al. (1976) as sinistral
strike-slip with a small normal component on a nearly vertical and N10° E fault
Table 3.4 Earthquake of 11 July 1927: main parameters according to various sources of
instrumental results
Source Time Epicenter Depth Mag N def a RMS Gap
ISS (1927) 13 h 03 m 32.0 N 35.5 E N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
55 s (KSA – IPG)
GUT 13 h 04 m 32.0 N 35.5 E 35 km mb 6.25 N/A N/A N/A
(1954) 07 s (ISS)
ABM 13 h 04 m 32.0 N 35.5 E 5–7 km MS 6.19 N/A N/A N/A
(1976) 07 s (ISS) ±
0.05
SHA 13 h 04 m 31.60 N 35.40 E Normal N/A 38 phs 2.9 s 139°
(1993) 06 s Smax b ~ 12 km 30 sta 76 ms/phs
Smin c ~ 8 km
Strike d ~ 70°
ISC-GEM 13 h 04 m 31.922 N 15 ± MS 6.15 110 phs 3.8 s 86°
10 s 35.633 E 6 km MW 6.29 65 sta 35 ms/phs
Smax b 7.2 km ±
Smin c 5.7 km 0.21
Strike d 175°
ISS International Seismological Summary, KSA Ksara station in Lebanon (33°49.38″N 35°53.40″E
+920 m), IPG Institut de Physique du Globe of Strasbourg, GUT Gutenberg and Richter (1954),
ABM Ben-Menahem et al. (1976), SHA Shapira et al. (1993), ISC-GEM Storchak et al. (2013)
a
Number of distinct phases with location weight > 0, and number of stations
b
Uncertainty Semi-Major axis length
c
Uncertainty Semi-Minor axis length
d
Semi-Major axis azimuth (clockwise from north)
Table 3.5 Earthquake of 11 July 1927. Source parameters from spectral amplitudes of surface
waves (Ben-Menahem et al. 1976)
Strike Slip Dip Potencya Rupture Rupture
azimuth angle angle (cm*km2) Length Slip velocity propagation
N 10° E 350° 85° 18,000 45 km 0.4 ± 0.1 m 2.2 km/s N to S
Potency P0 = A D with A the fault area and D the average slip on the fault (Ben-Menahem and
a
Singh 2000). Seimic moment M0 = μ P0 with μ the rigidity
segment 45 km long. The vertical extent of the rupture was estimated at about
10 km. A pronounced directivity effect on the spectra suggests that the epicenter
was moving towards the south and that the rupture started thus close to the northern
tip of the causative fault segment.
About 12 km north from the ISS (1927) instrumental epicenter endorsed by
Ben-Menahem et al. (1976) and close to Damiya bridge, Braslavski had reported in
1938 the damming of Jordan River for 21 h by a massive landslide triggered by the
1927 earthquake. This is close to where Vered and Striem (1977) located the macro-
seismic epicentral region of the earthquake (Fig. 3.6), with an intensity value of IX
on the Modified Mercalli scale (Wood and Neumann 1931). Vered and Striem
(1977) also determined the depth of the earthquake according to Medvedev’s (1962)
Fig. 3.7 Isoseismal map (MMI) of the earthquake of 11 July 1927 according to Vered and Striem
(1977). ISS (1927): instrumental epicenter from ISS. SHA (1993): instrumental epicenter from
Shapira et al. (1993). ISC-GEM: instrumental epicenter from ISC-GEM (Storchak et al. 2013).
The area in red (MMI = IX) defines the macroseismic epicentral region according to the authors.
Israel Transverse Mercator (ITM) grid coordinates (km). (Redrawn from original publication)
methods. Due to the ellipticity of the isoseismal curves (Fig. 3.7), the authors esti-
mated 16 km as lower bound for the source depth and 28 km depth as upper bound,
or an average depth of 22 ± 6 km.
Shapira et al. (1993) used the IASP91 (Kennett and Engdahl 1991) velocity
model to relocate the 1927 instrumental epicenter according to 28 P-arrivals and
10 S-arrivals from stations within a radius of 40° from the Dead Sea region. Their
instrumental epicenter is located on the western shore of the Dead Sea basin, 45 km
SSW of the initial ISS (1927) location (Fig. 3.6). An average uncertainty radius of
about 10 km was determined (Fig. 3.6 and Table 3.4) for the new location. The
depth value is not provided. Instead, the authors report a “normal” depth, probably
meaning a crustal depth. After the determination of the new epicenter, Avni (1999)
and Avni et al. (2002) argued that the damming of Jordan River reported by Braslavski
(1938) never occurred and that it derived exclusively from Garstang (1931), the only
source to have reported such a phenomenon that he did not witnessed himself.
Furthermore, Avni et al. (2002) suggested also that the new instrumental epicenter
location was more consistent with the set of macroseismic intensities reported by
Avni (1999). They favored thus another causative fault s egment located further south
compared to the results of Ben-Menahem et al. (1976). As a whole, it seems that the
new instrumental location determined by Shapira et al. (1993) and apparently further
supported by macroseismic evidence (Avni 1999; Avni et al. 2002), has been little
challenged. Abou Karaki (1999), however, questioned the reliability of the relocated
epicenter, and argued that the new location was far less convincing than the original
ISS (1927) location.
Zohar and Marco (2012) re-estimated the epicenter of the 1927 earthquake from
macroseismic intensities reported by Avni (1999). They proceeded in two main
steps. First, they corrected the initial intensities according to local site-attributes.
Out of 133 sites, 111 or 83 % of them were corrected. Second, in 5 km by 5 km
cells, they correlated the corrected intensities with a logarithmic function of the
hypocentral distance to each site and used Pearson’s correlation coefficient to esti-
mate the quality of fit for each cell. An area of 300 km2, in which the best correla-
tions are found (Fig. 3.6), indicates the most appropriate location of the epicentral
region according to the authors. The centroid of this area coincides with a location
on the Dead Sea transform. The authors consider, however, that their macroseismic
epicentral region is about equally consistent with the instrumental epicenter of Ben-
Menahem et al. (1976) and with the instrumental epicenter of Shapira et al. (1993).
Early 2013, the ISC – GEM Global Instrumental Earthquake Catalogue (1900–
2009) was released (Bondár et al. 2012; Di Giacomo et al. 2012; Storchak et al.
2013). The new catalogue is the result of a special effort to improve and extend
existing bulletin data. The project was funded by the GEM (Global Earthquake
Model) Foundation. It was led by the ISC and performed by a team of international
experts following recommendations from a panel of IASPEI observers. The reloca-
tion procedure benefitted from improved depths determined by the EHB technique
(Engdahl et al. 1998), and more accurate epicenters due to the development of a new
location algorithm (Bondár and Storchak 2011) at the ISC. The catalogue also
provides for all the earthquakes their moment magnitude MW with an uncertainty
estimate. The epicenter of the 1927 earthquake according to the ISC – GEM catalogue
is located only 15 km SE of the old ISS (1927) epicenter (Table 3.4 and Fig. 3.6),
with an average epicentral uncertainty radius of about 6.5 km. The computed depth
is 15 ± 6 km. The moment magnitude MW has been determined as 6.29 ± 0.21 and
derives apparently from native surface-wave magnitudes MS converted to MW by
regression. According to the parameters reported in Table 3.4, the ISC-GEM reloca-
tion (Storchak et al. 2013) of the 1927 earthquake is much better constrained than
the Shapira et al. (1993) relocation. The ISC – GEM results are based on more than
twice the number of stations and nearly three times the number of active (non-zero
weight) phases. The average residual time per phase is less than half the value from
Shapira et al. (1993) and the azimuthal gap is reduced by nearly 40 % due to the
greater number of stations, distant up to about 80° from the epicentral region. In
addition, the location procedure at the ISC has been significantly improved and
refined during the 20 years separating the two relocations. Consequently, there is
little doubt that the epicentral region of the 1927 earthquake is well located some-
where in the Jordan Valley as initially determined already more than 80 years ago
by the IPG of Strasbourg (Berloty 1927; Rothé 1928), and as argued by Abou Karaki
(1999).
But if no damming of Jordan River occurred in 1927 as demonstrated by Avni
(1999) and by Avni et al. (2002), the epicentral region determined by Vered and
Striem (1977) around Damiya bridge (Fig. 3.6) and related depth estimates might
then be invalidated. Since Zohar and Marco (2012) published macroseismic intensi-
ties as determined by Avni (1999) as well as their own site-dependent corrected
values, we drew several isoseismal maps from which we derived depth estimates
according to methods from Medvedev (1962) and from Shebalin (1973).
These methods are based on relations between the seismic source depth and the
areal extent of isoseismal contour lines. Medvedev (1962) developed two approxi-
mative methods. The first method is described by Eq. 3.2, in which m is the serial
number of an isoseismal curve of intensity I, Hm is the corresponding source depth
estimate, ∆m is the equivalent radius of a circle with same area as the isoseismal, and
n is a coefficient of amplitude attenuation with distance.
∆m
Hm = (3.2)
(
2 m − 0.5 )
2 −1
n
The serial number m is given by
m = I 0 − I + 1, (3.3)

where I0 is the highest intensity value of the isoseismals, for which m = 1. Typical
values for the attenuation coefficient n are n = 2 or n = 1.5. If the equivalent radius
∆m is given in km, the depth Hm is also expressed in km. Equation 3.2 allows to
determine a depth value from any isoseismal contour. The attenuation coefficient n
is usually chosen as the value minimizing the dispersion of results. In agreement
with Vered and Striem (1977), n = 1.5 appears to be the best value for the 1927
earthquake. Following the observation that the second and third isoseismals are
usually the most reliable ones, Medvedev (1962) developed a second method to
determine the depth, given by Eq. 3.4:
H = β S2 + S3 (3.4)

In Eq. 3.4, H is the source depth in km, S2 and S3 are the areas bounded by the
second (m = 2) and third (m = 3) isoseismals expressed in thousands of km2, and β is
a coefficient depending on the coefficient of attenuation n. For n = 1.5, β = 5.2. For
n = 2.0, β = 7.0.
Shebalin (1973), in an attempt to determine several earthquake parameters from

anomalies of intensity near the source, provides Eq. 3.5, in which m is the serial
number of an isoseismal curve of intensity I, Hm is the corresponding source depth,
∆m is the radius of the circle with same area as the isoseismal of serial number m,
and n is the coefficient of amplitude attenuation with distance:
Dm
Hm = (3.5)
2m
10 n
−1
The serial number m is given by
m = I0 − I , (3.6)

where I0 is the highest intensity value of the isoseismals. Equation 3.5 requires the
intensity I to be lower than I0. The attenuation coefficient n in Eq. 3.5 varies between
3.0 and 4.5 for crustal earthquakes (Shebalin et al. 1974). We have selected a value
of n = 3.5 at which the dispersion of depths from Eq. 3.5 is minimal for all datasets
except the one from Vered and Striem (1977), for which n = 4 minimizes the
dispersion.
In order to estimate the source depth of the 1927 earthquake according to
Medvedev’s and Shebalin’s methods, we contoured by kriging several sets of MSK
(Medvedev and Sponheuer 1969) macroseismic intensities determined by Avni
(1999), and published by Zohar and Marco (2012) who also introduced their own
variants. Although several spatial interpolation techniques can be used, kriging
(Krige 1951; Matheron 1963) is one of the most robust of them, producing curves
usually as smooth as allowed by the data. The principal benefit of drawing isoseis-
mals by kriging is that it avoids the subjectivity usually introduced when contouring
is done by hand (Ambraseys and Douglas 2004).
According to tests on the sets of intensity data, we found that a linear variogram
model with lags up to about 100 km provided adequate results. Anisotropy did not
appear to be an issue and was thus not modeled. Ordinary (no trend) point (no aver-
aging in blocks) kriging was used to interpolate the observations and produce the
isoseismals.
The depth estimates according to various intensity determinations are detailed in
Table 3.6. The magnitudes in Table 3.6 derive from Eq. 3.7 below defined by
Ambraseys (2006) for the region of the Dead Sea transform:
MS = −0.138 + 0.554 I + 0.0033 R I + 1.54 Log R I (3.7)

where MS is the surface wave magnitude, I is the MSK intensity and RI is the
e quivalent average radius of the isoseismal of intensity I.
The most consistent results are those of Vered and Striem (1977). In particular,
the MS magnitudes determined by Eq. 3.7 for isoseismals VIII and VII are
remarkably similar (6.72 and 6.77), even if they are too high compared to the
instrumental MS value of 6.15 determined by the ISC – GEM (Storchak et al. 2013).
Table 3.6 Depth estimates according to Medvedev’s methods and Shebalin’s method.
MSK Intensities from Avni (1999): MD (Mode), MN (Mean), MX (Max); MSK Intensities
corrected by Zohar and Marco (2012): MD-C1 (Mode Corrected 1); MMI Intensities from Vered
and Striem (1977): VRD. I0: highest Intensity isoseismal. m-MED and m-SHB: Isoseismal Index
number according to Medvedev and Shebalin respectively. MS: Surface Wave Magnitude accord-
ing to Eq. 3.7 from Ambraseys (2006). h: source depth (km) according to Medvedev’s methods 1
(MED- 1) and 2 (MED-2), and Shebalin (SHB). Valid depths in bold. Cells with inconsistent val-
ues have been greyed out
m m Area Radius MS h h h
Data I0 I
MED SHB (km2) (km) AMB MED-1 MED-2 SHB
VIII 2 1 137 7 5.60 3.8 4.0
MD IX VII 3 2 14,133 67 6.80 22.2 18.7
2 +3 14,270 19.6
VIII 1 0 1,463 22 6.40 28.2
MN VIII
VII 2 1 12,148 62 6.70 35.9 37.7
VIII 2 1 656 14 6.10 8.3 8.7
MX IX VII 3 2 15,214 70 6.80 23.1 19.4
2 +3 15,870 20.7
VIII 1 0 40 3.6 5.20 4.7
MD VII 2 1 3,369 33 6.20 18.9 19.8
VIII
-C1 VI 3 2 20,976 82 6.40 27.1 22.8
2 +3 24,345 25.7
VIII 2 1 3,200 32 6.72 18.4 21.7
VRD IX VII 3 2 14,000 67 6.77 22.2 22.3
2 +3 17,200 21.6
The fact that Vered and Striem used the MMI scale instead of the MSK scale is
not an issue. Similar magnitude overestimations occur also for most MSK inten-
sities reported in Table 3.6. But as can be seen from Fig. 3.7, the isoseismals
from Vered and Striem are so concentric and so homothetic that they seem to
have been idealized rather than just smoothed. A recurrent problem with all the
other intensity variants except Mean (MN) intensities (Avni 1999; Fig. 3.8), is
that the isoseismal VIII areas (Table 3.6) appear to be systematically underesti-
mated as can be seen from the too low MS magnitudes predicted by Eq. 3.7. The
underestimation seems to be particularly significant for the Mode intensities cor-
rected (MD–C1) by Zohar and Marco (2012), for which the kriging procedure
did not produce any isoseismal VIII contour at all. The tiny area of 40 km2
reported in Table 3.6 was drawn by hand (Fig. 3.17 in Appendix), in an attempt
to determine an epicentral region from the highest intensities. In fact, besides the
isoseismal VIII of Vered and Striem, there is no other dataset resulting in consis-
tent depths for that level of intensity. The area of isoseismal VIII in Mean (MN)
intensities (Avni 1999; Fig. 3.8) appears to be realistic, but unlike the data of
Vered and Striem, there is no intensity IX value in this dataset. Consequently, all
depths derived from Mean (MN) intensities (Avni 1999) appear to be inconsis-
tent. If no intensity IX had been present in the data of Vered and Striem, the depth
estimate from isoseismal VIII according to Medvedev’s first method would not
Fig. 3.8 Isoseismal map (MSK) of the earthquake of 11 July 1927 produced by kriging of Mean
Intensities determined by Avni (1999), and published by Zohar and Marco (2012). ISS (1927):
instrumental epicenter from ISS. SHA (1993): instrumental epicenter from Shapira et al. (1993).
ISC-GEM: instrumental epicenter from ISC-GEM (Storchak et al. 2013). The area in red defines
the macroseismic epicentral region (drawn by hand) according to this dataset. Israel Transverse
have been 18.4 km but 41.6 km instead, a value also inconsistent with the other
estimates. Isoseismal areas considered to be inconsistent were not included to
derive the source depth. According to 16 valid estimates (Table 3.6), we found a
macroseismic source depth average of 21.5 ± 2.5 (STD) km.
If the DST is well the causative fault of the 1927 earthquake as suggested by
source parameters determined by Ben-Menahem et al. (1976; Table 3.5), we can
also assume that the true epicenter is located not far from the ISC – GEM instru-
mental epicenter (Storchak et al. 2013). We propose thus as preferred epicenter
31.92 º N – 35.56 º E (Fig. 3.9) with a latitude uncertainty of at least ± 7 km taken
Fig. 3.9 Preferred epicenter, and tentative causative fault (Version 1) of the MW 6.3 earthquake of
11 July 1927. Epicenter at red concentric circles. Epicentral location uncertainty as dashed yellow
ellipse. Subsurface causative fault trace as red dashed line (36 km long). Isoseismal intensity
MSK = VIII curve produced by kriging of Mean Intensities determined by Avni (1999), and pub-
lished by Zohar and Marco (2012). Mean Intensity (MSK) values determined by Avni (1999) in
yellow. Macroseismic epicentral region, according to this dataset, drawn by hand in red. ISS
(1927): instrumental epicenter from ISS. SHA (1993): instrumental epicenter from Shapira et al.
(1993). ISC-GEM: instrumental epicenter from Storchak et al. (2013). White asterisk on the
northern shore of the Dead Sea: alledged location of photograph in Fig. 3.11. Israel Transverse
from the ISC – GEM relocation. The longitude uncertainty should be much smaller
than the latitude uncertainty if the DST is indeed the causative fault.
Regarding the causative fault segment, the prime candidate is the Jericho Fault
but we cannot exclude the Eastern Dead Sea Fault. Furthermore, as suggested by
Lazar (2004) and supported by results from Hofstetter et al. (2012), there might well
be only a single fault, the Dead Sea Fault, acting near the central axis of the basin
from about 15–20 km depth. In that case, if the hypocenter was located around
20 km depth in agreement with the macroseismic data, the causative fault could be
this unique Dead Sea Fault and not any of the two border faults observed at the
surface. If the hypocenter was shallower, as determined instrumentally, then the
motion should have been initiated along one of the two border faults and the source
would have moved deeper during the history of the earthquake.
In Fig. 3.9, our preferred epicenter is plotted on a detailed view of Mean Intensity
values determined by Avni (1999) and the isoseismal VIII contoured by kriging.
Although the isoseismal VIII extends surprisingly beyond Salt and Amman to the
NE (Fig. 3.8), it does not even reach our preferred epicenter in the Jordan Valley
(Fig. 3.9). This is apparently due to the fact that the closest point located further
north in the Jordan Valley is about 30 km away from our preferred epicenter, where
an intensity of only VII was estimated. In Fig. 3.9, we have also drawn by hand a
possible macroseismic epicentral zone encompassing the sites where the highest
intensity values have been observed (see also Fig. 3.11). The fact that the macroseis-
mic epicentral region does not include the instrumental epicenter is not necessarily
an anomaly. Bakun (2006) observed that the location of the macroseismic epicentral
zone corresponds more to the location of the moment centroid than to the instru-
mental epicenter where the rupture starts. If Ben-Menahem et al. (1976) are right
about the unilateral propagation of the source towards the south, it is logical to
assume as they did, that the epicenter was located near the northern tip of the caus-
ative fault segment. In that case, the moment centroid and the macroseismic epicen-
ter could be located at some distance south from the epicenter. The relative location
of the epicentral macroseismic region with respect to our preferred epicenter
(Fig. 3.9) seems to agree with this possibility. The predominance of unilateral prop-
agation in MW > 6.0 earthquakes, especially for strike-slip faulting, has been sug-
gested by McGuire et al. (2002) and by Mai et al. (2005). Unilateral propagation
might even be enhanced at plate boundaries such as the DST due to the contrast of
elastic properties, at least over some depth range, between the two sides of the trans-
form (McGuire et al. 2002).
It is very difficult, however, to estimate the length of the causative fault segment.
Ben-Menahem et al. (1976) suggested a fault segment of 45 km long derived from
directivity but this value seems very high for an MW 6.3 earthquake, a magnitude
value for which the average subsurface length of a strike-slip rupture is slightly
under 22 km (Wells and Coppersmith 1994). Tentatively, we have drawn in
Fig. 3.9 a subsurface fault segment of about 36 km long. But as we have seen before,
the MW 5.3 earthquake of February 2004 occurred in the northern part of the Dead
Sea. According to focal mechanism solutions for the mainshock and the distribution
of aftershocks, Hofstetter et al. (2008) determined that the causative fault was a
dextral strike-slip fault oriented WNW – ESE. According to the location of the
aftershocks (Hofstetter et al. 2008) that occurred within 48 h of the mainshock, we
inferred a length of about 12 km for the causative fault. From relative relocations by
Al-Tarazi et al. (2006) and by Hofstetter et al. (2008), the depth distribution of after-
shocks seems to have been largely confined within only about 7 km from the depth
of the mainshock. If we transpose this result to our relocated depth of 21.7 ± 1.4 km
for the mainshock, the range of depths between 18 and 25 km contributed highly
then to the moment release for the 2004 earthquake. With a macroseismic depth
average of 21.5 ± 2.5 km, the MW 6.3 earthquake of 1927 apparently also generated
Fig. 3.10 Preferred epicenter, and tentative causative fault (Version 2) of the MW 6.3 earthquake of
11 July 1927. Epicenter of the 1927 earthquake at red concentric circles. Epicentral location uncer-
tainty as dashed yellow ellipse. Subsurface causative fault trace as red dashed line (25 km long).
Epicenter of the MW 5.3 earthquake of 11 February 2004 at black concentric circles, and subsurface
fault trace as black dashed line. 1927 Isoseismal intensity MSK = VIII curve produced by kriging of
Mean Intensities determined by Avni (1999), and published by Zohar and Marco (2012). Mean
Intensity (MSK) values determined by Avni (1999) in yellow. Macroseismic epicentral region,
according to this dataset, drawn by hand in red. ISS (1927): instrumental epicenter from ISS. SHA
(1993): instrumental epicenter from Shapira et al. (1993). ISC-GEM: instrumental epicenter from
Storchak et al. (2013). White asterisk on the northern shore of the Dead Sea: alledged location of
photograph in Fig. 3.11. Israel Transverse Mercator (ITM) grid coordinates (km)
a great part of its seismic moment at the focal depth of the 2004 earthquake.
Furthermore, the earthquake of 1927 might have been caused by a segment of the
DST intersected and even possibly interrupted by the causative fault of the 2004
earthquake. It is then not impossible that the 1927 causative fault segment was in
fact not longer than about 25 km if the causative fault of the 2004 earthquake
interrupted it, as displayed in Fig. 3.10. This possibility is especially relevant since
both earthquakes generated apparently a considerable part of their seismic moment
at very similar depths.
Fig. 3.11 Ground fissures caused by the 1927 earthquake. Possible location close to the Jordan
River estuary at the Dead Sea. View probably from south to north, taken in the morning according
to the direction of the shade (see Figs. 3.9 or 3.10 for possible location). Estimated intensity
MSK = VIII (IX) (Photograph from American Colony, Jerusalem. Matson Photograph Collection)
3.3 Heat Flow and Rheology
Aldersons et al. (2003) calculated a lithospheric strength profile for the Dead Sea
Basin. The average measured heat flow in the northern Dead Sea Basin is 38 mWm−2
(Ben-Avraham et al. 1978; Ben-Avraham 1997) and it is 42 mWm−2 (Eckstein and
Simmons 1978) west of the basin. These values are very similar to the uniform heat
flow measured in the eastern Mediterranean (Erickson 1970). Consequently, the
surface heat flow of 40 ± 2 mWm−2 used to compute the equilibrium geotherm
appeared to be well constrained. A recent re-evaluation of the heat flow data (Shalev
et al. 2007) confirmed this low value. A strain rate of 2 × 10−15 s−1 was used in the
model. This value was derived from a relative plate motion of 5 mm/year, a value
consistent with recent GPS estimates taken both from the Wadi Araba Fault and
from the Jordan Valley Fault (Le Béon et al. 2008). Figure 3.12 displays the results.
A narrow brittle to ductile transition occurs in the crust around 380° C at 31 km
depth. In the upper mantle, the brittle to ductile transition occurs in the model at
44 km depth and at 490 º C.
A study of the surface heat flow in southeastern Jordan (Förster et al. 2007)
estimated the average value to be around 60 mWm−2. This result is further supported
by a set of samples originating from the upper crust down-to the lithospheric mantle
under Jordan (Förster et al. 2010). However, the wells where these measurements
were made, are located approximately 100 km east of the DST and more than
180 km south of the Dead Sea, and the authors acknowledge the importance of this
a Temperature (C) Strength (MPa) b Temperature (C) Strength (MPa)

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 0 500 1000 1500
0 0 0 0
Plio-Pleistocene to Recent 10 10
L1 K = 2.1 A = 1.0 L1-L5 Crust
20 20
5 5
Mesozoic to Miocene 30 Moho 30
L2
K = 2.5 A = 1.2 40
Peridotite K = 3.4 40
10 K = 2.8 10
50 A = 0.007 50
L3 Granite
A = 1.8
60 L6 60
Depth (km)
Depth (km)
Depth (km)
15 Quartz Diorite 15 70 70
L4
K = 2.4 80 80
Upper Crust A = 1.0
20 20
90 Mantle 90
Lower Crust 100 100
110 110
25 Diabase 25
L5 120 120
K = 2.1
130 130
A = 0.2
K in Wm-1K-1 140
K in Wm-1K-1 140
30 30
A in µWm-3 A in µWm-3
150 150
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 0 500 1000 1500
Temperature (C) Strength (MPa) Temperature (C) Strength (MPa)
Fig. 3.12 Rheology of the Dead Sea Basin. (a) Crustal geotherm (grey) and strength profile
(black). (b) Lithospheric geotherm (grey) and strength profile (black). Surface heat flow of
40 mWm−2. K is the thermal conductivity and A is the radiogenic heat production rate (From
Aldersons et al. 2003)
fact. They notice, however, that their value of 60 mWm−2 is identical to the heat flow
constrained by thermomechanical modeling (Petrunin and Sobolev 2006) to be the
pre-Miocene heat flow for the Dead Sea basin, instead of the measured value of
40 mWm−2 used by Aldersons et al. (2003). We agree that a direct match between
the two values is possible but we do not think that it is the most likely scenario. If
the 60 mWm−2 value of Förster et al. (2007) is projected perpendicularly along the
DST (Fig. 3.13, pt. 4), it fits quite well with the decay of extreme heat flow observed
in the Northern Red Sea axis and associated with the opening of the Red Sea. We
think that this interpretation is more realistic than a direct match with a hypothetical
heat flow estimate derived from numerical modeling, in conflict with the measured
values, and located about 200 km away from the Dead Sea. Our preferred scenario
is also in agreement with an extensive study of the surface heat flow distribution in
Israel derived from well measurements spread all over the country (Shalev et al.
2012). This study shows that the surface heat flow in Israel is indeed low over most
of the country, only 40–45 mWm−2 on the average, and around 40 mWm−2 in the
Dead Sea (Fig. 3.14, top) in particular.
Figure 3.14 (from Shalev et al. 2012) shows also that the isotherm of 350 ° C,
between the Sea of Galilee and Aqaba-Elat, is deepest in the Dead Sea area where
it reaches 25–30 km depth. In agreement with earthquakes located by the EMSC
Distance from Red Sea axis (km)

0 100 200 300 400 500
300 300
-0.0089D
HF = 36.9 + 213.16 e
1
250 250
Average Heat Flow (mW / m2)
Average Heat Flow (mW / m2)

200 200
150 150
2
100 100
3 4
5
50 50
0 0
0 100 200 300 400 500
Distance from Red Sea axis (km)
Fig. 3.13 Surface Heat Flow from the Red Sea axis to the Dead Sea basin. 1: Martinez and
Cochran (1989) and Makris et al. (1991). 2: Martinez and Cochran (1989) and Makris et al. (1991).
3: Ben-Avraham and Von Herzen (1987). 4: Förster et al. (2007). 5: Ben-Avraham et al. (1978),
Eckstein and Simmons (1978), and Shalev et al. (2007). 95 % confidence and prediction bands in
red and blue respectively
(Godey et al. 2006), Aldersons et al. (2003) and Shamir (2006), Shalev et al.
(2012) determined 26–27 km as the seismogenic thickness in the Dead Sea area
(Fig. 3.14). Towards the Sea of Galilee, the heat flow increase is slow but south-
east of the Sea of Galilee the heat flow reaches about 90 mWm−2. This anomaly is
probably due to ground water flow along faults or from recent magmatic activity
(Roded 2012). Towards Aqaba-Elat, the heat flow increase is steadier than towards
the Sea of Galilee, and heat flow values above 60 mWm−2, similar to those found
by Förster et al. (2007, 2010) in SE Jordan, are observed near Aqaba-Elat. Shalev
et al. (2012) agree with Aldersons et al. (2003) who suggested that the higher heat
flow in southern Israel is probably reflecting the opening of the Red Sea and
related processes.
3.4 Discussion and Concluding Remarks
We focused on depth distributions of seismicity from four independent studies, with

some overlap in the datasets, but with extensive differences in their respective
methodology. The results of the four studies unmistakably underline the occurrence,
in the Dead Sea area, of lower-crustal microearthquakes down-to at least 27 km and
Fig. 3.14 Temperature distribution along the Dead Sea Fault from the Sea of Galilee to the Gulf
of Aqaba-Elat. Temperatures derived from the surface heat flow (top). Seismogenic zone (red
dashed line) derived from the EMSC 2011 catalogue (Godey et al. 2006) for the entire profile,
Aldersons et al. (2003) and Shamir (2006) for the Dead Sea area, and Navon (2011) for the Sea of
Galilee area (From Shalev et al. 2012)
possibly as deep as 33.6 km. In addition, a moderate earthquake of magnitude MW 5.3

nucleated in February 2004 in the Dead Sea Basin at a depth of 21.7 ± 1.4 km accord-
ing to our relocation of the mainshock. From relative relocations of aftershocks by
Al-Tarazi et al. (2006) and by Hofstetter et al. (2008), we believe that the range of
depths between 18 and 25 km highly contributed to the seismic moment release for
this earthquake.
The seismogenic thickness TS, or maximum possible depth extent of rupture
during moderate to large earthquakes, is estimated in the Dead Sea area to be
28.4 ± 2.2 km following two criteria defined by Nazareth and Hauksson (2004) to
determine TS from the depth distribution of microearthquakes. The existence of a
seismogenic zone extending deep into the lower crust is also consistent with an
average heat flow of only 40–45 mWm−2 over most regions of Israel, and around
40 mWm−2 in the Dead Sea area in particular (Shalev et al. 2007, 2012). From their
isotherm of 350 ° C and the depth distribution of earthquakes according to various
sources, Shalev et al. (2012) determined a seismogenic thickness of 26–27 km in the
Dead Sea area. With all the evidence available today, it is thus no longer possible to
argue that the seismic activity gradually decreases below 15 km depth and com-
pletely stops around 20 km as suggested by Ben-Menahem et al. (1976) from a
small and poorly-constrained sample of earthquakes.
The seismogenic thickness in the Dead Sea area is nearly twice the average
s eismogenic thickness of 15 km observed in southern California. It is important to
know that for a seismogenic thickness of about 28 km, large earthquakes can
nucleate at or close to 28 km depth. Sibson (1982) suggested a significant ten-
dency of large earthquakes to nucleate in fact near the base of the seismogenic
zone and to propagate upwards (Sibson 1982; Das and Scholz 1983). The strength
of this tendency appears today to be somewhat weakened after the occurrence of
a number of large and shallow earthquakes in California, but the possibility of
large earthquakes to nucleate very deep in the seismogenic zone remains unaf-
fected by the existence of large and shallower earthquakes as well. Latter earth-
quakes tend to demonstrate that the depth distribution of large earthquakes is
perhaps not so different as previously thought from the rather unfocused depth
distribution of microearthquakes.
The recent ISC – GEM relocation (Storchak et al. 2013) of the MW 6.3 ± 0.2
earthquake of 11 July 1927 from regional and teleseismic data results in a well-
constrained instrumental location in the Jordan Valley, not far from the initial
epicenter determined by the Institut de Physique du Globe of Strasbourg (Berloty
1927) and reported in the ISS bulletin of 1927. Since the DST appears to be the
causative fault of this earthquake as suggested by source parameters determined
by Ben-Menahem et al. (1976), we propose a preferred epicenter at 31.92 º N –
35.56°E. The focal depth determined instrumentally by the ISC – GEM proce-
dure (Storchak et al. 2013) is 15 ± 6 km, and we found an average macroseismic
depth of 21.5 ± 2.5 km. The depth value derived from macroseismic data, however,
should not necessarily be equal to the focal depth determined instrumentally. The
instrumental focal depth represents the depth of the source at the beginning of the
fault rupture, but the depth derived from isoseismals in the far-field represents
more some average depth of the source during its complete history. Since seismic
slip is usually not homogeneously distributed across the whole rupture plane but
is concentrated at asperities (Lay et al. 1982) where it can be much higher than
average, it is possible that the depth derived from macroseismic data in the far-
field corresponds more to the average depth of the asperities than to the average
depth of rupture on the fault plane. We could adopt a unique depth of about
20 km that would be consistent both with the instrumental depth and with the
macroseismic depth, taking into account their respective uncertainties. In that
case, the 1927 earthquake would have nucleated and propagated close to the
transition between the upper and the lower crust. It is also possible that the earth-
quake nucleated around 15 km as determined instrumentally, or shallower, and
that the source deepened with time. Since the latter scenario is more complex and
not required by the data taking into account the uncertainties on the instrumental
and macroseismic depths, we prefer the simpler solution of a unique depth
around 20 km. The MW 5.3 earthquake of February 2004 nucleated at a similar
depth (21.7 ± 1.4 km), with the depth range between 18 and 25 km contributing
highly to the moment release. It is thus possible that the larger MW 6.3 earthquake
of July 1927 ruptured the seismogenic zone even deeper than 25 km, perhaps
down-to its limit around 28 km. It is not possible, however, to have any certainty
regarding this possibility due to the lack of reliable constraints on fault length,
width and slip for the earthquake of 1927. Among parameters determined by
Ben-Menahem et al. (1976), their fault length of 45 km appears to be unrealisti-
cally high, the vertical extent of 10 km results from a focal depth estimate of
5–7 km and the hypothesis, invalidated today, that the seismicity in the Dead Sea
area quickly decreases below 15 km depth. Finally, the slip value of 0.4 m results
from the need to end up with values of potency and seismic moment consistent
with the observed magnitude.
If the Dead Sea basin is indeed confined to the upper crust as suggested by wide-
angle seismic data from the DESIRE project (Mechie et al. 2009), then the MW 6.3
earthquake of 1927 and the MW 5.3 earthquake of 2004 generated a great part of
their seismic moment near the base of the Dead Sea basin (18–20 km), and imme-
diately below the Dead Sea basin (20–25 km) in the lower crust. Our results for the
MW 6.3 earthquake of 1927 and for the MW 5.3 earthquake of 2004 underline the
seismogenic importance of the transition between the upper and the lower crust for
moderate and probably also for large earthquakes, in agreement with Mechie et al.
(2009) who suggested that this transition might even act as a decoupling zone at the
base of the Dead Sea basin.
Finally, with a seismogenic zone nearly as thick as the entire crust, it is
unlikely that a fully plastic mode of deformation could prevail under the seis-
mogenic zone in the crust because the brittle to plastic transition extends over
a range of pressure and temperature in which the mode of deformation gradu-
ally changes from fully brittle to fully plastic (Scholz 2002). The fact that
some microearthquakes nucleate down-to the depth of the Moho in the Dead
Sea area according to this study and from Koulakov and Sobolev (2006), sug-
gests that the state of fully plastic deformation is probably not reached in the
crust under the seismogenic zone. In the Dead Sea area, brittle deformation
appears thus to be the dominant deformation mechanism prevailing through-
out the crust, a constraint already integrated in the drop-d own model of Ben-
Avraham and Schubert (2006; Ben-Avraham et al. 2010; Ben-Avraham 2014,
this volume).
Acknowledgements We greatly thank I. Koulakov and B. Braeuer for providing the details of
their distributions of seismicity in the Dead Sea region. We thank R. Hofstetter, D. Zakosky and
L. Feldman for providing the GII seismograms of the MW 5.3 earthquake of 2004. We thank
T. Al-Yazjeen, W. Olimat and B. Al-biss for providing the JSO seismograms of the MW 5.3
earthquake of 2004. Many thanks to D. Storchak, I. Bondár and D. Di Giacomo from the ISC for
providing the details of the ISC-GEM relocation for the MW 6.3 earthquake of 1927. Thanks also
to O. Heidbach and an anonymous reviewer for their criticism, and advice to improve the
manuscript.
Appendix
MW 6.3 Earthquake of 11 July 1927: Additional isoseismal maps (Figs. 3.15, 3.16,

and 3.17)
Fig. 3.15 Isoseismal map (MSK) of the earthquake of 11 July 1927 produced by kriging of Mode
ISC-GEM: instrumental epicenter from ISC-GEM (Storchak et al. 2013). The area in red
(MSK = IX) defines the macroseismic epicentral region (drawn by hand) according to this dataset.
Israel Transverse Mercator (ITM) grid coordinates (km)
Fig. 3.16 Isoseismal map (MSK) of the earthquake of 11 July 1927 produced by kriging of Max
ISC-GEM: instrumental epicenter from ISC-GEM (Storchak et al. 2013). The area in red
(MSK = IX) defines the macroseismic epicentral region (drawn by hand) according to this dataset.
Israel Transverse Mercator (ITM) grid coordinates (km)
Fig. 3.17 Isoseismal map (MSK) of the earthquake of 11 July 1927 produced by kriging of Modal
Intensities determined by Avni (1999) and Corrected for site attributes (± 1 unit MSK) by Zohar
and Marco (2012). ISS (1927): instrumental epicenter from ISS. SHA (1993): instrumental epicenter
from Shapira et al. (1993). ISC-GEM: instrumental epicenter from ISC-GEM (Storchak et al. 2013).
The area in red (MSK = VIII) defines the macroseismic epicentral region (drawn by hand) accord-
ing to this dataset. The region in green defines the macroseismic epicentral region according to the
regressions of Zohar and Marco (2012). Israel Transverse Mercator (ITM) grid coordinates (km)
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Chapter 4
The Dead Sea Transform and the Volcanism
in Northwestern Arabia
Yishai Weinstein and Zvi Garfunkel
Abstract Volcanism is common along the northern segments of the Dead Sea
Transform (DST). In this paper we review its distribution and composition and
conclude that this tectono-magmatic association has mainly to do with the magma
migration toward the surface and less with magma generation, namely: some volcanic
activity concentrated along the DST due to better magma channeling and not due to
an enhanced mantle partial melting along this lineament. The volcanism along the
DST is clearly part of the western Arabia magmatism, and the early phases of this
volcanism probably have to do with Red Sea-related extension during the Early to
Middle Miocene. Nevertheless, the DST does play a role in the emplacement of
lithospheric mantle domains with different compositions next to each other, which
is reflected in the derived lavas.
Keywords Dead Sea Transform • Volcanism • Red Sea • Harrat Ash Shaam •
Azraq-Sirhan
4.1 Introduction
Volcanic landscapes are very common along the northern part of the Dead Sea
Transform fault (hereafter DST; Figs. 4.1 and 4.2a). This mainly includes the north-
western edge of the Harrat Ash Shaam (Early Miocene to Pleistocene, Fig. 4.2a, b),
Y. Weinstein
Department of Geography and Environment, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
Z. Garfunkel (*)
of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra campus, 91904 Givat Ram, Jerusalem, Israel

92 Y. Weinstein and Z. Garfunkel
Fig. 4.1 The Arabian volcanic fields (Harrats) with known ages (Data from: Camp and Roobol
1989; Camp et al. 1987, 1991, 1992; Giannérini et al. 1988; Altherr et al. 1990; Coleman 1993;
Shaliv 1991; Sebai et al. 1991; Mor 1993; Sharkov et al. 1994, 1998; Heimann et al. 1996; Ilani
et al. 2001; Shaanan et al. 2011; Weinstein et al. 2006 & unpublished data; Trifonov et al. 2011).
Dashed lines parallel to the Red Sea are Early Miocene dykes
Fig. 4.2 (a) Volcanism along the Dead Sea Transform fault (solid black). Gray areas are for off-
transform volcanic fields; (b) Map of the volcanic field of Harrat Ash Shaam (from Garfunkel,
1989; Note the ~ N10W alignments of cones, in particular close to the transform); (c) Map of the
northwestern Harrat Ash Shaam (northeastern Israel), where it is bisected by the DST. Note that
the thick magmatic section south of the Sea of Galilee (see text) is not shown in this map, since its
top is 500 m beneath the surface
Fig. 4.2 (continued)
which is cut by the DST in the area of the Sea of Galilee and the Hula Valley
(Figs. 4.1 and 4.2c), but also Miocene to Pliocene volcanism and dykes along the
eastern flanks of the Dead Sea and several small volcanic fields along the northern-
most trace of the DST in northern Syria (e.g. Homs and Al Ghab, Ma et al. 2011). The
volcanism is alkali-basaltic, similar to that of other intra-plate continental basalts
(e.g. Wilson 1993; Shaw et al. 2003; Weinstein et al. 2006).
Intra-plate volcanism is very often associated with rifting (e.g. Sengor and
Burke 1978 and reference therein), and the relation between the two is usually
4 The Dead Sea Transform and the Volcanism in Northwestern Arabia 95
interpreted in either the active or the passive way. In the first, both phenomena
owe their formation to an ascending mantel plume (hot spot), which induces
mantle partial melting due to decompression and causes the rupture of the litho-
sphere (e.g. Burke and Whiteman 1973). In the passive way, far field stresses
cause extension and rupture of the lithosphere, followed by mantle upwelling
and partial melting (e.g. Turcotte and Oxburgh 1973; Oxburgh and Turcotte 1974;
White and McKenzie 1989). Both extension-related and plume-related volcanism

usually show distinctive petrogenetic/geochemical signature, with the on-axis
magmas being less enriched (lower concentrations of alkalis and incompatible
elements) than the off-axis ones (e.g. Baker 1987; Camp and Roobol 1992;
Gibson et al. 1993).
Unlike well-developed rifts, continental transforms are often devoid of any
magmatism (e.g. most of the San Andreas fault system of southern to central
California). However, volcanism does occur along some transform faults, e.g. the
North Anatolian Fault, particularly in or next to pull-apart basins (Aydin et al.
1990; Adiyaman et al. 2001; Tatar et al. 2007). The cause for this volcanism was
hardly discussed, and it is just mentioned as probably related to the extension devel-
oped along these structures (Aydin and Nur 1982). It is not clear if there is a genetic
relationship between the two, namely whether it is the extension along the fault that
caused melting in the mantle, or that the melting occurred due to other mecha-
nisms, and that the fault zones just served as a pathway for the magmas en route to
the surface.
The volcanism of western Arabia coincides with the rifting of the Red Sea (e.g.
Coleman et al. 1983). However, it seems that its northern parts also partly align with
the DST, mainly on its eastern side (Fig. 4.2a). Moreover, volcanic lineaments in
western Arabia show both the direction of the Red Sea (~N25W, e.g. the Harrat Ash
Shaam, and its northwestern edge in the Yizre’el Valley, Fig. 4.2c) and that of the
DST (N-S to N15W, Fig. 4.2b; Garfunkel 1989; Camp and Roobol 1992). In this
paper we try to refer to the question of whether there is and what kind of genetic
relation exists between the DST and the regional volcanism.
4.2 The Western Arabia ‘Harrats’
Basaltic fields cover almost 200,000 km2 of the western and southwestern Arabian
Peninsula (Fig. 4.1). The onset of volcanism was in Yemen, as early as the Oligocene
(31 Ma, Menzies et al. 1997), with the eruption of the Ethiopia-Yemen flood basalts
(the ‘trap series’) associated with the emplacement of the Afar plume underneath
that region. At ca. 29 Ma, the volcanism changed to a bimodal type, with basalts,
rhyolites and ignimbrites erupting simultaneously until 26 Ma (Coleman and McGuire
1988; Menzies et al. 1997). In Saudi Arabia, the first stage of magmatism included
plutons and vent lineaments, as well as numerous dykes that stretch along the
1,700 km of the Red Sea eastern coast, associated with the opening of the Red
Sea (e.g. Bartov et al. 1980; Baldridge et al. 1991; Sebai et al. 1991; Coleman and
McGuire 1988). Nevertheless, most of the volcanism is concentrated off the eastern
escarpment of the Red Sea trough, in volcanic fields locally called Harrats, which
were active since ca. 30 Ma (ages as old as the Middle Eocene were also reported,
Pallister 1987) up to the Pleistocene, and in some cases up to historic times (e.g. the
Madinah eruption of 1,256 AD, Camp et al. 1987). Most of the volcanic fields
are located within 100–200 km from the Red Sea. However, the largest volcanic
field – Harrat Ash Shaam, with an area of 45,000 km2 – is located 500 km away
from the Red-Sea, with a large spatial volcanic gap between it and the close-to-Red
Sea Harrats (Fig. 4.1).
Both young and old ages were found from southern Arabia to Syria. However,
volcanism at northwestern Arabia (Syria) commenced later than in Saudi Arabia
and Yemen (21 and 31–30 Ma, respectively, e.g. Ershov and Nikishin 2004;
Krienitz et al. 2009). The western Arabia volcanism was not continuous. Rather, it
erupted in two main periods: (1) the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene and (2) the
Middle Miocene to Quaternary with a volcanic quiescence of several million years
between the two (~20–13 Ma, Camp and Roobol 1992; Ilani et al. 2001). In north-
western Arabia, the volcanism was either continuous during the past 20 Ma (Syria,
Krienitz et al. 2009) or with a short volcanic gap at 9–6 Ma (northeastern Israel,
Shaliv 1991).
The older magmatic bodies (>20 Ma, dykes, plutons, vent lineaments and volcanic
fields) are mostly aligned NW or NNW, parallel to the Red-Sea axis (Fig. 4.1,
Coleman and McGuire 1988; Camp and Roobol 1992). In particular, the NW align-
ment of Harrat Ash Shaam (volcanism commenced at 26 Ma, Ilani et al. 2001) is
parallel to the Red-Sea, but also to the strike of the nearby Azraq-Sirhan Graben
(Fig. 4.1), which was active (re-activated) since the Oligocene (Segev and Rybakov
2011). Altogether, this suggests a genetic relationship between the early (Oligocene
to Middle/Late Miocene) magmatism and the opening of the Red Sea, reflecting a
NE-SW regional extension during the Oligocene to Early Miocene. At the north-
western edge of Harrat Ash Shaam (Yizre’el Valley, Fig. 4.2c) and at northern
Syria (Homs basalts), NW alignment is also observed in younger volcanism (17–9
and 6 Ma, respectively, Shaliv 1991; Chorowicz et al. 2005). The former (Yizre’el
Valley) is probably related to the nearby Gilboa Fault (Fig. 4.2c), which is the
northwestern continuance of the Azraq-Sirhan Graben (after restoring for the
105 km sinistral movement along the DST, e.g. Segev and Rybakov 2011) and
probably reflects the same regional extension regime as in the early phase Arabian
volcanism. The Homs basalts, being significantly younger and located along the
northern trace of the DST, could as well be related to an ENE extension along the
DST (e.g. Eyal 1996).
It should be noticed that the volcanism is preferably concentrated on the eastern,
Arabian shoulder of the Red Sea, with very few exceptions on its western, African
side. The reason for that was discussed by several authors (e.g. Almond 1986; Dixon
et al. 1989; Camp and Roobol 1992) and is beyond the scope of the current
manuscript.
The younger Arabia volcanism (<13 Ma) mainly shows N-S lineaments (e.g.
Coleman et al. 1983). This includes large features like the Makkah-Madinah-
Nafud line, which includes the Harrats Rahat, Harrat Khaybar and Harrat Ithnayn
(Camp and Roobol 1992; Fig. 4.1), as well as numerous lineaments of cinder
cones (Garfunkel 1989; Camp and Roobol 1992; Ilani et al. 2001; Mor 1993)
within these and other Harrats. Camp and Roobol (1992) suggested that the
Makkah-Madinah-Nafud line is a surface manifestation of a hot asthenospheric

lobe that extends northwards from the Afar plume and creates the so-called
‘western Arabian swell’. The N-S lineaments of cinder cones, in particular those
in the Harrat Ash Shaam are discussed below.
4.3 Volcanism Along the DST
In addition to the Red Sea association, the young volcanism (<6 Ma) often shows
close relationship with the DST. This is reflected in the alignment of some of the
volcanism along the transform (Fig. 4.2a). It seems that in some of the areas, the
regional, western Arabia volcanism is just bisected by the transform (e.g. the Harrat
Ash Shaam in the area of northeastern Israel). However, in northern Syria and in the
Dead Sea area, some small volcanic fields are clearly aligned along the transform,
either within depressions associated with the DST (e.g. Al Ghab, Ma et al. 2011) or
on the depression shoulders (e.g. Dead Sea, Barberi et al. 1980; Fediuk and Al
Fugha 1999; Fig. 4.2a). In particular at the Dead Sea area, volcanism exists just
within 100 km from the DST (solely on its eastern side) and is absent farther away
from the transform (Fig. 4.2a). Moreover, in the pull-apart basin of the Sea of
Galilee (Fig. 4.2c), where the DST bisects the Harrat Ash Shaam, the (sub-surface)
magmatic section is very thick. The cumulative thickness of Early Pliocene basalts
and gabbroic intrusives just south of the Sea of Galilee reaches 1,000 m (Marcus
and Slager 1985), compared with a few tens of meters on the basin shoulders.
Another DST-associated feature is the common N-S to N15W rows of scoria
cones and other lava eruption complexes (Garfunkel 1989), which are sub-parallel
to the DST, suggesting possible genetic relationship between the two. This is par-
ticularly true for the area close to the DST, e.g. in the Golan, where more than 70
cinder cones are arranged in three rows in a direction of N10W (Lang et al. 1979;
Mor 1993). However, as mentioned above, N-S lineaments are also observed in
western Arabia, more than 500 km away from the DST, thus inference from these
directions on possible DST-volcanism relationship should be carefully treated. Last,
although there is no general temporal pattern, there is a N-S age progression in sev-
eral areas at western and northwestern Arabia (Camp and Roobol 1992; Weinstein
et al. 2006; Ma et al. 2011), which according to some authors may be the result of
the northward propagation of the DST (Brew et al. 2001a; Ma et al. 2011, and refer-
ence therein). On the other hand, it should be noticed that there is hardly any volca-
nism along the southern 300–400 km of the DST (the Wadi Araba and the Gulf of
Aqaba, all the way down to the Red Sea).
Brew et al. (2001a, b) also argued that in Syria, there is a coincidence of volcanic
quiescence and a halt in activity of the DST during mid Miocene to Early Pliocene
time (14.5–4.5 Ma; Hempton 1987). However, while it is not clear that there was
any pause in the DST activity (e.g. Steckler and Ten Brink 1986), updated regional
compilations (e.g. Krienitz et al. 2009; Fig. 4.1) also do not support such a long
volcanic quiescence and strongly questions this kind of coincidence.
4.4 Composition of the Basalts
The Arabian magmas span a wide range of compositions, from tholeiites to basani-
tes and from basic to acidic (e.g. Camp and Roobol 1992; Baker et al. 1996). The
Yemen trap series and the magmas along the Red Sea coast are bimodal, including
tholeiites and transitional basalts, as well as rhyolites and ignimbrites (e.g. Coleman
et al. 1983; Coleman and McGuire 1988; Chiesa et al. 1989). Farther away from the
Red Sea, the Harrat volcanism is more alkalic and enriched with incompatible ele-
ments, with compositions of alkali basalts to basanites, and rarely nephelinites (e.g.
Coleman et al. 1983; Altherr et al. 1990; Shaw et al. 2003; Weinstein et al. 2006; Ma
et al. 2011).
In the Harrats, the basalts of the older volcanic phase are mainly sub-alkali to
alkali-basalts. However, in some cases (northern Israel and northern Syria), there is
also a trend of enrichment during the Miocene phase, with sub-alkali to alkali
basalts erupting during the earlier period (Early Miocene in Syria and the earlier
Middle Miocene in Israel), while mainly basanites during the later period (Weinstein
2000; Lustrino and Sharkov 2006). These temporal trends have to be treated cau-
tiously, since in most cases lavas of different age did not erupt exactly at the same
location, therefore it could in fact be a spatial pattern (e.g. Weinstein 2000).
In the younger volcanic phase (Late Miocene to recent), there is usually a trend
of decreasing silica and enrichment with alkalis and highly incompatible elements
from Late Miocene/Early Pliocene to the younger lavas (Late Pliocene or
Pleistocene), which are typically basanitic (Camp and Roobol 1992; Shaw et al.
2003; Weinstein et al. 2006; Ma et al. 2011). This trend was interpreted in terms of
decreasing degree of melting from the alkali basalts toward the basanites (e.g. Camp
and Roobol 1992). However, Weinstein et al. (2006), followed by Ma et al. (2011),
showed that the variability in the concentration of highly incompatible elements
could not be explained by variable degree of a common source, but rather by source
heterogeneity.
No compositional pattern was identified in relation with the DST. At northeast-
ern Israel, where the DST bisects the Harrat Ash Shaam volcanic field, the composi-
tion of basalts along the transform (e.g. the Early Pliocene basalts of the Sea of
Galilee and Korazim, Fig. 4.2c) is not distinct from basalts of the same age that
erupted farther away from the transform (e.g. the southern Golan and Lower Galilee,
Figs. 4.2c, 4.3a, and 4.4). Interestingly, a group of Late Pliocene lavas that erupted
along the western segment of the DST next to the Hula Valley is more alkalic and
enriched than other along transform (Korazim, north of the Sea of Galilee) and off
transform Late Pliocene Golan lavas (Figs. 4.3a and 4.4; Weinstein 2012). Similarly,
in northern Syria, the composition of basalts along the transform is not distinct from
those far away from the transform (Fig. 4.3b; Lustrino and Sharkov 2006). Moreover,
a EP-Golan LP-Golan
8
EP-Galilee LP-Galilee
EP-Kor LP-Kor
EP-SOG
7
Late Pliocene Upper Galilee
(transform-proximal) lavas
Total Alkalis (%)
6 hawaiite
basanite along-transform
Pliocene lavas
5
sub-alkali
basalt
3
42 44 46 48 50 52
SiO2 (%)
b
8
along DST (basin)
on-transform along DST (no basin)
7 extensional basins off DST
enriched
6
Total Alkalis (%)
hawaiite
5
alkali basalt
4
basanite
off-transform
3
on-transform sub-alkali
no extensional basin basalt
2
42 44 46 48 50 52
SiO2 (%)
Fig. 4.3 Total Alkalis (Na2O + K2O) – Silica (TAS) diagrams of (a) northeastern Israel (circum
Sea of Galilee) Pliocene basalts (EP stands for Early Pliocene and LP for Late Pliocene; KOR is
Korazim, north of the Sea of Galilee, and SOG is the area just south of the Sea of Galilee, see
Fig. 4.2c; Data from Weinstein et al. 2006; Weinstein 2012 and unpublished data), (b) northern
1000
Sea of Galilee - in-rift
Sea of Galilee-rift proximal (Golan)
Sea of Galilee-rift proximal (Galilee)
Dead Sea in-rift
Chondrite-normalized concentratins
Dead Sea rift-proximal

Dead Sea rift distal
100
10
La Ce Pr Nd Pm Sm Eu Gd Tb Dy Ho Er Tm Yb Lu
Fig. 4.4 Chondrite-normalized (Boynton 1984) REE diagram, showing (1) average compositions
of circum Sea of Galilee Early Pliocene basalts (in-rift – south of the Sea of Galilee, rift-proximal –
the southern Golan and Lower Galilee, see Fig. 4.2c for locations), (2) representative compositions
of Dead Sea area basalts (in-rift – north of the Dead Sea, rift-proximal – the Dead Sea eastern
shoulder, rift-distal – Harrat Ash Shaam (100–150 km to the east), Fediuk and Al Fugha 1999)
basalts associated with an extensional basin (Al Ghab, Figs. 4.1 and 4.2a) are more
enriched than other along-transform (e.g. Homs basalts) and off-transform lavas
(Fig. 4.3b; Lustrino and sharkov 2006; Ma et al. 2011). Another example is described
from the Dead Sea area, where within-rift lavas are more alkali and REE-rich than
rift-proximal ones, and both are significantly more enriched than the Harrat Ash
Shaam basalts, 100 km to the east. All of this is not easy to explain in conventional
terms of extension-related magmatism (e.g. Baker 1987; Gibson et al. 1993), where
higher degree of melting, therefore lower enrichment, is expected on-axis.
Fig. 4.3 (continued) Syria Late Miocene to Pleistocene basalts (Al Ghab basin, Homs, Allepo and
Euphrates Valley; Lustrino and Sharkov 2006; Ma et al. 2011). In (a), along-transform Early
Pliocene lavas (south and north of the Sea of Galilee, dotted circle) are undistinguished from simi-
lar age off-transform Golan and Galilee lavas, while Late Pliocene lavas that erupted along or
within a few km from the transform in the Upper Galilee (dashed circle) are more enriched
than the similar age along-transform Korazim lavas. In (b), along-transform lavas are undistin-
guished or slightly more enriched than the off-transform lavas (solid circle)
4.5 The Source and the Cause of Melting
Some authors attributed the western Arabia magmatism to sub-lithospheric/mantle

plume sources (e.g. White and McKenzie 1989; Camp and Roobol 1992; Lustrino
and Wilson 2007; Krienitz et al. 2009). This concept was challenged in the papers
of Altherr et al. (1990) and Stein and Hofmann (1992), who suggested the lithosphere
or a fossil plume attached to the base of the lithosphere as the source for all or
some of the magmas (Shaw et al. 2003). Follow-up publications showed that the
source is hydrated, e.g. amphibole or phlogopite-bearing mantle rocks (e.g. Stein
et al. 1997; Weinstein et al. 2006; Ma et al. 2011). This implies solidus temperatures
significantly lower than the dry solidus previously used for mantle melting models
(e.g. Green 1973; Olafsson and Eggler 1983; Falloon and Green 1990). This further
suggests that the mantle source is close to solidus temperatures, therefore more
sensitive to thermal perturbations and more available for partial melting. The
presence of amphibole also constrains the source depth to less than 90 km (Green
1973; Brey et al. 1983; Wallace and Green 1991), probably within the lithosphere
(Shaw et al. 2003; Weinstein et al. 2006).
The next question is what is the driving force for melting? Basically, there are two
alternative models. While some authors favor the so-called ‘active’ melting, which is
melting due to an induced thermal perturbation in the mantle, (e.g. mantle plume,
Garfunkel 1989; Camp and Roobol 1992; Debayle et al. 2001; Weinstein et al. 2006;
Krienitz et al. 2009), others prefer the passive melting model, which involves exten-
sion and thinning of the lithosphere (e.g. Bohannon et al. 1989; McGuire and Bohannon
1989; Stein et al. 1993). Camp and Roobol (1992), Weinstein (2000) and Weinstein
et al. (2006) suggested that the early stage, Red Sea-associated volcanism (Early to
Middle Miocene) was derived by lithosphere extension (passive), while the later
(Late Miocene or Pliocene to Pleistocene) occurred due to a thermal perturbation.
Weinstein et al. (2006) showed that if melting was of a wet mantle source (e.g. amphi-
bole or CO2-bearing peridotite), then decompression by itself could hardly produce
any melting, thereby it should involve a thermal effect. Also, even though extension
was common during the Miocene, field observations provide no evidence for exten-
sion during the Plio-Pleistocene, which was a period of extensive volcanism in the
area. In some cases, there is even an indication of a syn-volcanic compression regime
(e.g. the Hula Valley, Fig. 4.2c, during the past 1 Ma, Schattner and Weinberger 2008).
4.6 Discussion: The Relation Between

the DST and the Volcanism
Volcanism is abundant along the northern part of the DST, from the Dead Sea basin
northwards. However, the transform fault effect is superimposed on the Red-Sea
extension-related regional effect. In particular, the extensive volcanism around the
pull-apart basins of the Sea of Galilee and the Hula Valley (Fig. 4.2c) is part of the Ash
Shaam volcanic field, which is evidently a Red-Sea or Azraq-Sirhan Graben-related
feature as is suggested by its NW direction. In particular, it seems that the earlier

phase of volcanism (Early to Middle Miocene) in Harrat Ash Shaam has very little to
do with the DST. Early Miocene volcanism erupted at the central and northern parts of
the field (e.g. Ilani et al. 2001), away from the DST, while the Middle Miocene volca-
nism, which is closer to the DST on its west, is concentrated along the NW-trending
Gilboa fault (Fig. 4.2c), which is probably a continuation of the Azraq-Sirhan Graben
(Weinstein 2000; Segev and Rybakov 2011).
On the other hand, the Late Miocene to Quaternary volcanism shows more
affiliation with the DST. This includes a concentration of small volcanic fields along
and inside the transform from the Dead Sea northwards (Fig. 4.2a), a very thick
Early Pliocene section (~1,000 m) south of the Sea of Galilee (compared with the
rift shoulders) and the N-S-aligned structures at the Harrat Ash Shaam (e.g.
Garfunkel 1989; Fig. 4.2b). While some of these features (e.g. the off-DST N-S
structures) could be related to the regional stress field and are also found far away
from the transform (e.g. Camp and Roobol 1992), the DST-aligned volcanism could
be petrogenetically-related to the transform, especially when found away from
Arabian volcanic centers, e.g. at northern Syria. The latter means that the possibility
of partial melting of a mantle source due to limited extension along the DST, in
particular along the pull-apart basins (e.g. the Dead Sea area or the Al Ghab basin),
should be considered. The way the DST could induce melting, whether in the lithosphere
or in the underlying asthenosphere, is by lithosphere thinning and mantle decompres-
sion. White and McKenzie (1989) argued that in order for a peridotite (the common
upper mantle rock, composed mainly of the mineral olivine) to be partially melted
at the upper mantle, an extension factor of 2–5 is needed. Assuming a wet mantle
source (amphibole-peridotite or pyroxenite, e.g. Stein et al. 1997; Ma et al. 2011),
the extension factor could be significantly reduced. Nevertheless, extension should
be manifested regionally or at least close to the transform, which is not the case along
the DST. The only subsidence and sedimentary basins associated with the transform
during the last few Ma are those within its pull-apart basins, which does not seem to
represent a significant extension, such that could cause melting at depth. Therefore,
the possibility of a DST-induced partial melting of the mantle is very unlikely. This
is supported by the almost absence of volcanism along the southern half of the DST
(Wadi Araba and the Gulf of Aqaba) and by the very small volume of volcanism at
the Dead Sea basin compared with the fields farther north.
Recent works (e.g. Benallal and Bigoni 2004; Kaus and Podladchikov 2006)
have raised the possibility that limited extension could induce local heating within
the lithosphere by strain localization and the development of necking instabilities,
thereby could possibly cause local partial melting of a wet mantle even under a very
limited extension factor (Rosenbaum, pers. Comm. 2011). This possibility should
be further investigated in relation with the SDT and other transforms (e.g. the north
Anatolian Fault).
One may suggest that if the DST cannot produce melts on its own, it could have
enhanced melting in a mantle already affected by the Red Sea or a thermal event
(e.g. a hot asthenospheric lobe extending from the Afar plume, Camp and Roobol
1992). However, ‘enhanced melting’ is usually reflected in the lavas’ composition,
namely: it should result in along-transform higher degree of melting, thus produce

less enriched magmas (lower concentrations of alkalis and incompatible elements,
e.g. REE). This is not the case along the DST. The composition of on-transform
basalts from the thick section of Early Pliocene basalts and intrusives south of the
Sea of Galilee is similar to that of the similar age off-transform southern Golan and
Lower Galilee basalts (all are alkali basalts, Weinstein et al. 2006; Fig. 4.3a). Moreover,
the on-transform Sea of Galilee basalts are more enriched (in REE) than the
off-transform ones (Fig. 4.4), in difference from the above comprehension.
Similarly, Late Pliocene alkali-basalts from the Korazim block, north of the Sea of
Galilee, have very similar composition to the nearby similar age off-transform
Golan basalts (Weinstein 2012). Moreover, Late Pliocene lavas that erupted 1–2 km
west of the transform, at the eastern Upper Galilee, are highly-enriched basanites
(Fig. 4.3a, Weinstein et al. 2006; Weinstein 2012), compared with the slightly
enriched alkali-basaltic composition of the similar age Golan basalts farther away
(20 km) from the DST on its east. Similarly, on-transform basalts north of the Dead
Sea are more enriched than off-transform and the Harrat Ash Shaam basalts 100 km
and farther off-transform (Fediuk and Al Fugha 1999; Fig. 4.4), and the pull-apart
Al Ghab basalts are more enriched than the non-extension-related Homs basalts and
other off-transform basalts from northern Syria (Lustrino and Sharkov 2006; Ma
et al. 2011). Altogether, this suggests that there is no systematic difference in the
melting regime (namely, the degree of partial melting) between on-transform and
off-transform lavas, which doubt the possibility that the DST has any melting effect.
An alternative DST-volcanism relation was recently suggested by Ma et al.
(2011) for the Homs and Al Ghab volcanism of northern Syria (Fig. 4.1). They
suggested that the northward migration of volcanism in this area (Late Miocene to
Early Pliocene at Homs and Late Pliocene to Pleistocene at Al Ghab) was caused by
the northward propagation of the DST, which channeled upwelling astheno-
sphere at the base of the lithosphere. This, in turn, served as the heat source for a wet
lithospheric melting. This should be considered for other areas along the transform.
In a recent paper, Weinstein (2012) presented two examples of magma channeling
along the DST north of the Sea of Galilee during the Early and Late Pliocene.
Weinstein showed that while allowing magma channeling, the DST also acted as a
lithospheric boundary, preventing along-transform magmas from intermixing with
off-transform magmas.
Similarly, and in accordance with Garfunkel (1989), we suggest that the
DST-associated volcanism is related to crustal/lithospheric drainage of magmas.
This means that the DST functions as a plumbing system, allowing easy access of
magmas to the surface. This could happen only where magmas are already present
at depth (e.g. close to Harrat Ash Shaam), owing their existence to a different thermal/
tectonic event, e.g. the Red Sea rifting or a mantle plume. Accordingly, the absence
of volcanism along the southern parts of the DST is the result of these areas being
far away from both Harrat Ash Shaam and the other Saudi Arabian Harrats.
Finally, the DST does indirectly affect the composition of the magmas by displac-
ing the location of lithospheric magma sources. Weinstein (2012) suggested that the
105 km sinistral movement along the transform has placed different lithospheric
domains next to each other, which in certain cases resulted in the eruption of mag-
mas with significantly different chemistry on its both sides. A similar case of a
transform acting as a lithospheric boundary was described for the Paleozoic Great
Glen Fault (northern Britain, Canning et al. 1998). This aspect should be further
examined in other active transform faults.
4.7 Conclusions
1. Volcanism in western and the northwestern Arabia is genetically related to the

opening of the Red Sea (Miocene) and possibly to a hot asthenospheric mantle
beneath this area (Late Miocene to recent).
2. There is no evidence for any DST-related mantle melting.
3. The DST does function in certain places as a lithospheric channel, which allows
magmas an easy access to the surface.
4. The absence of volcanism next to the southern parts of the DST (Wadi Araba and
Gulf of Aqaba) is due to its remoteness from the main Arabian volcanic fields.
Acknowledgements We would like to thank M. Wilson and an anonymous reviewer for their
very helpful reviews and useful comments on the manuscript. We are also grateful to friends and
colleagues, with whom we shared ideas and had discussions regarding the subject of this paper
along the years, including: R. Altherr, A. Heimann, S. Hurwitz, D. Mor, O. Navon, R. Weinberger
and many others.
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Chapter 5
Lateral Motion and Deformation
Zvi Garfunkel
Abstract This paper presents an updated summary of the history and shallow
structure of the Dead Sea transform (DST) and its plate tectonic context. The DST
formed in the Early Miocene as a transform boundary between the Sinai and Arabian
plates. The lateral offset was ca. 105 km near the Dead Sea. Since the DST trace is
irregular in map view, the lateral motion led to formation of a 10–80 km wide defor-
mation zone along the plate junction. Thus, the structures along the DST can be inter-
preted within the framework of the Sinai-Arabia plate kinematics. South of ca. lat.
33° transtension, which increased with time, led to variable oblique separation of the
plate edges. This produced an almost continuous ca. 5–25 km wide depression whose
structure is dominated by a string of pull-apart basins up to 15–20 km wide and up to
ca. 12 km deep. The crystalline crust under the largest basins was appreciably thinned
and may have been intruded by basalts. The structural pattern changed over time, the
present pattern having been mostly established in the second half of the DST history.
North of lat. ca. 33°N transpression dominates and the DST flanks are strongly
deformed by folding, faulting, and rotation of fault blocks on vertical axes, which
together produce shortening perpendicular to the DST and also left lateral shearing of
its flanks, qualitatively compatible with the plate kinematic. The deformation can also
account for the observed decrease of the lateral offset along the main fault line from
ca. 100 km at ca. lat 33°N to 65–70 km at lat. 36°–36.5°N, and also leads to left lateral
shearing along the continental margin near the Galilee and farther north. North of lat.
36.5°N the DST now interacts with the Anatolian plate and the Cyprus arc. This
resulted from a rearrangement of the plate configuration in that region when west-
ward extrusion of Anatolia began and the East Anatolian Fault formed, but the details
of the kinematic changes are incompletely known. This change obscured the struc-
tural relations in this region during the early stages of the DST history.
Z. Garfunkel (*)
The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew
University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra campus, 91904 Givat Ram, Jerusalem, Israel
110 Z. Garfunkel
Keywords Dead Sea Transform • Strike slip faults • Plate motions • Pull aparts
• Transpression
5.1 Introduction
The Dead Sea transform (DST) (also called Dead Sea or Levant Fault Zone), is one
of the new plate boundaries produced by the mid-Cenozoic breakup of the once con-
tinuous African-Arabian continent. It forms the NW boundary of the Arabian plate,
extending from the Red Sea spreading center to the zone of plate convergence in
southern Turkey, a distance of ca. 1,000 km (Fig. 5.1). It is dominated by left lateral
motion, ca. 105 km along its southern half. On the west most of the DST is delimited
by the Sinai (sub-) plate, but its northernmost part also interacted with the Cyprus
arc. The lateral motion along the DST was combined with minor, laterally variable,
transtension or transpression which produced a deformed belt along its trace.
The DST attracted geologists already more than 150 years ago, and was
recognized as the northern branch of the rift system that extends along East Africa
and farther north (Suess 1891; Gregory 1921). At first the DST was interpreted as
an extensional rift because parts of it are marked by valleys bordered by normal
faults (Gregory 1921; Picard 1943). However, over time it was recognized that left-
lateral slip dominates along the DST, so it is a transform plate boundary (Dubertret
1932; Quennell 1959; Freund 1965; Wilson 1965), but the traditional terms “Dead
Sea rift” or “Dead Sea fault” are still sometimes used.
The purpose of this work is to present an updated summary of the shallow
structure along the DST and how it is related to the lateral motion and to highlight
important unsolved issues. Some other important topics are treated in companion
papers in this volume.
5.2 Regional Setting
The DST crosses a continental area that was shaped by the Neoproterozoic
Pan-African orogeny (Bentor 1985; Garfunkel 1988, 1999; Stern 1994). Later the
region became a part of the stable North African-Arabian platform on which an
extensive sediment cover accumulated in several depositional phases between Early
Cambrian to mid-Cenozoic times (Picard 1943; Bender 1974; Brew et al. 2001a;
Garfunkel 1988; Guiraud et al. 2001). Rifting events in latest Paleozoic and early
Mesozoic times (ca. 270 to ca. 170 Ma) produced the passive margins of Arabia and
NE Africa, including the Levant basin margin and the adjacent east Mediterranean
basin (Bein and Gvirtzman 1977; Garfunkel and Derin 1984; Garfunkel 1998;
Garfunkel and Ban Avraham 2001; Gardosh et al. 2010). Early Cretaceous intraplate
igneous activity and uplifting occurred in the area crossed by the future DST
(Garfunkel 1989; Segev 2009), but later there was hardly any igneous activity until
5 Lateral Motion and Deformation Along the Dead Sea Transform 111
Fig. 5.1 The DST and its

regional setting (inset). EAFZ
East Anatolian fault zone,
K.-LK Basin Kinnarot-Lake
Kinneret Basin, KS Korazim
saddle, RF Roum fault, SF
Serghaya fault, YV Yizreel
valley. Only main volcanic
field is shown
112 Z. Garfunkel
the DST formed. In the Late Cretaceous plate convergence began along the junction
of the Arabian platform and the adjacent basins with the Alpine orogenic belt (Şengör
and Yilmaz 1981; Le Pichon et al. 1988; Yilmaz 1993) and the Syrian arc compres-
sional structures formed on the platform next to parts of the future DST (Fig. 5.1,
Garfunkel 1988; Brew et al. 2001a; Guiraud et al. 2001). This deformation ended
when the DST formed. The DST cuts across all the older structures and its formation
and development were accompanied by regional-scale uplifting and volcanism.
5.3 The Kinematic Framework
The DST is a prominent geologic discontinuity: the rock sequences and structures
facing each other on its two sides are quite different. This is considered to be a result
of a left lateral offset of ca. 100 km because its restoration matches all known geo-
logic features across the southern DST, as far north as southernmost Lebanon
(Quennell 1959; Freund 1965; Freund et al. 1970; Druckman 1974; Bandel 1981;
Bandel and Khouri 1981; Segev 1984; Sneh and Weinberger 2003). The matched
features include basement rocks, the facies belts and isopachs of the entire Cambrian
to Late Cretaceous sedimentary cover, the lines along which the regional Early
Cretaceous erosion truncated older stratigraphic units, as well as the narrow linea-
ments (belts of faulting and strong folding) of the Central Negev-Sinai shear belt
(southern part of the Syrian arc, Fig. 5.1). The latter trend at large angles to the DST,
so their matching gives the best estimate of the offset along the DST – ca. 105 km in
the Dead Sea area (Fig. 5.1, Quennell 1959; Bartov 1974; Garfunkel 1981). The pat-
terns of magnetic anomalies in Jordan and Israel are also displaced ca. 105 km
(Hatcher et al. 1981). Shaliv (1991) noted that the Yizreel Valley could be matched
with the Sirhan depression (Fig. 5.1). However, while the latter subsided markedly
in the Late Cretaceous (Basha 1982), activity of that age along the Yizreel Valley was
not documented. They should have connected beneath the volcanics of the Golan
Heights, but such a connecting structure was not observed (Shulman et al. 2004;
Meiler et al. 2011), so the significance of this correlation requires further study.
Farther north in Lebanon the DST marks a discontinuity between the
mid-Cretaceous carbonate series on its two sides (Saint-Marc 1974; Walley 1998),
but an offset marker – the front of ophiolite and related nappes – is known still far-
ther north, near the Syria-Turkey border (Fig. 5.1). These nappes were thrust over
the Arabian platform in the Late Cretaceous, and now are intercalated between
within the sedimentary section (Ponikarov 1964; Ponikarov et al. 1969; Kopp and
Leonov 2000). Their absence in the section 3–10 km SE of their exposures tightly
constrains the end-Cretaceous position of their front (it may have been defined by a
fault zone: Ponikarov et al. 1969, Figs. 5.1 and 5.6). Matching the ophiolite nappe
front across the DST reveals a left lateral offset of 65–70 km (Freund et al. 1970;
Al-Maleh et al. 1992; Westaway (2003) favored an offset of 55 km). This is sup-
ported by the distribution of Early Miocene marine beds filling a depression SE of
the ophiolite nappes (Ponikarov 1964; Ponikarov et al. 1969; Krasheninnikov 2005,
see 5.3, 5.5.2.3). An offset of only 20–25 km, as suggested by Trifonov et al. (1991)
is unlikely, because when restored this leaves notable bend of the original nappe
front where it crossed the future DST. The difference between this estimate and the
offset farther south will be discussed below see (5.5.2.4).
The motion along the DST is independently constrained by the regional plate
kinematics because it takes up most of the Africa-Arabia plate separation, i.e. the
Red Sea opening (Dubertret 1932; Freund 1965, 1970; McKenzie et al. 1970;
Le Pichon et al. 1973). Taking into account the relatively small opening of the Suez
rift and the stretching of the Red Sea margins, a left-lateral offset of 100–110 km is
inferred along the DST, i.e. the Sinai-Arabia plate boundary (Freund 1970; Joffe
and Garfunkel 1987). Within error, this is the same as the offset deduced from the
geology along the southern half of the DST, though the geometry of the Red Sea
opening is deduced from completely independent data. The Sinai-Arabia Euler pole
of the motion of these plates, i.e. the DST motion, is estimated to be located in NE
Libya or the nearby part of the Mediterranean (Quennell 1959; Freund 1970;
Garfunkel 1981). Such a position of the Sinai-Arabia pole implies transtension
along the south of the DST and transpression along its northern part (Fig. 5.1). This
pole is close to the Arabia-Africa Euler pole (i.e. the Red Sea opening) because
these motions are similar. Integration of all these constraints allows to derive well
constrained plate kinematic models (e.g. Joffe and Garfunkel 1987; Le Pichon and
Gaulier 1988; and see Sect. 5.4).
5.4 The Chronological Framework – The History of Motion
Several observations constrain the history of motion along the DST. It postdates the
ca. 20–24 Ma old swarm of Red Sea dikes, as the northern dikes experienced the
entire lateral offset (Fig. 5.3, Eyal et al. 1981; Steinitz et al. 1981; Steinitz and
Bartov 1991). The ages of the oldest fills of basins along the DST also constrain the
time of the beginning of the motion, because the basins resulted from the lateral
motion (Garfunkel 1981; Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham 2001, see Sect. 5.5).
Drillholes in the Dead Sea basin reached palynologically dated Early Miocene sec-
tions (Horowitz 1987) that are considerably thicker than coeval sections (Hazeva
Formation) on the western basin flank, indicating that the basin existed already at
that time (Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham 1996, 2001). Near Tiberias basalt flows with
K-Ar ages of 17 ± 3 Ma to ca. 15.5 Ma occur in the middle of the sediment fill of a
small marginal basin (Tiberias sub-basin), while ca. 20 km farther south its entire
fill consists of basalts, the oldest ones having K-Ar ages of ca. 15.5 Ma (Shaliv
1991). The nearby 4.25 km deep Zemah 1 well (Z in Fig. 5.5, just south of Lake
Kinneret) in the main basin along the DST bottomed in Middle Miocene beds
(Horowitz 1987) which are >1 km above the base of the ca. 5 km thick fill (Ben-
Avraham et al. 1996). Thus, in this area basins formed already at the beginning of
the Middle Miocene or somewhat earlier. Moreover, this part of the DST was a
structural boundary already at that time, because in the area that originally was
114 Z. Garfunkel
located east of it no basin formed and volcanism was very restricted (Garfunkel
1989; Weinberger et al. 2003), and the early faulting west of the DST did not extend
east of it (see below). Evidence from the Sinai triple junction, at the south of the
DST, also indicates its early Miocene activity (see Sect. 5.5.1.1).
Along the northern part of the DST marine Early Miocene sediments are
preserved in a depression SE of the ophiolite nappes (Ponikarov 1964; Ponikarov
et al. 1969; Kopp and Leonov 2000; Krasheninnikov 2005; Hardenberg and
Robertson 2007). These works show that west of the DST the Nahr el-Kebir
(Latakiye) depression (Figs. 5.1 and 5.6) formed in the Aquitanian, shortly before
initiation of the DST in the south, and was accentuated as a graben in the Middle
Miocene. In its SW part ca. 1.7 km thick marine sediments accumulated by the end
of the Miocene (may be less farther NE). Restoring the DST offset as estimated
above aligns these beds with an area east of the DST where Early Miocene sections
reach a combined thickness of ca. 0.7 km, which most likely record the eastward
extension of the depression west of the DST. Here a Middle Miocene graben is not
apparent, but the sediments of this age are folded on NE-SW trending axes, while
west of the DST such folds are absent. These features show that here the two sides
of DST were deformed differently, which suggests that it was active and formed a
structural discontinuity already in the Middle Miocene.
These lines of evidence constrain the beginning of lateral motion along DST to
between 20 Ma and ca. 17–16 Ma ago. This is considerably younger than the ini-
tial breakaway of Arabia from Africa along the Red Sea-Suez rift line, but is close
to the time when faulting along the Suez rift was reduced, seafloor spreading
began in the Gulf of Aden, and the Arabia-Africa plate separation accelerated
(Garfunkel and Bartov 1977; Bosworth 2005; Garfunkel and Beyth 2006, and ref-
erences therein). These events are interpreted to show that at that time most of
Arabia-Africa motion north of the Red Sea was transferred to the DST. Avni et al.
(2012) raised the possibility that earlier faulting without lateral offset occurred
along the DST, based on analysis of ancient landscape. Though quite possible, this
requires further study.
During the very early stage of the DST lateral motion some right lateral motion
may have continued on the Central Negev-Sinai shear belt lineaments (Fig. 5.1,
Calvo 2002), but the interaction between these structures and the DST requires fur-
ther study. However, they need not have obstructed each other, similar to the present
situation in southern California where active transverse faults meet the San Andreas
Fault (Jennings 1973).
Another constraint on the DST slip history is provided by magnetic anomalies
that record seafloor spreading, i.e. Africa-Arabia plate separation, since 5–3 Ma ago
in the southern and central Red Sea (Roeser 1975; Chu and Gordon 1998). With
plausible Euler poles for the Red Sea opening this translates to 40 ± 2 km of oblique
opening near its northern end. Opening of the Suez rift in the last 5 Ma may have
taken up ca. 5 km, leaving a lateral slip of about 33–37 km (average rate of 6.5–7 mm/
year) along the DST, which is 30–35 % of the total offset. Thus the Miocene motion
amounted to ca. 2/3 of the total lateral DST offset.
GPS studies of the present plate motions (Reilinger et al. 2006; Le Beon et al.
2008; ArRajehi et al. 2010; Le Pichon and Kreemer 2010; Al Tarazi et al. 2011;
Reilinger and McClusky 2011) found a slip rate of ca. 4.0 to 5.5 mm/year along the
DST, compatible with the slip rates indicated by up 50–100 kyr old markers
(Garfunkel 2011), but they do not resolve well the much smaller transverse compo-
nent of motion. These results suggest that the present slip is slower than the average
rate in the last 5 Ma. Alchalbi et al. (2010) found a slip rate of 1.8–3.3 mm/year in
NW Syria, slower than found in previous studies, but compatible with the evidence
that there the total offset was less than farther south.
The constraint from the southern Red Sea provides a datum that can be used for
dividing the Sinai-Arabia plate motion into two periods – before and after 5 Ma
ago (Garfunkel 1981; Joffe and Garfunkel 1987). This does not imply a discontinuity
in motion (as suggested e.g. by Hempton 1987), which is contradicted by the evi-
dence from the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea showing that plate motions were
continuous and quite uniform (Le Pichon and Gaulier 1988; Garfunkel and Beyth
2006 and references therein). Nor does it imply a sudden change of motion at that
time or that plate motions were uniform in the two periods. The major young struc-
tures along the southern half of the DST (flanked by rigid plates) existed for some
time (see Sect. 5.5.1) so they can be used to constrain the geometry of motion dur-
ing the younger period. Combining their geometry with the above constraint on the
amount of motion, allows estimating the entire motion during the last 5 Ma as ca.
1.45° about an Euler pole at 32.8°N, 22.6°E (uncertainty ca. 1°). However, using
this pole to reconstruct the total DST motion would produce overlaps of the plate
edges, which indicates that the pole position changed. The total pre-5 Ma motion
is estimated as ca. 2.7° about a pole located some 4° farther west, which involves
a change in the direction of motion of up to ca. 10° along the southern DST (Joffe
and Garfunkel 1987). The GPS data seem to imply a continuing eastward shift of
the Euler pole and a slight slowing of the slip rate. Reilinger et al. (2006) suggested
a present day Euler pole at 32.8°N, 28.4°E (± ca. 3.5 °) for the DST, but this leads
(given the Red Sea opening) to problematic inferences regarding the Suez rift
(Garfunkel 2011). Westaway (2003) proposed an Euler pole at 31.1°N, 26.7°E, and
a motion rate of 0.434°/Ma. This implies a northward increasing slip rate, in con-
flict with the GPS data (Reilinger et al. 2006; Reilinger and McClusky 2011;
Alchalbi et al. 2010), so this model needs revision.
Le Pichon and Kreemer (2010) analyzed the GPS data of the Eastern Mediterranean
region. Their results are compatible with the above estimates, though they do not
resolve the present Africa-Sinai motion. Most important, their results and those of
(Reilinger et al. 2006) reveal an overall rotation of the region surrounding the DST
relative to Europe about an Euler pole at the north of the Nile Delta. This profound
insight has important implications regarding the regional plate motions, but since
this applies to a scale this is outside the scope of the present work.
In summary, the foregoing account shows that the plate kinematic setting of the
DST, known is general outline, provides a framework of integrating data from its
various parts, but refinement of the present models is still desirable.
116 Z. Garfunkel
5.5 Shallow Structure of the Dead Sea Transform
The DST is not a perfect small circle in map view, so its lateral motion inevitably
produces misfits between the edges of the bordering plates, which cause local
transtension or transpression (Figs. 5.1 and 5.2, Quennell 1959; Garfunkel 1981).
This produces a variety of secondary structures, similar to those found along other
major strike slip fault zones (Crowell 1974; Mann et al. 1983; Şengör et al. 1985;
Harding et al. 1985). Transtension arises where the major strike slip fault line bends
or steps in the same sense as the fault slip (releasing bend). This produces rhombic
depressions – pull-apart basins (rhomb grabens) – that grow by becoming longer, so
their length cannot be less than the lateral offset during their development (Fig. 5.2a).
Thus, when the slip rate is known, the lengths of pull-apart basins put constraints on
their ages. Their growth also increases the area enclosed by the bordering plates
(Fig. 5.2b). Where major strike slip faults bend or step opposite to the sense of slip
(restraining bends), transpression arises, which will produce folds, thrusts, or horsts.
Such secondary structures appear all along the DST. The larger secondary structures
are well over 10 km long and thus developed over several million years, so the pat-
tern of major faults delimiting them must have persisted over these time intervals.
The major faults are actually zones of much fracturing, several hundred meters
wide, and along them much shorter structures (1 km to tens of meters long) are
developed. Their small size suggests growth in short periods, probably much shorter
Fig. 5.2 Secondary structures along the DST. (a) conditions for transtension and transpression.;
(b) Increase in are during pull-apart formation. (c) structural relations along southern (transten-
sional) part of DST (See text for discussion)
than 1 Ma, which points at rearrangement of the fractures on which the slip along
the fault zones occurred at any given time.
In what follows only the larger secondary structures will be examined. Because
of the position Euler pole of the DST, transtension or transpression dominate along
its southern and northern parts, respectively (Fig. 5.1), so they will be treated
separately.
5.5.1 Southern Part of the Dead Sea Transform
This part of the DST, south of Lebanon, is mostly marked by a prominent 5–20 km
wide valley (transform valley), mostly with uplifted flanks, in which all or most of
the lateral motion takes place. The valley floor is largely covered by very young
sediments, so the deeper structure is inferred from drilling and geophysical data.
Along the valley the most conspicuous structures are longitudinal faults of two
types (Garfunkel 1981; Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham 2001, Fig. 5.2c): (a) normal
faults that extend along most of the valley margins, and (b) left stepping strike slip
or oblique slip faults within the valley that delimit a string of pull-apart basins. Also
present are faults extending across the transform valley. Recent reviews (Ben-
Avraham et al. 2008, 2012) summarize many geophysical data along this part of the
DST, focusing on the subsurface. Below is an updated review of the structure in the
upper crust integrating a wider set of geological and subsurface data and relating it
to the lateral offset.
5.5.1.1 The Sinai Triple Junction Area
The southernmost part of the DST is now marked by the ca. 30 km long Hume
Deep pull-apart basin (Fig. 5.3a, Ben-Avraham et al. 1979). It is separated from the
Gulf of Elat (‘Aqaba) by the Tiran strait saddle formed by transpression, east of
which reef terraces on the Tiran Island, probably <2 Ma old, were uplifted up to ca.
500 m above sea level (Garfunkel 1981; Goldberg and Beyth 1991). In the SW the
NNE-SSW trending DST structures are cut off near the northern extremity of the
Red Sea axial depression by the NW-SE trending faults that characterize the entire
width of the Red Sea basin and the Suez rift (Cochran 1983, 2005; Garfunkel 1987;
Gaulier et al. 1988; Mart and Hall 1984). Moreover, while the Bouguer anomaly
over the Hume Deep pull-apart is strongly negative, like over the other pull-apart
basins along the DST, a positive Bouguer anomaly characterizes the Red Sea basin
(Ben-Avraham et al. 1979; Ben-Avraham 1985; Cochran 2005). This reflects the
transition to a crust that was shaped by plate separation rather than in a strike-slip
regime.
The early stages of the DST history in this area are recorded by the very early and
younger Miocene marine sediments, 0.5–1 km thick known in Midyan and on the
southern tip of Sinai (Fig. 5.3a, Dullo et al. 1983; Garfunkel 1987; Cole et al. 1995;
118 Z. Garfunkel
Fig. 5.3 The southern part of the DST. (a) present situation. (b): reconstruction of 40 km lateral
offset (close to end Miocene). (c) Reconstruction of the entire transform offset. Abbreviations: QF
el Quweira faults, ZF Zofar fault
Hughes et al. 1999). These beds cover the southern ends of belts of strike-slip faults
along the two sides of the Gulf of Elat that were active in the Miocene (further
discussed in Sect. 5.5.1.2), and fill a depression in Midyan. Restoration of the lateral
motion (Fig. 5.3c) eliminates the Gulf of Elat (between these fault belts) and also
aligns the uplifted edges of Sinai and NW Arabia, which shows that before forma-
tion of the DST they formed a continuous fault-controlled margin of the very young
Red Sea-Suez basin. When the DST formed this margin was breached by a ca.
50 km wide belt of NNE-SSW trending strike slip faults. The above mentioned
Miocene beds formed in a marine embayment over the southern part of this belt, so
their age constrains the inception of the DST to the Early Miocene. The most sub-
siding area in Midyan (up to >2 km of sediments) was located 20–30 km east of the
break that developed into the Gulf of Elat, but it did not extend much to the north.
The later history of these features is treated below (Sect. 5.5.1.2).
5.5.1.2 The Gulf of Elat (‘Aqaba) Segment
This segment comprises the ca. 180 km long depression under the Gulf and also the
fault belts along its uplifted margins (Fig. 5.3a). The faults in these belts displace
left laterally the ca. 20 Ma old Red Sea dikes, proving that they belong to the DST
system (Eyal et al. 1981). Lateral offsets of individual faults range from ca. 1 km to
>10 km (Eyal et al. 1981); the largest offset, ca. 20 km, probably occurred on the
Al-Quweira Fault in SW Jordan (Segev 1984). The total offset reached 40–50 km.
Pre-transform sediments and continental Miocene beds are preserved in small pull-
aparts along these faults, which proves that faulting occurred before the sediment
cover was eroded from the higher standing areas next to these depressions. On the
other hand, strike slip faults that extend to the Gulf are truncated by normal faults
along its coast, while inland some faults are truncated by an erosion surface or over-
stepped by (undated) continental sediments. In Midyan the younger Miocene beds
are not visibly displaced by the marginal strike-slip faults. These features indicate
that the strike slip faults along the Gulf flanks were active early in the DST history
and then the lateral motion was distributed in a wide zone, but later (late in the
Miocene?) they became inactive and the lateral motion was concentrated along the
depression occupied by the Gulf of Elat (‘Aqaba).
The Gulf is delimited on both sides by active normal faults that extend close to
its coasts (not shown on Fig. 5.3a for clarity). Within the Gulf three large pull-aparts,
well expressed in the bathymetry, are developed between major longitudinal left-
stepping strike slip faults (Fig. 5.3a, Ben-Avraham et al. 1979; Ben-Avraham and
Garfunkel 1986; Ben-Avraham et al. 2008, 2012). The upper ca. 1 km of the sedi-
ment fill, imaged by seismic reflection, records continuing, downward increasing,
syn-depositional deformation (tilting, faulting, and in the south also arching), but as
the age of the sediments is not constrained, detailed interpretation of the deforma-
tion history (e.g. Ehrhardt et al. 2005) are very doubtful. Several narrow ridges in
the southern pull-apart may express diapirs of Miocene evaporites (Ben-Avraham
et al. 1979) that probably formed next to the Miocene low of Midyan.
Given the lateral offset accommodated in the marginal shear zones, the lateral
offset within the Gulf hardly amounted to ca. 2/3 of the total offset. The lengths of
the pull-aparts (ca. 40 km, 35 km and 60 km, from north to south) show that they
could accommodate only a part of the total DST offset (see Fig. 5.2). This suggests
that they formed some time after initiation of the DST, which is supported by recon-
struction of part of the motion (Fig. 5.3b). A negative Bouguer anomaly, up to ca.
−100 mgal over the pull-aparts (Ben-Avraham 1985), indicates ≥5 km thick sedi-
ment fills. However, the negative anomaly extends also over the relatively shallow
part of the Gulf west of the southern pull-apart, indicating that a thick sediment fill
exists beneath this area as well. This is interpreted as showing that this area was part
of a subsiding pull-apart earlier in the evolution of the Gulf, which is supported by
the reconstruction of part of the motion (Fig. 5.3b).
Thus, initially the lateral motion along the southernmost part of the DST was
distributed over a wide belt of closely spaced strike slip faults that extended in the
120 Z. Garfunkel
north to the central Negev-Sinai shear belt (Fig 5.3c). Later, in the late Miocene
(?), lateral motion became concentrated in the middle of this belt where the Gulf
of Elat depression developed, while the faults along its margins became inactive.
As the active faults along the Gulf lead to transtension (Garfunkel 1981), which is
not seen along the marginal strike slip fault zones, this history appears to express
increasing separation of the flanking plate edges along this part of the DST, which
can be related to eastward shifting of the Sinai-Arabia Euler pole (Garfunkel 1981,
see Sect. 5.4).
5.5.1.3 The Southern and Central Arava Valley (Wadi Araba) Segment
This segment extends from the Gulf of Elat to the Dead Sea basin (Fig. 5.3a,
Garfunkel et al. 1981; Bartov 1994; Ten Brink et al. 1999; Frieslander 2000; Avni
et al. 2000; Calvo 2002). In the south, it is separated from the onland northern end
of the Gulf of Elat depression by a weakly transpressional structural saddle that is
crossed obliquely by the Evrona Fault. North of it the little studied Yaalon basin
pull-apart, marked by a ca. 60 km long negative gravity anomaly, is developed
between the left stepping Evrona Fault and Arava Fault (Fig. 5.3a). Its southern half,
5–6 km wide, is expressed by a land-locked depression that records continuing sub-
sidence. Farther north the basin narrows to 2–3 km and has no topographic
expression, so it is not clear whether it still subsides. The subsurface distribution of
Cretaceous beds revealed by drilling in the middle part of the basin indicates a ca.
40 km left lateral offset along its western border fault, so the rest of the lateral
motion must have taken place farther east (Bartov 1994).
North of the Yaalon basin exposures of the pre-transform series of the western
DST flank extend eastwards as far as the Arava Fault (Frieslander 2000), forming a
ca. 20 km long structural saddle between the Yaalon basin and a ca. 8–9 km wide
graben farther north that is delimited by the Arava Fault on the east and the Zofar
Fault on the west (Fig. 5.3a, Bartov 1994; Bartov et al. 1998; Calvo 2002). This
graben is filled by a few kilometers of Miocene continental beds (Hazeva Formation).
Seismic data show that the pre-transform series beneath this fill, to a distance of at
least 35 km north of the Yaalon basin, is the same as that of the western DST flank,
but differs markedly from that exposed a short distance east of the Arava fault
(Frieslander 2000; Ryberg et al. 2007). The juxtaposition of different sections
across the Arava fault indicates a large lateral offset along this fault.
Originally the graben between the Arava and Zofar Faults extended to the north-
ern Arava. There it continued to subside and became a part of the Dead Sea basin,
but its part south of the transverse Buwirida Fault ceased to subside and was tilted
westward, probably during a phase of local transpression, exposing ca. 2 km of its
Miocene fill (Fig. 5.3, Bartov 1994; Calvo 2002). The age of this event is con-
strained to the late Miocene or somewhat later, as it postdates the eroded Miocene
beds (Hazeva Formation) but predates the hardly disturbed unconformably overly-
ing Pliocene fluviatile beds (Arava Conglomerate; Avni et al. 2000). A few other
transpressional structures are developed in this area (Fig. 5.3b, Garfunkel et al.
Fig. 5.4 The Dead Sea basin. Top: Cross section along basin axis. Bottom: main structural features.
Li Lisan Diapir, Sd. Mount Sedom diapir
1981; Galli 1999). A related observation is that in (Early?) Pliocene times a stream
originating in the eastern DST flank − the Edom river − flowed across this part of
the central Arava Valley and transported characteristic pebbles to the Negev (Ginat
and Avni 1994), probably signifying a period of local uplift, due to transpression, of
this part of the Arava Valley.
The tectonic situation changed in Late Pliocene-Quaternary times, leading to
formation of the present topographic low position of the Arava Valley. This is evi-
denced by the development at that time of a series of NNE-SSW to N-S striking
normal faults (sometimes with a minor left lateral component) in a ca. 30 km wide
belt west of the northern Yaalon basin and of the more northern part of the Arava
Valley (Fig. 5.3a, Avni et al. 1994). These faults are believed to record a young
increase of transtension along the southern part of the DST, resulting from an east-
ward shift of the Euler pole, as discussed above (Sect. 5.4).
5.5.1.4 The Dead Sea Pull-Apart Basin
The Dead Sea basin, ca. 150 km long, formed between the left stepping left lateral
Arava Fault and Jericho Fault (Fig. 5.4, Quennell 1959; Garfunkel 1981; Garfunkel
and Ben-Avraham 1996, 2001; Ben-Avraham et al. 2008, 2012). It is topographi-
cally well expressed and is also outlined by a conspicuous negative Bouguer anom-
aly gravity which records the extent of the thick basin fill (Ten Brink et al. 1993). It
122 Z. Garfunkel
is the longest pull-apart basin along the DST and the only one that is longer than its
total lateral offset. The basin began to subside already in the Early Miocene
(>16 Ma), as noted above (see 5.4). Data from outcrops and wells show that the
basin fill comprises three divisions: Miocene silici-clastics (Hazeva Formation); lat-
est Miocene-early Pliocene evaporites, mainly halite (Sedom Formation); post-
evaporitic lacustrine and fluvial sediments, mainly clastics (Kashai and Crocker
1987; Horowitz 1987; Gardosh et al. 1997; Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham 2001; and
references therein).
Available seismic reflection and well data (Neev and Hall 1979; Kashai and
Crocker 1987; Ten Brink and Ben-Avraham 1989; Garfunkel and Ben-Avraham
1996; Al-Zoubi and ten-Brink 2002; Larsen et al. 2002; Ginzburg et al. 2006; Ben-
Avraham et al. 2008, 2012) allow an updated interpretation of the basin structure
(Fig. 5.4). They show that it is dominated by an 8–10 km wide central trough that
formed between the extensions of the Arava and Jericho faults, in which the lateral
motion takes place. It is separated from the uplifted and little deformed transform
shoulders by marginal blocks, wider on the western side. Several transverse faults
extend across the basin. The fill of the central trough thickens northward from a few
km in the central Arava Valley to ca. 12 km near the transverse Amatzyahu Fault
(Khunayzira Fault). Farther north, south of the Lisan diapir, the top of the basement
is 13–14 km deep (Ginzburg and Ben-Avraham 1997). These figures are compatible
with recent seismic refraction data (Ten Brink et al. 2006; Mechie et al. 2009; ten
Brink and Flores 2012). North of the Amatzyahu Fault the base of the evaporite
series is at a depth of 3–3.5 km and deepens to 6 km northward (Ginzburg et al.
2006). As here the pre-transform series is at most ca.3 km thick − its thickness on
the adjacent western basin margin − the pre-evaporite Hazeva Formation is inferred
to be 5–7 km thick. This is much more than in boreholes near the basin margins,
implying great early subsidence of the central trough.
The evaporitic series is present only north of the Amatzyahu Fault (Khunayzira
Fault) where post-Hazeva subsidence was greatest. It was deposited over a short time
interval, perhaps no longer than 2–3 Ma (Zak 1967). The original thickness, probably
reaching ca. 2 km, was modified by the growth of the Sedom diapir, Lisan diapir, and
smaller disapirs (Fig. 5.4). Superimposed on the northern part of this area is the box-
shaped depression now occupied by the waters of the Dead Sea, which defines the
extent of the greatest young subsidence that could not yet be filled by sediments.
The available seismic reflection profiles do not reveal much deformation of the
basin fill. Broad roll-overs are seen north of the Shezaf Fault and Amatzyahu Fault
(Khunayzira Fault) (Fig. 5.4b), suggesting that these faults are listric, but this cannot
be resolved from the published seismic data. Smaller scale deformation is not discern-
ible, though considerable deformation is expected beneath the basin (see Sect. 5.5.1.7).
The deep structure of the northern part of the basin, now under the waters of the
Dead Sea, is hardly known. A seismic refraction line along its western side records
a basement depth of 5.5–7 km (Ginzburg and Ben-Avraham 1997), but this probably
represents the marginal blocks where the basement is expected to be 5–6 km deep
according to the En Gadi 2 well (Fig. 5.4). The Bouguer anomaly over the central
trough is much more negative than along the seismic profile, suggesting a thicker fill
and thus a considerably deeper basement. On the other hand, 2–3 km north of the
Dead Sea the basement is only ca. 3 km deep and shallows northward according to
seismic and borehole data (Lazar et al. 2006; Al-Zoubi et al. 2007). How the base-
ment depth changes it is not known. The data from north of the Dead Sea further
show that there the pre-transform sedimentary sequence of the eastern DST flank
extends beneath the Jordan Valley as far west as the Jericho Fault. Moreover, farther
south the magnetic anomaly of the eastern basin flank extends over the Dead Sea,
whereas the anomalies of the western flank are truncated along the marginal step
(Frieslander and Ben-Avraham 1989). This shows that the Jericho Fault accommo-
dated the entire lateral transform offset, and also that considerable lateral motion
occurred on its southward continuation along the western side of the central trough,
probably at least as far south as the site of strong deformation at ca. lat 31°16′
(shown as star in Fig. 5.4, Bartov and Sagy 2004).
The growth of the Dead Sea basin was accompanied by igneous activity on its
flanks. Along the eastern margin 9–5 Ma old basalt flows and younger small vents
and flows are present (Steinitz and Bartov 1991). West of its southern part a 6.4 Ma
old dike and a nearby vent are present. In addition, a short-wavelength magnetic
anomalies north of the Lisan diapir (Frieslander and Ben-Avraham 1989) most
likely record small igneous bodies inside the basin.
5.5.1.5 The Southern Jordan Valley
This little studied segment (Fig. 5.4) extends to ca. 70 km north of the Dead Sea
where it narrows to < 4 km at the Bet Shean saddle. Its young fill is much thinner
than in the Dead Sea according to gravity anomalies (Ten Brink et al. 1999). The
southern part of the Jericho Fault, which extends along the valley floor, records
transpression (Garfunkel 1981; Rotstein and Bartov 1989; Gardosh et al. 1990). Ca.
25 km north of the Dead Sea the Zahrat el-Qurein (Grain Sabt) half dome next to the
Jericho Fault (Fig. 5.4) exposes ca. 350 m of tilted Miocene (?) coarse clastics (base
not seen), unconformably overlain by a basalt flow and by young Quaternary sedi-
ments (Bender 1974). The basalt records magma ascent along the DST trace. The
margins of the southern Jordan Valley are controlled by normal faults. In the east
they trend close to N-S, but in the west their trends are variable, and some branch
into the western flank of the valley (Fig. 5.4).
5.5.1.6 The Central and Northern Jordan Valley
This segment extends ca. 90 km north of the Bet Shean saddle to Lebanon. It
comprises the Kinnarot-Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) basin (Kinnarot-LK basin)
the Korazim saddle, and the Hula basin (Fig. 5.5). It differs from the more southern
segments by its more complex structure, by the occurrence of much igneous activity
both along the DST and on its flanks, and by the considerable deformation of its
western flank.
124 Z. Garfunkel
Fig. 5.5 The northern Jordan Valley and Lebanon segments of the DST. AF Almagor fault, HB
Hula Basin, JF Jordan Gorge fault, Ko. Bl. Korazim block (saddle), L. Kin. Lake Kinneret, Kin. B.
Kinnarot Basin, R Rosh Pina drillnole, Rach. F. Rachaya fault, Ser. F. Serghaya fault
Here the oldest exposed structure related to the DST is seen in a ca. 40 km long
and up to 10 km wide low (also called the Tiberias sub-basin) on the western DST
flank (Fig. 5.5). Its fill, up to 1 km thick, begins with 17–9 Ma old basalts (Lower
Basalt) (see 5.4) interfingering with fluviatile-lacustrine sediments (Hordos
Formation), together 400–750 m thick, overlain by continental and some marine
sediments and volcanics, with ca. 5.2–4.0 Ma old flows (Cover Basalt) forming the
top of the series (Schulman 1962; Shaliv 1991; Heimann et al. 1996).
Nearby the ca. 50 km long Kinnarot-LK basin formed along the main strand of
the DST, with a ca. 5 km thick fill south of Lake Kinneret according to gravity data
(Ben-Avraham et al. 1996). The 4.25 km deep Zemah 1 well (Fig. 5.5; Marcus and
Slager 1986; Mittlefehldt and Slager 1986; Horowitz 1987) bottomed in Middle
Miocene conglomerates (with basalt clasts), overlain by sediments that include Late
Miocene and early Pliocene evaporites (980 m), mainly halite, which formed when
an arm of the Mediterranean reached the DST from the west, and extended south-
ward to the Dead Sea basin. The evaporites are intruded by gabbro sills (total thick-
ness ca. 1.1 km), and are overlain by Pliocene volcanics broadly coeval with the
Cover Basalt. The occurrence of igneous rocks, more voluminous than on the basin
flanks, indicates preferential magma ascent along the DST. Seismic reflection data
and mapping show that after extrusion of the Pliocene basalts the basin fill south of
Lake Kinneret was deformed into broad folds with amplitudes reaching 1 km, and
the fold crests were much eroded (locally down to the cover basalt), before being
covered by a thin veneer of very young sediments. The deformation is interpreted as
resulting from a young phase of transpression (Rotstein et al. 1992; Heimann and
Braun 2000). In addition, very tightly folded Early Pleistocene beds were revealed
in excavations at the Ubeidiya prehistoric site (Picard and Baida 1966), but the
young cover obscures the extent of this type of folding.
In contrast, the more northern part of the Kinnarot-LK basin beneath Lake
Kinneret subsided up to 2 km and was faulted in post-Cover Basalt times (Fig. 5.5,
Ben-Avraham et al. 1996; Hurwitz et al. 2002; Reznikov et al. 2004). The main
young structure is a graben, striking N-S, crossed by transverse faults, many of them
ending up section. The part of the lake west of the graben is crossed by NW-SE
striking faults that extend into the Galilee.
The Korazim saddle north of Lake Kinneret is separated from the basin under the
lake by a major transverse fault zone (Fig. 5.5, Hurwitz et al. 2002). This saddle is
underlain by a high standing block of pre-transform rocks (revealed by drilling) that
is covered by 50–300 m of Neogene sediments overlain by 5.0–3.5 Ma old Cover
Basalt, which in the north are covered by still younger flows that erupted through
the plateau (Fleischer 1968; Horowitz 1973; Belitzky 1987; Heimann and Ron
1993; Weinstein 2012). Thus here too the DST served as a preferred path for magma
ascent. The Korazim saddle is strongly faulted, with the fault blocks having rotated
11 ± 4° ccw on vertical axes according to paleomagnetic data (Heimann and Ron
1993). On the east the Jordan Gorge Fault zone (Fig. 5.5, Garfunkel et al. 1981;
Harash and Bar 1988) – the northward extension of the fault on the eastern side of
the Kinnarot-LK basin – marks a prominent geologic discontinuity between the
Korazim saddle and the Golan Heights (Michelson and Lipson-Benitah 1986).
126 Z. Garfunkel
Its straight trace and the lateral offset of historic and Holocene features (Ellenblum
et al. 1998; Marco et al. 2005) show that this fault is the site of the ongoing lateral
motion. Seismic reflection data show that it dips westward, indicating local
transpression (Rotstein and Bartov 1989). The Almagor Fault west of the Jordan
Gorge Fault (Fig. 5.5) is not continuous, so it could not accommodate much lateral
motion, but is probably also active. The western boundary of the Korazim saddle is
obscured by the Cover Basalt, but a fault with an irregular trace extends along this
contact (Belitzky 1987). However, a structural discontinuity between the strongly
deformed saddle and the less faulted western transform flank must extend along this
boundary. The absence of a through-going fracture suggests there is no young
lateral motion along this fault.
The Kinnarot-LK basin is difficult to interpret as a pull-apart, because it is not
obviously related to left stepping strike slip faults. A critical point is that the pre-
transform section under the Korazim saddle, penetrated by the Rosh Pinna 1 borehole,
is offset ca. 50 km left laterally relative to the western DST flank (Freund et al. 1970;
Hurwitz et al. 2002). Thus during a substantial part of the DST history lateral motion
occurred along the western side of the Korzaim saddle, so originally the Kinnarot-LK
basin could have developed as a pull-apart basin between left stepping faults: one west
of the Korazim saddle and the other along the east side of the basin, the latter having
extended southward to the Bet Shean saddle. At some stage this tectonic setting
changed, as now lateral motion is identifiable only along the eastern side of the
Korazim saddle. The young transpression south of Lake Kinneret probably formed
during the tectonic change. The very young deformation under Lake Kinneret is pro-
bably linked to the coeval deformation of the Galilee (Hurwitz et al. 2002, see below).
The Hula basin, north of the Korazim saddle, formed between the left stepping
Jordan Gorge fault and Yammouneh Fault, so it is interpreted as a pull-apart basin,
(Fig. 5.5; Heimann and Ron 1993; Sneh and Weinberger 2003; Weinberger et al.
2009, 2011). The Notera 3 well (T.D. 2,781 m, Fig. 5.5) in the basin’s center crossed
a fill of sediments and basalt flows. At ca. 2,340 m a ca. 4.3 Ma old flow overlies an
8.8 ± 0.2 Ma old flow that, in turn, overlies red beds and interbedded basalts (base not
reached) (Horowitz and Horowitz 1985; Heimann and Steinitz 1989). This shows that
the present Hula basin subsided only since ca. 4.3 Ma ago, after a >4 Ma long period
of no subsidence. Such a young age can be expected in view of its small length (ca.
15 km). The pre-ca. 9 Ma series is ca.1 km thick according to gravity data (Rybakov
et al. 2003). Fault slivers near the NW corner of the Hula basin expose a strongly
folded Late Miocene or older series, >400 m thick, of lacustrine beds and conglomer-
ates built only of Eocene clasts (Kefar Giladi Formation; Glickson 1966; Sneh and
Weinberger 2003; Weinberger et al. 2009). The structural setting in which these series
formed was obliterated, but it probably differed from the present setting. The younger
fill of the Hula basin fill is mostly flat, but in Pleistocene times a diagonal NE-SW
striking fault associated with folding formed within the basin, while along its continu-
ation NW of the basin several small uplifted structures formed (Schattner and
Weinberger 2008; Heimann et al. 2009; Weinberger et al. 2009, 2011). These authors
interpreted these structures as a result of young eastward shifting of the Euler pole,
which caused southward expansion of the transpressive segment of the DST.
The area west of the central and northern Jordan Valley, including the Galilee,
the Yizreel Valley (Esdarelon Valley), and the Tiberias sub-basin, is crossed by
E-W, SSE-NNW, and NW-SE trending normal and oblique slip faults that formed
while the DST was active. Here only a few major points can be mentioned. The
trends of Middle Miocene faults in the Tiberias sub-basin and the Yizreel Valley
form large angles with the DST (Shaliv 1991), but they do not extend east of it,
which shows that at that time the DST was already a structural boundary.
Paleomagnetic data reveal that the Miocene and Pliocene faulting west of the
DST was accompanied by large rotations of the fault blocks about vertical axes,
which led to overall E-W shortening and N-S extension of the Galilee (Ron et al.
1984). Since mid-Pliocene times ca. E-W trending normal faults dominated the
structure of the southern half of the Galilee which led to N-S extension (Matmon
et al. 2003). GPS data were interpreted by Sadeh et al. (2012) as showing that
now the northern Galilee moves northward at a rate of 1 mm/year relative to the
area south of the Yizreel Valley. Though close to the limit of resolution, this
agrees with the structural evidence. The N-S extension (≥5 km) of the western
DST flank decreases the lateral transform offset farther north. Some faults extend
from the Galilee into Lake Kinneret (Fig. 5.5, Hurwitz et al. 2002). The resulting
N-S extension due to these faults may have led to the young deformation and
subsidence of Lake Kinneret, which is quite distinct from the transpression north
and south of it.
The strong faulting of the western flank of this segment of the DST is considered
to express its deformation when it moved laterally along the pronounced bend of the
DST trace at the transition between its northern and southern parts. In contrast, only
mild faulting affected the Golan Heights east of this segment of the DST (Fig. 5.5,
Shulman et al. 2004; Meiler et al. 2011).
5.5.1.7 The Deformation Along the Southern Part of DST
The foregoing summary shows how the shallow structure along the DST was
related to the plate kinemtics. It also reveals that most of the time and along most
of the southern part of the DST the lateral motion and related deformation took
place in an up to a few tens of kilometers wide zone. Only at the central Arava
saddle and the Bet Shean saddle was the overall motion close to pure strike slip in
narrow zones. Elsewhere the lateral motion took place in wide deformed zone,
mainly on left stepping strike slip faults that deviate slightly clockwise from the
overall transform. This produced varying amounts of transtension that led to the
growth of a string of conspicuous pull-aparts (rhomb grabens) combined with
normal faulting along the margins of the transform valley (Fig. 5.2c, Garfunkel
1981). Plate kinematic considerations and the structural history show that the
transtension increased with time (see 5.4). This was achieved by structural rear-
rangements, well seen in the south, while in the Arava Valley and farther north by
growth of pull apart basins combined with an increase in the role of the marginal
normal faults.
128 Z. Garfunkel
The foregoing discussion focused on the shallow structures, but the features of
these structures have also significant implications for processes at deeper level,
especially when integrated with geophysical data. This topic is largely outside the
scope of the present paper, but since such an analysis is rarely followed, a few points
are presented below.
The deformation seen on the surface is expected to extend at least through the
entire crust. This is supported by seismic data from the central Arava Valley which
show that there the DST extends through the entire crust (Weber et al. 2004, 2009)
and also by the difference between coeval volcanics across the DST near the
Korazim plateau, which raises the possibility the DST motion affects the magma
sources well below the Moho (Weinstein 2012). Here only a few implications of the
shallow structures for the deeper deformation and some questions that they raise can
be briefly discussed.
The most conspicuous deformation occurs during the growth of the pull-aparts.
Most revealing are the data about the Dead Sea basin. As explained above, the
southern part of the Dead Sea basin (in the Arava Valley) is floored by the continu-
ation of its western flank, while in its northern part the eastern DST flank extends
under the entire basin width (Fig. 5.4). Since the lateral offset along the DST moved
these areas apart by ca. 105 km along the basin axis, the floor of the intervening part
of the basin must have been stretched and thinned. This is confirmed by seismic and
gravity data (ten Brink et al. 2006; Mechie et al. 2009) which show that the Moho
under both the basin’s center and it’s flanks is at about the same depth – ca. 33 km.
As the basin fill is up to 12–14 km thick, the crystalline crust under the middle part
of the basin is only 22–20 km thick, compared with 30–32 km under the basin
flanks. Similar arguments apply also to the deep Gulf of Elat and the Kinnarot-LK
basins, where the Moho is not deeper than under their flanks according to gravity
data, but there the crustal thinning is probably smaller than under the Dead Sea
basin. Stretching of the floors of pull-aparts is expected also in view of the increase
in area during their formation (Fig. 5.2b), and it also explains how the lateral slip
along the pull-aparts is transferred from their SE to their NW extremities (Garfunkel
and Ben-Avraham 1996, their Fig. 6).
Stretching of the crust under the basins should deform the basins’ fills. The
distribution of earthquake foci under the Dead Sea basin and their source mecha-
nisms (Aldersons et al. 2003; Hofstetter et al. 2007, 2008) show that complex brittle
deformation occurs beneath the entire basin width in both the upper and the lower
crust, though the deformation pattern is difficult to infer. However, the structures
known in the shallow parts of the basin fills (e.g. Gulf of Elat and Dead Sea) – trans-
verse faults and downward increasing dips – probably can not account for the entire
basins’ growth, so this issue still requires further study.
If the crust beneath the major basins was modified only by stretching, then the
basins would be strongly isostatically under-compensated because of the presence
of a thick low-density of sediment fill. Exact local compensation of such narrow
structures is not expected, but the continuing great subsidence of strongly under-
compensated basins and the support of large deviations from isostatic equilibrium
are difficult to explain (cf. Ten Brink et al. 2006). However, the occurrence of
igneous rocks along the DST (e.g. in the Zemah-1 well, the Zahret el-Qurein
dome north of the Dead Sea, and the sources of the magnetic anomalies in its
middle) and on its flanks raises the possibility that basalt intrusions in the stretched
middle or even shallow crystalline crust contribute to decreasing the mass deficit.
Noteworthily, seismic reflection studies (ten Brink et al. 2006; Mechie et al. 2009)
show that beneath the middle of the Dead Sea basin material with upper crustal
velocities forms a much smaller fraction of the crystalline crust than under the
basin flanks. This is difficult to explain by mechanical stretching alone, but can
arise if basic intrusions are emplaced into the lower velocity/lower density mate-
rial of the upper half of the original crust. Underplating by igneous rocks was also
inferred in the Imperial Valley, California, and the Baikal rift (Fuis et al. 1984;
Nielsen and Thybo 2009).
Thinning of the crust beneath the basins would also influence the thermal regime.
The thinned crust under the basins supplies less heat than the intact crust of their
flanks, which should be taken into account while interpreting the data. As this is a
shallow effect, it will be expressed in the heat flow after a period shorter than the
DST history (in contrast to thermal effects originating well below the Moho). The
heat flow of 38 mW/m2 under the northern Dead Sea is similar or lower than that on
its western flank (Ben-Avraham et al. 1978; Eckstein 1979; Schütz et al. 2012). In
the northern Gulf of Elat the heat flow is 66 ± 30 mW/m2, similar to 60.3 ± 3.4 mW/
m2 found east of ‘Aqaba, and in Lake Kinneret it is 74 ± 4 mW/m2, higher than in the
Galilee (Ben-Avraham et al. 1978; Eckstein 1979; Förster et al. 2007). In these
places the thinned crust contributes less to the heat flow at the surface than the intact
crust under the transform shoulders. Thus, to account for the observed values, the
heat flow from the mantle under the basins may well be higher than under their
shoulders. On the other hand the occurrence of earthquakes in the lower crust under
the basins (Aldersons et al. 2003) shows that the temperature there is low enough to
allow earthquake generation (probably no more than 350–400 °C in the lower crust).
More data and modeling of the thermal regime are required to integrate these
considerations.
Pull-apart basin formation was also studied by finite element thermo-mechanical
models that (Sobolev et al. 2005; Petrunin and Sobolev 2006) and by analogue
modeling (e.g. Smit et al. 2010, 2011; Wu et al. 2009 and references therein).
Though the models require further refinement to include the effects of lateral struc-
tural variations, changes of basin area, igneous activity, and changes of plate
motions, they provide very important quantitative insights. However, as they apply
to the entire crust and/or lithosphere, their discussion is outside the scope of this
paper. Such models should eventually also yield insights into the structural changes
that took place along the DST.
In summary, the foregoing considerations reveal how the shallow structures along
the DST and their history are related to the motions of the flanking plates, and also
show that combining the data regarding the shallow levels with geophysical data
from deeper levels can provide insights that are otherwise very difficult to obtain.
130 Z. Garfunkel
5.5.2 Northern Part of Dead Sea Transform
The northern part of the DST differs from its southern part by having a sinuous trace
and by the significant deformation of its flanks (Fig. 5.1) which is interpreted as
expressing transpression. This part of the DST was less studied than the southern
part, and its nature was much debated. Here an updated summary of the main
available information and unresolved problems is attempted.
5.5.2.1 The Lebanon Restraining Segment
The conspicuous ca. 150 km long Yammouneh Fault extends along the east side of
the Lebanon range, and is marked by a ca. 2 km wide damage zone in which much
mesoscale fracturing, small scale folding, abundant horizontal slickensides, and
small pull-aparts are developed (Heybroek 1942; Hancock and Atiya 1979; Gomez
et al. 2006), pointing at the importance of lateral motion. It is believed to take up
practically the entire lateral offset of the DST, because the difference between the
stratigraphic sections across its southern extremity reveals a lateral offset similar to
the offset farther south (Quennell 1959; Freund 1965; Freund et al. 1970; Walley
1983, 1988; Sneh and Weinberger 2003). GPS data (Reilinger et al. 2006; Gomez
et al. 2007; Le Beon et al. 2008; Alchalbi et al. 2010) also show that it is the main site
of lateral motion in Lebanon. Thus it is not possible to accept interpretations tending
to minimize the role of lateral motion on the Yammouneh Fault (e.g. Dubertret 1970).
As the strike of the Yammouneh Fault − 30°–35°NE − deviates considerably
clockwise from the ca. N-S strikes of the main DST faults to the south and north, it
forms a prominent restraining bend (Quennell 1959; Freund et al. 1970). The result-
ing transpressive deformation extends to distances of 30–50 km on the two sides of
the fault, and is combined with significant vertical motions. This produced the inter-
nally deformed, structurally and topographically high, Lebanon and Hemon-Anti
Lebanon anticlinal ranges (up to ca. 3 km high) and the synclinal Bekaa Valley
syncline between them (Fig. 5.5).
The Bekaa Valley syncline (Fig. 5.5) is a structural low whose axis forms a small
angle with the Yammouneh fault. Many smaller scale NE-SW to NNE-SSW trend-
ing tight folds (some with overturned flanks), i.e. deviating clockwise from
Yammouneh fault, are developed along its flanks (Dubertret 1955; Renouard 1955;
Beydoun 1977). This structural pattern points at left-lateral shearing of the entire
Bekaa syncline combined with some transverse shortening. The southern part of the
syncline is crossed by a longitudinal fault (Hasbaya Fault) whose nature (strike-
slip?) is not well constrained; it is sealed by 3.5–2.2 Ma old basalts. Small occur-
rences of basaltic volcanics occur also farther north along the Bekaa Valley syncline
(Dubertret 1955), recording magma ascent close to the DST trace.
The Hermon-Anti Lebanon anticlinal ridge, ca. 30 km wide, comprises several
secondary anticlines and is crossed by the Rachaya Fault and Serghaya Fault
(Fig. 5.5). The Rachaya Fault branches off the eastern border fault of the Hula basin
and extends ca. 40 km through the western flank of the Hermon-Anti Lebanon
anticlinal range. The presence of a small pull-apart along its southern part (Heimann
et al. 1990) indicates left lateral slip, probably only a few km in view of the limited
length of this fault. The Serghaya Fault, ca. 100 km long, extends northward from
the SE side of the range across its anticlinal crest, but it becomes indistinct before
reaching the Bekaa Valley syncline (Fig. 5.5). Gomez et al. (2001, 2006) identified
up to 6 km of left lateral offsets of streams, which indicate continuing lateral motion.
Walley (1998) suggested a total offset of ca. 25 km, which appears excessive in view
of the limited northward extent of the fault, but this needs further study. In the south
this fault extends to a strongly deformed area on the SE side of the Hermon-Anti
Lebanon range where Kopp and Leonov (2000) reported thrusting of Jurassic beds
over Neogene-Quaternary beds, though they gave no details. The relations of these
structures with the Hula basin are hidden by the volcanics of the Golan Heights.
West of the Yammouneh Fault the 30–35 km wide Lebanon range comprises
several folds and flexures, mostly sub-parallel to the range, and it is also consider-
ably faulted (Fig. 5.5). The southern part of Lebanon is crossed obliquely by the ca.
35 km long Roum Fault which splays from the Yammouneh Fault and is still active
(Nemer and Meghraoui 2006). It displaces left laterally river valleys, but the offset
decreases northward (Garfunkel 1981) until there is no visible geologic discontinu-
ity in the pre-DST rocks along its northward prolongation, though much fracturing
is recorded (Dubertret 1955; Khair 2001; Griffiths et al. 2000). Thus it appears that
the Roum Fault does not extend northward to the Mediterranean coast, so it could
not have taken up much of the DST lateral motion (e.g. suggested by Butler et al.
1998). Rather, in view of the very different cross sections of the folds on its two
sides it is interpreted as marking a discontinuity in the internal deformation of
Lebanon. The area west and SW of the Roum Fault is the northern continuation of
the Galilee. It is crossed by NE-SW faults that probably have a right lateral slip
component, like the faults with this trend in the adjacent part of the Galilee.
The northern 2/3 of Lebanon forms a major anticlinal arch that is cut by a system
of NNE-SSW trending oblique-right lateral faults, offsetting the axis of the arch and
the monocline along its western side (Fig. 5.5). As each segment of the arch has a
different cross section, it appears that the arch and the faults developed coevally.
Some of these faults extend to the coast where they offset Neogene sediments, which
shows that they acted coevally with the DST. Because of the lateral DST motion this
area must have moved along the bend at the northern end of the Yammouneh fault,
so its overall shape must have changed as the motion progressed and it must have
been internally deformed, but the mechanism needs further study.
Paleomagnetic data show that the rocks building the Lebanon and Hermon-Anti
Lebanon ranges rotated on vertical axes. In northern Lebanon Gregor et al. (1974)
found rotations of ca. 60° and ca. 30° ccw (relative to the paleomagnetic poles of
Africa) of Jurassic and Early Cretaceous rocks, respectively. Ron (1987) treated
these data as a single population and inferred an average rotation of 53° ± 10° ccw,
while in southern Mt. Hermon he found that Early Cretaceous rocks rotated
69° ± 13° ccw, and Baer et al. (1998) found rotations of ca. 60° ccw. In contrast,
Henry et al. (2010) found an average ccw rotation of 28° ± 6.4° in all exposures of
132 Z. Garfunkel
Aptian and Albian rocks in the Lebanon and Hermon-Anti Lebanon ranges, and in
many sites they also identified a Neogene re-magnetization indicating rotations of
11° ccw. Ron et al. (1984) found a ccw rotation of 22° ± 9° in the Galilee next to
the border with Lebanon, which very likely applies also to the northward continu-
ation of this domain into Lebanon (SW of the Roum fault). The age of these rota-
tions is not constrained directly, but in analogy with the Galilee (Sect. 5.5.1.) they
probably occurred mainly during the activity of the DST. However, Henry et al.
(2010), following Gregor et al. (1974), advocated also a pre-Aptian rotation of ca.
30° ccw in northern Lebanon. Clearly, more paleomagnetic data and structural
studies are needed.
5.5.2.2 The Syrian Segment
North of Lebanon the DST is also transpressional, but since it trends close to N-S
the transverse shortening is much smaller (ca. 1/3) than in Lebanon segment. The
two segments are separated by a structural low covered by the ca. 6–4 Ma old
Homs (or Shin) basalts (Fig. 5.6, Mouty et al. 1992; Sharkov 2000). West of the
DST the volcanics cover an erosion surface that cuts gradually down from Neogene
sediments near the coast to Late Jurassic beds next to the DST fault, but ca. 2 km
farther east the volcanics cover Middle Cretaceous beds, stratigraphically several
hundred meters higher (Ponikarov 1964; Mouty et al. 1992; Chorowicz et al. 2005;
Gomez et al. 2006). This shows that here an eroded structural step existed along the
trace of the DST before basalt extrusion, indicating that here the DST was active
already before the end of the Miocene. This, and the evidence regarding the lateral
motion provided by the Miocene sections farther north (see 5.4) show that the
Syrian segment of the DST was active considerably earlier than envisaged by
Rukieh et al. (2005).
At the transition from Lebanon to the Syrian segment the principal DST fault
changes strike quite abruptly, and a ca. 12 km long depression (pull-apart?) is devel-
oped (Fig. 5.6). Farther north the principal fault zone is 2–3 km wide and comprises
several fractures. Ongoing activity is proven by the offset of a Roman aqueduct and
of morphologic features, and also by minor structures (Trifonov et al. 1991;
Meghraoui et al. 2003; Chorowicz et al. 2005; Rukieh et al. 2005), confirming that
this is where the lateral DST motion now takes place. The shape of the Homs volca-
nic field strongly suggests that it was offset left laterally, estimated as >20 km by
Chorowicz et al. (2005) but considerably less by Rukieh et al. (2005). An exact
figure cannot be given because the edges of the volcanic field are much eroded.
Farther north the fault zone bifurcates into two major branches that enclose the
ca. 50 km long and ca. 15 km wide Ghab basin pull-apart which has an up to 3.5 km
thick young fill (Fig. 5.6, Dubertret 1955; Ponikarov 1964; Kopp and Leonov 2000;
Brew et al. 2001a, b; Rukieh et al. 2005). Data from shallow wells show that the
basin formed already in the early Pliocene, but the deeper part of its fill, still
undated, may well be older. Structural interpretations vary. Brew et al. (2001a, b)
inferred that the eastern boundary fault was sub-vertical and the western boundary
Fig. 5.6 Northern segments of the DST. AL Amik Lake, AmFZ Amanos fault zone, EAFZ East
Anatolian fault zone, GF Gölbaşi fault, KV Karasu Valley
fault was normal, while Kopp and Leonov (2000) reported steep dips and mesoscale
structures indicating reverse faulting along both boundary faults, and Zanchi et al.
(2002) reported older thrusts and younger E-W extension. Clearly, further struc-
tural study is needed.
North of the Ghab basin the principal fault zone comprises a ca. 15 km wide belt
of narrow N-S trending horsts and grabens formed by post-Miocene faulting
(Fig. 5.6, Ponikarov 1964). Most of the faults in this zone are inactive, as at the
northern end of the Ghab basin they are covered by 1–2 Ma old basalts that are not
visibly faulted (Ponikarov 1964; Ponikarov et al. 1969; Sharkov 2000), while in the
north they do not displace the fill of the Amik basin. East of this belt the possibly
active Afrine Fault branches off the Ghab basin, (Fig. 5.6), but its role is insuffi-
ciently known. Only the westernmost fault, the prolongation of the western border
fault of the Ghab basin, is active and extends northward to the Amik basin (Fig. 5.6,
Senel 2002; Karabacak et al. 2010; see 5.5.2.3).
134 Z. Garfunkel
The transform eastern DST flank is little deformed, but its western flank – the
uplifted Jebel Ansarieh (An-Nusseriyeh) range (coastal range of Syria) – is much
faulted (Ponikarov 1964; Ponikarov et al. 1969). Kopp and Leonov (2000) concluded
that the dominant NE-SW striking faults had a right-lateral slip component. They sug-
gested that here blocks rotated ccw on vertical axes, like in N Lebanon, but this has
not been investigated. In the north the Nahr al-Kabir (Latakie) graben (see Sect. 5.3)
separates the Ansariyeh range from the Bassit block on which Late Cretaceous ophio-
lites are present (Fig. 5.1, Ponikarov 1964; Rukieh et al. 2005). The motion between
these blocks is not known, but there is no obvious evidence that it was significant.
5.5.2.3 The Northern End of the DST
The northernmost, Turkish, segment of the DST is dominated by the Karasu graben,
with the Amik basin in its southern part, which are flanked by the high standing
Amanos Block in the west and the NE corner of the Arabian plate on the east
(Fig. 5.6). These form the direct northward prolongation of the DST structure far-
ther south. Left lateral motion continues northward from the Ghab basin into the
Amik basin (Senel 2002; Karabacak et al. 2010), and farther north along the promi-
nent NNE-SSW trending Amanus Fault Zone along the west side of the Karasu
graben. Offset lava flows along this fault zone record left-lateral slip at a rate of ca.
2.9 mm/year in the last 1 Ma (Rojay et al. 2001; Seyrek et al. 2007, superseding
previous studies). Lateral slip may also occur along the eastern side of the Karasu
graben (Perinçek and Çemen 1990; Westaway and Arger 1996), but was not docu-
mented in detail. Tatar et al. (2004) inferred Quaternary shearing of the entire
Karasu graben based on paleomagneric data, but this is very doubtful – the spread
of the data is very large and supporting structural data are lacking.
The Amik basin (Fig. 5.6) is filled with 3–5 km of Neogene-Quaternary beds that
overlie Late Cretaceous ophiolite nappes, but farther north the Karasu graben floor
exposes the ophiolites and other pre-transform rocks (Coskun 1994; Perinçek and
Çemen 1990; Rojay et al. 2001; Senel 2002). This requires a major structural step
on the northern side of the Amik basin, but its history was not documented. Young
volcanics, often of Quaternary age, extend along the Karasu graben, again demon-
strating magma ascent along the DST. In the west the SW-NE trending Hatay gra-
ben (Asi graben) branches off the Amik basin (Fig. 5.6). It subsided and was crossed
by NE-SW normal faults already in middle and late Miocene times, but the present
graben structure was shaped in Pliocene-Quaternary times (Boulton et al. 2006).
The ca. NNE-SSW striking faults delimiting the Karasu graben, which appear to
be the direct northward continuation of the DST structures, end abruptly in the north
against an E-W trending anticline (near the town Kahraman Maras) (Fig. 5.6, Karig
and Kozlu 1990; Yilmaz 1993; Senel 2002). Early plate tectonic models (Freund
1965; Wilson 1965; McKenzie et al. 1970) interpreted this area as a triple junction,
called the Maras triple junction, between the Arabia and Sinai plates and the Alpine
zone of plate convergence. However, the site of plate convergence – the front of the
Alpine allochthonous nappes – is situated 20–25 km north of Maras (Fig. 5.6), and
the intervening area exposes Cenozoic sediments typical of the margin of the
Arabian platform, which are deformed by N-S compression. Thus the situation is
more complex than suggested in these models.
During the early stages of the DST activity, in the Miocene, continuing plate
convergence along the Bitlis suture east of it led to emplacement of allochthonous
nappes on the northern edge of the Arabian platform, while west of the DST plate
convergence took place north of the Eastern Mediterranean basin (Şengör and
Yilmaz 1981; Yilmaz 1993; Robertson 2001a, b; Robertson et al. 2004). In (late?)
Early Miocene times, close to the time of the DST initiation, the Cyprus arc became
the southern part of the orogenic belt and was thrust over the Levant basin (northern
part of Sinai plate) along the Latakiya Fault zone (Fig. 5.6, Eaton and Robertson
1993; Robertson 2001b; Vidal et al. 2000; Hall et al. 2005a, b). Thus when the
lateral DST motion began in the early Miocene, a triple junction as envisaged in the
above models, probably existed along the belt of plate convergence.
However in the Pliocene, 3–4 Ma ago, the geometry of the plate boundaries near
the northern end of the DST changed as westward extrusion of Anatolia became
important and the left lateral East Anatolian Fault Zone, not yet recognized in the
early works, Formed, but a slow change may have begun earlier. It cut obliquely the
Alpine nappe front (i.e. the older) and continued into the NE corner of the Arabian
platform, becoming the new Arabia-Anatolia plate boundary east of the DST
(Fig. 5.6, Şengör et al. 1985; Bozkurt 2001; Hubert-Ferrari et al. 2009). This event
was of great significance for the evolution of the entire East Mediterranean region
(Le Pichon and Kreemer 2010), but is outside the scope of the present work, so only
effects near the DST will be considered here. West of the DST plate convergence
continued along the Cyprus arc, so the question arises as to how the new plate
boundary east of it continues westward.
The lateral offset along the East Anatolian Fault Zone is estimated as 20–30 km
(Şaroĝlu et al. 1992; Westaway and Arger 1996). Offset alluvial fans some distance
east of the DST, and GPS data record a young slip rate of 10–11 mm/year (Cetin et al.
2003; Reilinger et al. 2006; Reilinger and McClusky 2011; Le Pichon and Kreemer
2010), compatible with its young age. In the Early Pleistocene and earlier times the
Kyrenia-Misis line and perhaps other structures took up some of the convergence
(Fig. 5.6, Karig and Kozlu 1990; Hall et al. 2005a, b; Robertson 2001a, b; Robertson
et al. 2004), but now the Anatolia-Levant basin convergence is concentrated on the
Latakiya Fault Zone according to seismicity and GPS data (Papazachos and
Papaioannou 1999; Reilinger et al. 2006). When the East Anatolian Fault Zone formed
it must have linked with these structures and a component of lateral slip was most likely
added to the motion along them, but how this happened is still not well understood.
Yilmaz (1993 his Fig. 2) and Senel (2002) show that ca. 100 km east of the
Karasu graben the East Anatolian Fault Zone splits into several branches that
extended north of its presently active trace – one that extends into the northern part
of the Amanos Block and offsets its eastern boundary, and another one still farther
north (Fig. 5.6). A fault may also extend close to the front of the Alpine nappes,
where left lateral motion was reported, though its importance is debated (Karig and
Kozlu 1990; Robertson et al. 2004). When these faults were active the motion along
136 Z. Garfunkel
the western part of the East Anatolian Fault Zone was partitioned between them, so
the link with the structures west of the Amanos Block was apparently through a
wide zone, in part extending north of the Amanos Block (Fig. 5.1), but the details
still require clarification. As these faults have no clear morphologic expression they
are probably inactive at present.
Now the Gölbaşi Fault (GF, Fig. 5.6), marked by a prominent physiographic
feature, appears to be the active western strand of the East Anatolian Fault Zone
(Perinçek and Çemen 1990; Şaroĝlu et al. 1992; Westaway and Arger 1996). It
reaches the Amanus Fault Zone, but an active fault that forms its westward continu-
ation into the Amanos Block was not clearly documented, and the two fault-
controlled morphological margins of this block are not visibly offset. Thus it is not
easy to accept that the Gölbaşi Fault continues westward across the Amanus Block
(as suggested by Westaway 2003; Westaway et al. 2006), but this requires further
study. Possibly, the motion along the Gölbaşi Fault is linked to the slip along
Latakiye Fault Zone via the Amanus FZ and the Hatay graben (Perinçek and Çemen
1990; Şaroĝlu et al. 1992; Mahmoud et al. 2013).
The stress regime in the area provides additional insights and tends to support
this picture. Field studies by Over et al. (2004) reveal that in Recent-Quaternary
times a regime of left lateral transtension prevailed along the Hatay graben and the
Amanus Fault Zone, compatible with GPS data (Reilinger and McClusky 2011;
Mahmoud et al. 2013) and with the normal slip component on the Amanus Fault
Zone inferred from field data by Perinçek and Çemen (1990), Rojay et al. (2001),
Seyrek et al. (2007) (but not with thrusting on this fault, which Adiyaman and
Chorowicz (2002) inferred from remote sensing data). However, if the Amanus
Block were rigidly attached to the more southern part of the western DST flank, i.e.
to the Sinai plate, then the plate kinematics require transpression in this area
(Garfunkel 1981). Thus now this block appears to be decoupled from the Sinai plate
and seems to move approximately like the Cyprus arc, which is supported by GPS
data (Reilinger and McClusky 2011; Mahmoud et al. 2013). The decoupling prob-
ably drives the young activity of the Hatay graben, and possibly also the Nahr el-
Kebir graben, though both are relatively old structures. However, this situation is
probably young and has not yet produced significant motion relative to the western
DST flank, as there is no identifiable geologic discontinuity along these structures.
Indeed, the field data (Over et al. 2004) reveal a regime of transpression in Pliocene-
Miocene times, indicating considerable coupling of the Amanos block with the
western DST flank south of it. However, if the coupling was rigid most of this time,
then 20 km or more of transverse shortening across the northernmost DST is
expected. Seyrek et al. (2007) concluded that this was the case, but since their plate
kinematic model conflicts with the GPS data (see above) and they did not present
field data to constrain the amount of E-W shortening, this interpretation requires
further study. Thus it seems that the Amanos block tended to behave independently
for some time, and recently tends to become attached to the Cyprus arc. So a new
Hatay triple junction seems to develop, though it utilizes older structures.
If a significant part of the lateral motion of the East Anatolian FZ was transferred
westwards north of the Amanos Block, this would truncate the northern segment of
the DST and juxtapose it with a sliver of the Arabian platform that was originally
located farther east. Before that the DST was closer to the area (ca. long 36.75°E)
where the E-W trending nappes end more western structures farther west strike ca.
NE-SW (Fig. 5.6, Yilmaz 1993; Karig and Kozlu 1990; Senel 2002; Robertson
et al. 2004). This raises the possibility the shape of the nappe front was influenced
to some extent by the DST and not only by the curved shape of the northern bound-
ary of Arabia.
In summary, because of the young changes in the tectonic pattern, the young
activity along the Turkish segment of the DST cannot be described in terms of the
Sinai-Arabia plate boundary and a simple “Maras triple junction”, but incomplete
understanding of the new tectonic pattern in this area does not allow reliably restore
the older situation. However, since this segment is the direct continuation of the
DST structures farther south, and since it is the only major structure that could have
accommodated the lateral offset across the north of the Syrian segment, it is believed
that it should be considered as part of the DST during the early stages of its develop-
ment. Additional data are required to resolve these issues.
5.5.2.4 Deformation Along the Northern Part of the DST
The foregoing account shows that deformation along the Lebanon and Syrian
segments of the DST is complex, but is considered as a result of transpression
because the DST trace deviates clock-wise from the local direction of the relative
left lateral plate motion. However, this does not apply to the young history of the
Turkish segment because of the young changes in this area (as explained in 5.5.2.3).
Given the orientation of the Yammuneh fault, plate kinematics requires that its
flanks should be shortened by up to 40–50 km (Freund et al. 1970; Garfunkel 1981).
The actual figure is probably less, because deformation of the adjacent Palmyrides,
which began in the Cretaceous but continued during the time of DST activity
(Chaimov et al. 1990; Searle 1994; Walley 1998; Kopp and Leonov 2000; Brew
et al. 2001a; Rukieh et al. 2005) would bend the DST trace. However, even if a large
part of the total ca. 20 km NW-SE shortening of the Palmyrides contributed to bend-
ing of this fault, this would amount to <10°, so the remaining transverse shortening
of the fault flanks is still expected to be ca. 30 km or more.
The folding of the Yammouneh Fault flanks (Fig. 5.5) indeed records transverse
shortening, but the fold geometry shows that it is doubtful that this could have
exceeded 5 km. Thus the rest must be explained in another way. The most likely
mechanism is rotation on vertical axes of small blocks between sub-parallel strike
slip faults, as is revealed by paleomagnetic data. The large ccw rotations (Ron 1987;
Henry et al. 2010) provide a very efficient mechanism of large-scale regional defor-
mation (Ron et al. 1984; Garfunkel and Ron 1985). Such a deformation practically
preserves surface area, so in contrast with folding and thrusting it does not lead to
crustal thickening. Rotations of 25°–30° ccw, as Henry et al. (2010) found in
Lebanon, would reduce the E-W dimension of the deformed zone while increasing
its N-S length by tens of percent (Freund et al. 1970; Garfunkel and Ron 1985). So
138 Z. Garfunkel
Fig. 5.7 Sketch to show how the amount of lateral offset of marker is affected by deformation of
the margins of a strike-slip fault. The light domain is affected by fault-parallel extension, while the
darker gray domain is also sheared. Along the main fault the offset varies, and a fault/shear zone
develops along the margin of the deformed domain
qualitatively these results can explain the shortening perpendicular to the DST in
Lebanon. The rotation assumed by Ron (1987), based on fewer data and combining
measurement from different area, is more difficult to apply, so this matter needs
clarification. Along the Syrian segment transpression was much smaller: some fold-
ing occurred NE of the Ghab depression, and considerable faulting affected its west-
ern flank, and here too rotation of blocks about vertical axes was suggested, but
there are no data directly supporting this assumption.
If the left lateral shearing by block rotations indeed results in N-S lengthening of
its western flank, then left-lateral shearing must arise along its junction with the
adjacent undeformed Levant basin north of the Galilee, as is seen on Fig. 5.7. In this
case the lateral offset on the main fault is reduced (see 5.5.1.6) while the total left
lateral offset parallel to the DST appears to be preserved (Fig. 5.7). Deformation of
the continental margin was indeed observed and was interpreted as related to the
deformation onland (Schattner et al. 2006; Carton et al. 2009; Elias et al. 2007), but
its magnitude needs further testing.
The considerable deformation of the flanks of the Lebanon and Syrian segments,
affecting an up to 65–75 km wide zone at shallow levels, is expected to affect also
deeper crustal levels. The occurrence of volcanics close to and along the main trace
of the DST from the central Jordan Valley and northward, which shows that the DST
was a preferred pathway for magma ascent, raises the possibility that igneous
intrusions and resulting heating could have influenced the mechanical properties of
the crust under the DST flanks. However, these issues cannot be further explored in
the absence of relevant data.
5.6 Discussion
The foregoing summary, though often limited because of insufficient data, highlights
some basic questions regarding the plate setting, history, and development of the
entire DST, and also stresses major challenges facing future research.
As noted, the DST was superimposed on, and cuts through, older structures.
There is no known evidence that any part of it reactivated older structures, though
such structures could have influenced the shape of its trace and the details of defor-
mation along it. The bend along the Yammouneh Fault formed where the DST
crosses a Permian-Triassic rift underlying the Palmyrides, so it is likely that it was
influenced by the older rift. The known data do not resolve differences in the times
of initiation of the various parts of the DST before they joined to form a through-
going plate boundary. However, if such early lateral offsets were significant (more
than a few kilometers) along distinct segments, then next to their terminations visi-
ble structures should have formed to accommodate the lateral motions. The only
known structures that could have formed (or were accentuated) in this way are the
Palmyrides, which could have allowed some early slip on the southern part of the
DST. However, since the Palmyrides were deformed also during the DST activity,
this could have amounted to only a fraction of the entire ca. 20 km of NW-SE short-
ening east of the DST trace, which is a small fraction of the total offset. This could
delay the northward propagation of the DST by a few Ma only, which is compatible
with the lines of evidence mentioned above, that point at its Miocene activity
(including its northern pars: see 5.3, 5.5.2.2, and 5.5.2.3). Therefore it is impossible
to accept models proposing that the northern part of the DST did not form before the
Late Miocene, i.e. when a large lateral offset had already taken place along its
southern part (e.g. Kopp and Leonov 2000; Homberg et al. 2010).
It is concluded, therefore, that the entire DST formed over a short, though
unknown, period, most likely late in the Early Miocene (17–18 Ma ago). Since then
the DST acted as a continuous transform boundary between the Sinai and Arabia
plates, except for its Turkish segment (see below). Thus the Sinai-Arabia plate kine-
matics provides a framework for its interpretation. Since this boundary has an irreg-
ular shape in map view, its two sides cannot fit when lateral motion progresses. The
result will be either transtension or transpression, depending on the relation between
the direction of the relative plate motion and the local trend of the plate boundary.
This will lead to different types of deformation along the DST and its flanks that
varies along its trace. The foregoing review showed that the kinematics of the Sinai-
Arabia plate motion, as constrained by combining data from the DST itself with
data from the Red Sea, indeed provide a framework for relating the major structures
along the DST to the irregularities of its trace.
140 Z. Garfunkel
In particular, the formation and growth of a string of deep depressions along the
southern part of the DST expresses its predominantly transtensional character that is
predicted by the plate kinematics. These basins accommodate most of the oblique sep-
aration of its flanks which increases as the lateral motion along the DST progresses. In
contrast, along the northern part of the DST, where plate kinematics predicts transpres-
sion, the deformation is very different and extends some distance into the DST flanks.
The expected shortening normal to the DST trace is accommodated by folds with axes
sub-parallel to the main DST fault and especially by rotation of fault blocks on vertical
axes, which is proven by paleomagnetic data. It turns out that the latter type of defor-
mation leads to a result not appreciated before: it can increase the N-S length of the
western DST flank, which in turn will produce left lateral shearing along the junction
with the undeformed Levant basin (see 5.5.2.4 and Fig. 5.7). This comes at the expense
of the lateral motion along the main DST faults, which may well explain the decrease
of the lateral offset observed along the northern part of DST (see 5.3).
Thus, qualitatively the observed structures can produce the effects expected from
plate kinematic considerations, but like in many places in the world is difficult to
constrain. Therefore it cannot be ascertained that the observed structures indeed
agree quantitatively with the plate kinematic predictions, especially regarding the
northern part of the DST (e.g. the ca. 30–40 km shortening perpendicular to the
DST across the Lebanon segment or the apparent northward decrease of the lateral
offset). This difficulty led to many discussions, but it cannot be taken as an argu-
ment against the occurrence of large lateral motion along the northern part of the
DST (as suggested e.g. by Dubertret 1970). Rather it reflects incomplete quantita-
tive understanding of the te observed structures − a frequently encountered diffi-
culty. This remains a major challenge for future research.
The northernmost (Turkish) segment of the DST requires separate treatment.
Since the structures of the Turkish segment are the direct continuation of the DST
farther south, and they are the only known structures that could have taken up the
lateral DST offset documented just south of them, they are considered to have been
in integral part of the DST during its early history. However, ca. 4 Ma ago the plate
configuration and motions in that region changed when the westward extrusion of
Anatolia became important and the East Anatolian FZ formed. This affected the
northernmost portion of the DST, so now it is no longer a part the Sinai-Arabia plate
boundary. Though the young kinematics in this area is insufficiently known, it
appears that the Amanos Block – its western flank – was decoupled from the Sinai
plate and tended to join the Anatolian plate (i.e. the Cyprus arc). Originally this
block was probably attached, though perhaps not rigidly, to the western DST flank,
given the Miocene age of the Hatay graben and the Nahr el-Kebir graben south of
it. The young tectonic changes obscured the structural relations in this region during
the early stages of the DST history, including its interaction with the Alpine oro-
genic belt. Much more data are required to resolve these issues.
In summary, the Sinai-Arabia plate kinematics provides a useful framework for
analyzing the history and deformation along the DST and its flanks, though many
issues need further study. However, full understanding of the structure – e.g. the
fault arrangement, the partitioning of deformation between different structures, the
width of the deformed zones, and changes in the structure with time – requires
dynamic modeling that takes into consideration the mechanical properties of the
crust (and the entire lithosphere), the regional stress field, igneous activity, and other
processes in the underlying mantle.
Acknowledgements I am very grateful to X. Le Pichon and A. Sagy for their helpful reviews.
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Chapter 6
Pleistocene Strain Partitioning During
Transpression Along the Dead Sea
Transform, Metulla Saddle, Northern Israel
Ram Weinberger
Abstract The geometry and kinematics of deformation in the Metulla Saddle, a

~4 km-wide and ~9 km-long highly deformed structure across the Dead Sea
Transform (DST) between the Hula basin and the Lebanese restraining bend (LRB)
is reviewed. The variety of structures exposed provides a unique opportunity to
investigate the style and sequence of deformation associated with a transform plate
boundary through geological mapping, meso-structural and anisotropy of magnetic
susceptibility (AMS) analyses, interpretation of high resolution seismic reflection
profiles, and radiometric dating. Cretaceous and Tertiary rocks within the Metulla
Saddle are faulted and folded into broad anticlines and synclines, with more intense
localized shortening manifested by tight folds and thrust duplexes. There are several
structural features that attest to the dominance of a N-S component of shear imposed
on the plate boundary zone, including nearly vertical fault planes, horizontal striae,
alternating throw from one side of the fault to the other, and an assemblage of en-
echelon folds and “positive flower structures”. Kinematic analysis of fault data and
principal AMS axes reveals strain axes, which are compatible with simple shear
deformation along ~ N-S striking left-lateral faults. Numerous structures revealing
the transpressive nature of the Metulla Saddle, including N-S striking reverse faults,
reactivated normal faults with reverse motion, and copious N-S trending folds of
different scales. Kinematic analyses of these features as well as that of principal
AMS axes support distributed E-W shortening within the deformed blocks.
Numerous ~ E-W striking calcite-filled veins emplaced in the Metulla Saddle mani-
fest a perpendicular N-S extension response. The U-Th radiometric ages of calcite
precipitates obtained and K-Ar dating of folded basalts indicate that Pleistocene
R. Weinberger (*)
Division of Geological Mapping and Tectonics, Geological Survey of Israel,
30 Malkhe Israel St., Jerusalem 95501, Israel
Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences,
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
152 R. Weinberger
activity occurred interchangeably along N-S trending strike-slip faults, N-S trending
contractional structures, and ~ E-W calcite-filled veins. The structural analysis provides
evidence for the transition from an early (pre-Pleistocene) phase of pure (non-parti-
tioned) strike-slip motion to a late (Pleistocene) phase of convergent strike slip. The
latter phase is characterized by strain partitioning during transpression, which is dem-
onstrated by discrete left-lateral strike-slip motion across weak N-S faults and the
development of a (mini) fold-thrust belt in response to transform-normal shortening.
The contractional structures that evolved in the Metulla Saddle are best interpreted as
indicating increased convergence along the DST from the Hula basin northward dur-
ing the Pleistocene. The increased convergence might be attributed to a more easterly
position of the Pleistocene pole of rotation between the Arabian plate and the Sinai
sub-plate relative to the pole position describing the total motion in the last 5 Ma.
Keywords Convergent strike slip • Strike-slip partitioning • Transpression

• Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility • Hula basin
6.1 Introduction
Strike-slip deformations commonly deviate from simple shear due to a component

of strain orthogonal to the deformation zone. This leads to transpression (more aptly
named “convergent strike slip”) or transtension, which are deformations of simple
shear and orthogonal shortening or extension, respectively (Harland 1971).
Transpression or transtension occur in a wide variety of tectonic settings and scales
during deformation of the Earth’s lithosphere. On the largest scale, these types of
deformations are an inevitable consequence of relative plate motion on a spherical
surface (Le Pichon et al. 1973; Dewey et al. 1998), i.e., plate slip vectors are not
precisely orthogonal or parallel to plate boundaries. Hence, plate boundary zones
experience oblique plate convergence or divergence at some time during their his-
tory along some part of their length (Dewey 1975). For transforms, transpression or
transtension evolves wherever the trace of the transform does not follow a small
circle of rotation exactly and are mainly pronounced along restraining and releasing
bends. Kinematic models based on homogeneous transpression describe the three-
dimensional nature of continental deformation (e.g., Sanderson and Marchini 1984),
but assume that no major discontinuities exist within the deforming zones (Fig. 6.1a).
Kinematic models of strike-slip partitioning take into account the existence of major
strike-slip faults in the deforming zones, showing the relation between plate motion,
instantaneous strain axes and the degree of strike-slip partitioning during oblique
plate convergence (Teyssier et al. 1995). In non-partitioned transpression, the strike-
slip and shortening components of strain are coupled, resulting in an oblique fault-
ing (Norris et al. 1990), en-echelon folds with axes striking ~20–40° to the main
transform (Aydin and Page 1984; Sylvester 1988), strike-slip duplexes (Woodcock
and Fischer 1986), and maximum shortening oriented 35–45° to the main transform
(Tikoff and Teyssier 1994). In contrast, for partitioned transpression the strike-slip
and shortening components are decoupled into discrete zones of deformation
6 Pleistocene Strain Partitioning During Transpression Along the Dead Sea… 153
Fig. 6.1 (a) Homogeneous (non-partitioned) transpression in which homogenous strain is

accommodated between two obliquely converging ridged blocks. Simple shear component is par-
allel to X-axis, orthogonal shortening is parallel to Y-axis (pure shear component), and extension
is parallel to Z-axis (After Sanderson and Marchini 1984); (b) Partitioned transpression in which
a significant simple shear component parallel to X-axis is accommodated by a discrete sinistral
strike-slip fault (After Teyssier et al. 1995; Dewey et al. 1998)
(Fig. 6.1b). For complete partitioning, the strike-slip component is accommodated

by the bounding, transform-parallel strike-slip faults and the shortening by
transform-normal deformation (reverse faults, folds) distributed within the interven-
ing blocks (Mount and Suppe 1987; Teyssier et al. 1995; Dewey et al. 1998).
The ~1,000 km long Dead Sea Transform (DST) accommodates strike-slip
motion between the Arabian plate and the Sinai sub-plate. It connects the seafloor
spreading in the Red Sea with the continental collision at the Eurasian plate (i.e., the
Bitlis suture). A host of stratigraphic, structural and geochronological evidence
indicates ~105 km of left-lateral offset across the DST since the Early to Middle
Miocene (e.g., Quennell 1959; Freund et al. 1970; Garfunkel 1981; Joffe and
Garfunkel 1987; Sneh and Weinberger 2003a). The DST is divided into three main
sectors (Fig. 6.2): (1) the ~520 km long N-S to NNE-SSW trending southern sec-
tion, linking the Red Sea rift to the Hula basin; (2) the ~140 km long NE-SW
trending section, defined by the Yammunneh fault in Lebanon; and (3) the ~340 km
long, N-S trending northern section from the Ghab basin in Syria into southern
Turkey. In the southern section of the DST, the main faults are commonly shifted to
the west through a series of overlapping, left-stepping, en-echelon segments. This
geometry resulted in the initiation of several rhomb-shaped basins, including the
Dead Sea and Hula basins, and the formation of low, sub-aerial topographic depres-
sions. In the central section of the DST, the right bending of the NNE-striking
Yammunneh fault corresponds to restraining geometry that uplifted the Lebanon
and Anti-Lebanon mountains to 3,000 m above sea level (e.g., Beydoun 1977;
Daeron et al. 2004; Gomez et al. 2006). The transition from the Hula basin to the
Lebanese restraining bend (LRB) is complex, with contractional deformation dis-
tributed across several faults, fractures and folds. The main objective of this paper is
to describe the geometry, kinematics and temporal sequence of deformation in this
critical juncture through geological mapping, meso-structural and anisotropy of
magnetic susceptibility (AMS) analyses, interpretation of high resolution seismic
reflection profiles, and radiometric dating. Further, the variety of structures exposed
Fig. 6.2 Map of the main fault segments of the Dead Sea Transform (DST) zone in northern Israel
and southern Lebanon (After Sneh and Weinberger 2003a). Dashed rectangle marks the Metulla
Saddle study area near the town of Qiryat Shemona. Hula Western Border fault (HWBF) and Hula
Eastern Border fault (HEBF) bound the Hula basin (the present Hula Valley). The concealed Hula
diagonal fault crosses the basin and is marked by a dashed line. Solid circle – Qiryat Shemona
town; YH Yesod HaMa’ala lineament. Inset – plate tectonic configuration resulting in left-lateral
motion across the DST. LRB Lebanese restraining bend
both along discrete fault zones and within intervening blocks provides important
geological constraints for models of transpression and strike-slip partitioning pro-
posed for continental transforms. This paper mainly synthesizes studies that have
been published by Weinberger and co-workers over the last decade (Sneh and
Weinberger 2003a, b, 2006; Weinberger and Sneh 2004; Schattner and Weinberger
2008; Weinberger et al. 2009, 2010; Levi and Weinberger 2011; Nuriel et al. 2010,
2012a, b). It focuses mainly on the Pleistocene phase of deformation, in which
strain partitioning during transpression prevailed along the DST in northern Israel.
6.2 Geologic Setting
The Hula basin is a graben that began as a pull-apart basin at ~4 Ma (Heimann 1990;
Heimann et al. 2009). The basin is bounded by two prominent N-S striking border
faults, the Hula Eastern Border Fault (HEBF) and the Hula Western Border Fault
(HWBF) on its eastern and western margins, respectively (Fig. 6.1). At the south-
eastern end of the Hula basin the Jordan fault zone is the major active strand of the
DST (Garfunkel et al. 1981; Marco et al. 1997; Sneh and Weinberger 2006). Hence,
the HEBF connects the Jordan fault at the south with the Azaz fault at the north
(Fig. 6.1). The HWBF extends northward to the Qiryat Shemona fault. The
NW-striking Margaliyyot fault branches from the HWBF-Qiryat Shemona line at
the northwestern part of the Hula basin. South of the basin the elevated block of
Korazim separates the basin from the Sea of Galilee and other subsided basins along
the southern sector of the DST.
Previous studies show a possible occurrence of several normal faults bounding
the southern end of the Hula basin (Heimann 1990; Rybakov et al. 2003) but no
clear bounding faults at the northern part of the basin (Heimann 1990; Sneh and
Weinberger 2003a; Heimann et al. 2009). A NW-striking Yesod HaMa’ala linea-
ment is expressed as a 1–3 m high scarp in the southern part of the basin. According
to Heimann et al. (2009) this lineament is the present southern bounding fault of the
basin, linking the Jordan fault zone in the east with the HWBF in the west. Schattner
and Weinberger (2008) analyzed seismic reflection and borehole data from the Hula
basin using the ~1 Ma Hazbani Basalt (Mor 1993) as a geological marker. They
encountered several minor NW-striking transverse normal faults at the northeastern
part of the basin, but neither the Pleistocene Hazbani Basalt nor sediments overlying
these faults are displaced by them. Schattner and Weinberger (2008) demonstrated
that a sub-vertical NNW-trending left-lateral strike-slip fault diagonally ruptures the
basin, displacing the Hazbani Basalt. They suggested that during the mid-Pleistocene
the basin entered a new geodynamic phase, in which deformation was controlled by
both the N-S striking border faults and the inter-basin diagonal fault.
Further splaying occurs northwards, where the HWBF-Qiryat Shemona line
branches into the Roum and Yammunneh faults in southern Lebanon (Figs. 6.2 and
6.3; Sneh and Weinberger 2003a, b). Physiographically, the LRB consists of two
distinct mountain ranges: Mount Lebanon and the Anti-Lebanon ranges separated
Fig. 6.3 Geological map of the study area (Sneh and Weinberger 2003b) showing rock units, faults
(solid lines; dashed lines when concealed), two prominent en-echelon anticlines (solid orange
lines); locations of sites referred to in the text (black circles), location of cross Section X-X’
(Fig. 6.4a), locations of seismic profiles (thick solid lines), boreholes (solid diamonds), and main
roads (gray lines). Inset: Division into structural blocks and the bounding faults in the Metulla
by the Beqaa Valley (Fig. 6.1). The Yemmunneh fault delineates Mount Lebanon
from the east, and the Serghaya fault delineates the Anti-Lebanon range from the
west. The total width of the restraining bends exceeds 80 km and it might accom-
modate regional shortening of 10–15 % (Hancock and Atiya 1979). More details
about the transpressional style of deformation of the LRB are given by Freund
(1965), Ron (1987), Butler et al. (1998), Griffiths et al. (2000), Gomez et al. (2006,
2007a, b), Homberg et al. (2010) and Henry et al. (2010). Mount Hermon is another
highly deformed block situated along an oblique segment of the DST known as the
S’ion-Rachaya fault at the northeastern tip of the HEBF (Freund et al. 1970;
Garfunkel 1981; Ron et al. 1990). The small Marjayoun valley (Fig. 6.2) juxtaposed
on the southern tip of the Yammunneh fault is considered by Freund et al. (1968) a
pull-apart basin.
The Qiryat Shemona fault subdivides the area into two main blocks: a western
block, between the Qiryat Shemona and Margaliyyot faults; and an eastern block
between the Qiryat Shemona and Tel-Hay faults (Picard 1952; Glikson 1966;
Weinberger and Sneh 2004; Fig. 6.3). These blocks, known together as the Metulla
Saddle and consisting of highly deformed Cretaceous to Neogene beds, show char-
acteristics of transpression and strike-slip partitioning and are the main focus of this
paper. Figure 6.4a shows a W-E cross section through the western and eastern
blocks, based on a geologic mapping (Sneh and Weinberger 2003a). The width of
the blocks, with an average of ~2 km, reaches a maximum of about 3 km. A set of
faults that strike approximately NE-SW divide the blocks into sub-blocks (Fig. 6.3),
each displaying highly deformed beds, which are sub-vertical in places (Dubertret
1951; Picard 1952; Glikson 1966; Ron et al. 1997; Weinberger and Sneh 2004).
Strata exposed in the western block belong to the carbonate rocks of the Cretaceous
Kurnub and Judea groups. The rocks are folded into a broad syncline, with moder-
ate dips along the eastern limb and vertical beds with tight parasitic folding in the
core of the syncline (Fig. 6.4b). Strata exposed in the eastern block consist of the
Cretaceous Judea Group as well as the Paleogene Taqiye, Timrat, and Bar Kokhba
formations, and the Neogene Kefar Giladi Formation. The latter formation consists
of >400 m of conglomerate and lacustrine sediments (Glikson 1966) that accumu-
lated in a depression adjacent to the HWBF-Qiryat Shemona line during the Late
Miocene – Early Pliocene (Sneh and Weinberger 2003a).
Fig. 6.3 (continued) Saddle. Rock unit abbreviations: Klhn Hatira and Nabi Sa’id fms. (sand-
stone, marl, Neocomian-Barremian), Klei Ein el Assad Fm. (limestone, Aptian), Klir Hidra and
Rama fms. (limestone, marl, chalk, Aptian-Albian), Klkam Kamon Fm. (dolostone, Albian-
Cenomanian); Kudk Deir Hanna Fm., Karkara Mbr. (dolostone, Cenomanian), Kudr Deir Hanna
Fm., Rosh Haniqra Mbr. (chalk, limestone, marl, Cenomanian), Kub Bina Fm. (limestone,
Turonian), Kj Judea Group (limestone and dolostone, undivided, Aptian-Turonian), Tlt Taqiye
Fm. (marl, Paleocene), Kums Mount Scopus Group (chalk, undivided, Senonian-Paleocene), Et
Timrat Fm. (chalk, limestone, Eocene), Ebk Bar Kokhba Fm. (limestone, Eocene), Nkg Kefar
Gil’adi Fm. (conglomerate, limestone, clay, Neogene), Qhu Hula Group, Peg Egel Gravel (Plio-
Pleistocene), Pβm Meshki Basalt (Pliocene), Qβoh Hazbani Basalt (Pleistocene), Qt Tufa
(Pleistocene), Al Alluvium, terrace conglomerates and landslides (Pleistocene – Holocene)
158 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.4 (a) E-W cross section (line X-X’ on Fig. 6.3) based on geologic mapping (Note the
subdivision into eastern and western blocks. See rock units in Fig. 6.3). (b) Cross section at the core
of the western block (Site B, Fig. 6.3; see location in Fig. 6.4a) showing numbered mechanical units
and their associated structures. Horizontal and vertical scales are equal (After Weinberger et al. 2009)
6.3 Indications for a Distributed N-S Shear
Apart from the large, plate-scale observations and arguments in favor of left-lateral
offset across the DST (Quennell 1959; Freund et al. 1970; Garfunkel 1981; Joffe
and Garfunkel 1987; Le Pichon and Kreemer 2010), there are several structural
features in the Metulla Saddle that attest to the N-S component of shear imposed on
the plate-boundary zone in this area. These features include nearly vertical fault
planes, horizontal striae, alternating throw from one side of the fault to the other,
and an assemblage of en-echelon folds and positive “flower structures”. In addition,
kinematic analysis of fault data and AMS axes in the Metulla Saddle reveal strain
axes, which are compatible with simple shear deformation along ~ N-S striking
faults. Those features and analyses are described in more detail below.
6.3.1 Fault Data
Numerous subsidiary faults within the Eocene Bar Kokhba limestone are exposed in
the Kefar Giladi Quarry (Site H, Fig. 6.3), forming a wide zone of brittle deformation
to the east of the Qiryat Shemona master fault. Many of the faults are vertical to sub-
vertical polished surfaces with associated breccia and gouge zones (Fig. 6.5a).
Fig. 6.5 Photographs of structures observed in the field area. (a) Vertical faults in the Eocene Bar
Kokhba Formation exposed in the Kefar Giladi Quarry. The faults strike N-S with sub-horizontal
undulations and slickenside lineations (Site H, Fig. 6.3). (b) Low-angle Metulla thrust fault with
Lower Eocene Timrat Formation in the hanging wall and Neogene Kefar Giladi Formation in the
footwall (at Site L, Fig. 6.3). (c) Oblique photo of folded and thrusted Cenomanian dolostone beds
(Kamon Fm.) exposed in the north facing wall of the Chateau Neff Crusader castle (Site A, Fig. 6.3).
Solid lines mark main thrusts. For detailed interpretation see Fig. 5 in Weinberger et al. (2009). (d)
Polished hand sample taken from a calcite-filled vein within the Bar Kokhba Formation (Site H,
Fig. 6.3), showing bands of calcite parallel to the vein wall (top) and brecciated host rock (bottom)
Lineations on the fault surface appear as either undulating fault grooves or fault striae
(slickenside lineations). Occasionally, pull-aparts, slickolites, and wear-grooves
indicate the sense of motion along the faults. Data were collected from 119 faults
where accurate orientations could be measured, and where the fault striae and
grooves allowed for the measurement of lineations (Site H, Fig. 6.3; see details in
Weinberger et al. 2009). The most abundant set of vertical to sub-vertical faults
strikes ~ N-S (Fig. 6.6; see also Fig. 6a in Ron et al. 1997). A less abundant set of
sub-vertical faults strikes approximately E-W. There are also some shallowly dipping
faults and faults that do not fall within the two main trends. The overwhelming
160 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.6 Fault data collected from the Eocene Bar Kokhba Formation in the Kefar Giladi Quarry
(Site H, Fig. 6.3). Contour intervals are 2 % per 1 % area (From Weinberger et al. 2009).
(a) Contoured poles to fault planes (squares; n = 119) showing that most faults are vertical and
strike between NNE and NNW directions. (b) Contoured fault striae (triangles; n = 119) (Note that
most fault striae are sub-horizontal)
majority (~80 %) of fault striae are sub-horizontal (<30°), indicating a dominant

strike-slip motion, mostly on the ~ N-S striking faults.
A kinematic analysis of the fault data was performed using the FaultKin pro-
gram, which calculates P and T axes for each fault based on fault orientation, striae
orientation and the sense of motion (Allmendinger et al. 2001). The mean P and T
axes approximate the infinitesimal shortening ( S 3 ) and extension ( S 1 ) directions,
respectively, for a population of faults. The analysis included 94 out of 119 faults
that have reliable indications for the sense of motion. The results yield a definitive
fault plane solution with sub-vertical theoretical fault planes striking N-S and E-W
(Fig. 6.7), individual P and T axes generally confined to separate quadrants, and
infinitesimal strain axes characterized by sub-horizontal NW-SE shortening (mean
P-axis of 131°/06°) and sub-horizontal NE-SW extension (mean T-axis of 221°/02°).
The infinitesimal strain axes resolve into a left-lateral strike-slip motion along
the ~ N-S striking fault plane and a right-lateral strike-slip motion along the E-W
striking fault plane. This nearly perfect strike-slip solution along vertical planes
provides a first-order indication for a fault-parallel, simple shear component along
the N-S striking Qiryat Shemona fault zone.
The Tel-Hay fault is a nearly vertical N-S striking fault, bounding the eastern
block on the east. In the southern portion of the fault adjacent to Shehumit Hill
(Fig. 6.3), the Hazbani Basalt in the western side is thrown downward by ~50 m
(Weinberger et al. 2010). This throw decreases northward up to the point where it
alternates, and the Hazbani Basalt in the eastern side is thrown downward (Site J,
Fig. 6.3). This throw alternation is typical for strike-slip faulting. The Tel-Hay fault
Fig. 6.7 Results of kinematic

analysis of fault data
collected at the Kefar Giladi
Quarry (Site H, Fig. 6.3). A
fault plane solution is based
on kinematics of 94 faults.
Infinitesimal shortening ( S )
and extension ( S ) directions
3
1
are indicated (From
Weinberger et al. 2009)
is recognized as a prominent vertical discontinuity in several high-resolution seismic

reflection profiles (e.g., GP-179; Fig. 6.8). In these profiles, curved reflectors toward
the fault plane attest to the strike-component of motion along this fault in addition to
the observed alternating dip-slip component. Fault strands that branch from the par-
ent fault (e.g., at ~150 ms TWT in Fig. 6.8) form faint positive flower structures,
which are also typical for a strike-slip assemblage.
6.3.2 Fold Data
Two prominent NNE-SSW trending, left-stepping, en-echelon anticlines with

wavelengths of several hundred meters are exposed at the southeastern part of the
western block (Site D, Fig. 6.3). The exposed cores of the anticlines are composed
of the Albian Rama Formation, whereas the flanks expose the Albian-Cenomanian
Kamon Formation (Weinberger et al. 2009). The anticlines terminated against (or
are cut by) the Qiryat Shemona fault, forming an angle of ~30° to the fault line.
Folds associated with strike-slip faults are typically arranged in en-echelon patterns
oblique to the principal direction of shears (Sylvester 1988). The arrangement of the
two prominent anticlines here is compatible with a left-lateral motion along the
Qiryat Shemona master fault. A population of small-scale NNE-SSW trending folds
with wavelengths of centimeters to meters in the western block might also have
been formed coevally due to simple shear (Weinberger et al. 2009).
162 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.8 Multi-channel seismic reflection profile GP-179 showing the Tel-Hay fault south of Site
J. A gray layer on the lower panels marks the Hazbani Basalt. See Fig. 6.3 for location of the pro-
file (After Weinberger et al. 2010)
6.3.3 AMS Data
The magnetic susceptibility of rocks results from the combined contribution of

ferromagnetic, paramagnetic, and diamagnetic phases. The minerals are commonly
magnetically anisotropic, depending on their preferred crystallographic orientation
or grain shape. This gives rise to the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) of
rocks, which provides a petrofabric tool by averaging out the orientation-distribution
of all minerals and sub-fabrics in a rock specimen (e.g., Borradaile and Jackson
2010). AMS is describable as a magnitude ellipsoid, with maximum, intermediate
and minimum principal susceptibilities (k1, k2, and k3) as its axes. In many deformed
settings the directions of the AMS axes show a good correlation with the directions
of the principal strain axes (e.g., Borradaile and Henry 1997; Parés et al. 1999).
In diamagnetic rocks, the magnetic fabrics are generally controlled by the alignment
of calcite c-axes. The minimum principal AMS axes k3 are parallel to the c-axes,
indicating the principal shortening directions in the studied rocks (Borradaile and
Henry 1997). Levi and Weinberger (2011) exploited the potential of using diamagnetic
and weak paramagnetic AMS axes as indicators of the directions of principal strain
axes in calcite-bearing rocks, isolating the AMS axes in Eocene and Neogene rocks
that crop out in the eastern block. They found that AMS-based NW-SE shortening
axes were preserved in three sites of weak paramagnetic rocks south of the branching
point between the Har Zefiyya and Qiryat Shemona faults (Fig. 6.9). The AMS
results show a good agreement between finite strain axes inferred from meso-scale
NNE-trending folds and those inferred from k3 AMS axes. The NW-SE shortening
axes and are compatible with left-lateral motion along N-S striking faults (Levi and
Weinberger 2011).
6.4 Indications for Imposed E-W Shortening
There are several structural features in the studied blocks that indicate E-W shortening
due to transpression. The highly deformed beds in these blocks attracted the attention
of previous workers (Dubertret 1951; Picard 1952; Glikson 1966) and were first related
to E-W shortening by Ron et al. (1997) and later by Weinberger and Sneh (2004).
These features include reverse faults, reactivated normal faults with reverse motion,
and numerous N-S trending folds of different scales. In addition, kinematic analysis of
fault data and AMS axes in the eastern block reveal E-W shortening as follows.
6.4.1 Fault Data
The ~ N-S striking Metulla fault is a thrust fault dipping 30° to the east, with the Eocene
Timrat Formation overriding lacustrine beds of the Neogene Kefar Giladi Formation
on the western side of the fault (Site L, Figs. 6.3 and 6.5b). This ‘Andersonian’ thrust
164 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.9 Map of the main fault segments of the DST in the study area and sites with principal
AMS axes (After Levi and Weinberger 2011). The stereograms are lower-hemisphere, equal-area
projections of principal AMS axes k1, k2 and k3 marked by solid squares, triangles, and circles,
respectively. Arrows mark the inferred NW-SE principal shortening (horizontal) at the sites stud-
ied, all of which are based on paramagnetic AMS fabrics
fault indicates an E-W shortening. The NE-striking Har Zefiyya fault dips ~70º south-
eastward (Site K, Fig. 6.3), showing normal separation with the Eocene Bar Kokhba
limestone in the hanging wall and the Cenomanian Karkara beds of the Deir
Hanna Formation exposed in the footwall. However, kinematic indicators (dip-
slip slickenside lineations and small-scale pull-apart basins filled with calcite)
suggest a younger reverse motion along this fault. The reactivation of the Har
Zefiyya fault due to E-W shortening is plausible. Another three prominent N-S
striking reverse faults and several small-scale (~1 m) thrust and back-thrust faults
within an Albian-Cenomanian massive dolostone unit are observed in the “Castle
site” (Site A, Figs. 6.3 and 6.5c). The dip-slip sense of motion along these faults
combined with results from fold analysis attest to E-W finite shortening at this site
(Fig. 6.10; see below).
The abundance of faults with a left-lateral sense of motion may hide infinitesimal
strain axes that were associated with faults characterized by either right-lateral or dip-
slip motion. Hence, Weinberger et al. (2009) analyzed separately 18 faults with right-
lateral senses of motion, as well as 14 faults with striae plunging more than 45°
(dominantly dip-slip motion). The average P-axis of the faults with right-lateral
motion is ESE-WNW, but contouring the P-axes reveals two maxima, one approxi-
mately E-W and the other NW-SE (Fig. 6.11a). The average P-axis derived from
faults with striae plunging more than 45° is ESE-WNW and results in a thrust-fault
plane solution (Fig. 6.11b).
Fig. 6.10 Summary of structural data collected at Chateau Neff Crusader castle (site A, western
block; Fig. 6.3). Small circles represent 95 % confidence intervals. Open symbols are means.
Rectangular – thrusts (n = 10) and back thrusts (n = 7); triangle – hinges of small-scale folds
(n = 18); circle – fold axis based on π-diagram of poles to bedding measured throughout the castle
exposure (n = 26); hexagon – cutoff lines (the intersections of bedding exposed on a fault surface)
(n = 7). Great circle represents the mean axial plane of small-scale folds (n = 13). Arrows indicate
the inferred direction of finite shortening S3 (After Weinberger et al. 2009)
166 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.11 Results of kinematic analysis of fault data collected at the Kefar Giladi Quarry (Site H,
Fig. 6.3). (a) Contoured S axes and fault plane solution for 18 of the 94 faults with a component
3
and
of right-lateral motion. Contour intervals are 2 % per 1 % area; (b) Infinitesimal shortening S
extension S axes and fault plane solution for 14 of the 94 faults with striae plunging more3 than
1
45o (From Weinberger et al. 2009)
6.4.2 Fold Data
The rocks in the western block are folded into a broad (~1.5 km wide) N-S trending
syncline with moderate dips along the eastern limb and vertical beds with tight para-
sitic folding in the core of the syncline (Fig. 6.4b). In the “Castle site” (Site A,
Fig. 6.3), the axis of the anticline is 190°/06° based on a cylindrical best-fit of poles
to bedding measured along the length of the castle moat. The small-scale folds at the
foot of the castle are tight, with typical wavelengths of several to tens of centimeters,
and a mean hinge direction of 181°/15°. The measured fold geometries (hinges, axial
planes, large-scale fold axis) at that site are internally consistent with overlapping
confidence intervals, indicating a roughly sub-horizontal axis trending ~ N-S
associated with ~ E-W shortening (Fig. 6.10). Ten medium to large-scale folds in the
Eocene Bar Kokhba and Neogene Kefar Giladi formations, ranging in wavelength
from several up to several hundreds of meters, were analyzed in the eastern block
based on bedding measurements collected across each structure. The analysis sug-
gests a bimodal distribution, with a dominant cluster centered about 177°/07°
(Weinberger et al. 2009), indicating also E-W shortening.
Shehumit Hill is a north–south trending ridge about 2,200 m long and 230–400 m
wide, uplifted ~85 m above the surrounding plains of the Hula basin (Site E, Fig. 6.3).
The hill consists of several flows of the Hazbani Basalt dated to 1–1.5 Ma (Weinberger
et al. 2010 and references therein). Previous studies interpreted the elevated ridge of
Shehumit Hill as either a fissure eruption (Picard 1952), a tilted block (Schulman
1966) or a local push-up swell (Heimann and Ron 1987). High-resolution seismic
reflection Profile GP-170 (see location in Fig. 6.3) crosses the southern front of
Shehumit Hill (Fig. 6.12). Due to urban development, the western edge of the profile
Fig. 6.12 Multi channel seismic reflection profile GP-170 crossing the buried southern continua-
tion of the Shehumit structure. A gray layer on the lower panel marks the Hazbani Basalt.
Contractional deformation is prominent between 0 and 300 m at ~100 ms TWT (next to Qiryat
Shemona fault 100 m to the west of the profile) and between 600 and 1,000 m (Shehumit anticline).
See Fig. 6.4 for location. Data of Hula 1 and Qiryat Shemona (Q8) boreholes are presented (From
does not cross the Qiryat Shemona fault but reaches to ~100 m away from it. One
prominent reflector is correlated with the top of the upper flow of the Hazbani Basalt
at a depth of 180 m in the Hula 1 borehole. A second prominent reflector is correlated
with the lower flow of the Hazbani Basalt (Fig. 6.12). Contractional deformation in
the form of a faulted anticline is prominent between 0 and 300 m at ~100 ms TWT.
A positive flower structure south of Shehumit Hill between 600 and 1,000 m (at
~100 ms TWT) forms the Shehumit anticline. In between these two structures and
beneath the town of Qiryat Shemona, the Hazbani Basalt is deformed into a syncline
(hereafter, the Qiryat Shemona syncline). A contour map of the top surface of the
Hazbani Basalt was produced by combining topographic outcrop elevations with sub-
surface depths based on high-resolution seismic reflection data (Fig. 6.13; Weinberger
et al. 2010). The map shows that in the northwestern rim of the Hula basin basalt
flows are folded into the two prominent structures, the N-S trending Shehumit anti-
cline and a south-plunging Qiryat Shemona syncline. Both structures indicate E-W
shortening together with strike-slip motion along the related faults (Fig. 6.14).
168 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.13 A contour map of the (possibly eroded) top surface of the Hazbani Basalt (0 m.s.l.
datum) overlying the geological map of the study area. The surface descends in a gentle slope
southward from more than 240 m above m.s.l (outcrops) to 260 m below m.s.l (subsurface).
Deformations of the Hazbani Basalt is concentrated in the western part of the Hula basin, where it
is folded, forming a N-S trending anticline at Shehumit Hill, and a south-plunging syncline under-
neath the town of Qiryat Shemona. The locations of seismic reflection profiles are marked by gray
dotted lines. Inset: Contour map of fundamental resonance frequencies (Zaslavsky 2010) (Note the
discontinuity of the frequencies along the Shehumit fault and its southward extension into the Hula
Valley (From Weinberger et al. 2010))
In light of the new imaging of the Shehumit structure in the subsurface and additional
dip measurements of the Hazbani Basalt in outcrops, it is more appropriate to refer
to the Shehumit structure as a fold rather than a tilted block (Schulman 1966).
Based on Heimann and Ron (1987), the western flank of Shehumit Hill is not
faulted, while its eastern flank is bounded by the Shehumit fault. They attributed the
formation of the Shehumit structure to push-up due to left-lateral motion along the
Fig. 6.14 Schematic representation of the Shehumit structure and related faults viewed from north
to south. Arrows indicate shear and shortening strain components (After Weinberger et al. 2010)
right-bending Shehumit fault. This study shows two faults rather than one running
along the foot of the hill (Tel Hay and Shehumit faults; Fig. 6.3). Based on the seis-
mic data, these faults continue southward into the Hula basin and are interpreted as
strands of a positive flower structure that extends beneath the Shehumit structure
and several kilometers to the south. The possibility that a NE-trending fault located
at the southern foot of the Shehumit Hill could not be rejected. Such a fault could be
part of the splays within the flower structure (Fig. 6.14).
6.4.3 AMS Data
Levi and Weinberger (2011) obtained AMS-based E-W shortening axes in four sites
distributed throughout the study area (Fig. 6.15). They show that the pole of the
great circle along which the W-E oriented k3 axes lie is geometrically and kinemati-
cally related to the ~ N-S fold axes in eastern block and, hence, to E-W shortening.
6.5 Indications for Imposed N-S Extension
Two types of opening-mode fractures, calcite-filled veins and clastic dikes, are
exposed in the Kefar Giladi Quarry (Site H, Fig. 6.3) and Har Zefiyya (Site K,
Fig. 6.3) (Weinberger et al. 2009; Nuriel et al. 2010, 2012a, b). The veins are
170 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.15 Map of the main fault segments of the DST in the study area and sites with principal
AMS axes. Arrows mark the inferred E-W (horizontal) principal shortening at the sites studied.
See legend in Fig. 6.9 (From Levi and Weinberger 2011)
2–60 cm thick and up to >20 m high. The veins are characterized by vertical bands
of calcite, aligned parallel to vein walls (Fig. 6.5d). Many veins consist of fibrous
calcite crystals aligned perpendicular to the vein walls with a tabular geometry.
There is no evidence for shear along the vein walls or internal shear displacement.
Fig. 6.16 Poles to opening-

mode calcite-filled veins
(n = 38) and clastic dikes
(n = 5). The mean plane is
87°/014°. Contouring the data
suggests that two sets exist; a
dominant E-W striking set
(mean of poles at 04°/188°)
and a second possible set that
strikes NW-SE (After
Weinberger et al. 2009;
Nuriel et al. 2012a)
Angular fragments of the Eocene host rock surrounded by calcite cement are
occasionally found within the veins, or between the vein material and the wall rock,
implying a dilational origin (Fig. 6.5d). The clastic dikes are filled with clay or soil
consisting of gravel, silt and pebbles.
The mean plane of the combined population of calcite-filled veins and clastic
dikes in the quarry is 87°/014°. Contouring the data suggests that two sets exist, a
dominant E-W striking set and a second possible set that strikes NW-SE (Fig. 6.16).
The dominant set of veins and clastic dikes thus reflect ~ N-S extension. In some
cases the veins appear to be “utilizing” a pre-existing fault (i.e., plane of weakness),
which may be responsible for some scatter in their orientations and the occasional
NW-SE striking veins.
6.6 Discussion
6.6.1 Timing and Significance of Distributed N-S Shearing
The major structural elements in the study area are two ~ N-S trending strike-slip
faults, the Tel Hay and Qiryat Shemona faults. The latter is associated with numer-
ous subsidiary faults exposed in the Kefar Giladi Quarry, whose kinematics attests
to the dominance of left-lateral strike-slip motion. This result provides an indepen-
dent indication for the plate-scale kinematics of relative left-lateral motion between
Arabia plate and Sinai sub-plate. Field observations, however, lack direct signs for
the exact timing and duration of the strike-slip motion within the Metulla Saddle,
since rocks of Cretaceous up to Pleistocene age are affected by it. It is postulated
that the strike-slip motion was began in the (Early to Middle) Miocene (Bartov et al.
1980; Eyal et al. 1981), in accordance with the long-term kinematic framework of
the DST (Joffe and Garfunkel 1987).
172 R. Weinberger
Fig. 6.17 U-Th ages of calcite precipitates within striated fault planes. Sample names are denoted
at the left side. U-Th ages have ±2σ error bars (symbols may be larger than error bars). Solid lines
indicate well-defined (high-robustness) deformation events characterized by coeval development
of syntectonic precipitates (calcite cement and striations). Samples from the calcite coating layer
were formed during interseismic periods. Dashed lines indicate moderately defined (low-
robustness) deformation events based on single-sample age constraints. The timing of the defor-
mation events is based on the age error of the dated samples, with a maximum of ±1 ka, and is
represented by the line thickness (From Nuriel et al. 2012b)
Nuriel et al. (2012a) give more information on the late-Pleistocene strike-slip

activity along the DST in the Metulla Saddle. They constrained the timing of fault
activity by studying the microstructural, geochemical and geochronological of calcite
precipitates associated with the Qiryat Shemona striated fault planes. They recognized
four types of coexisting calcite precipitates, including calcite cement in dilation brec-
cia, calcite in horizontal striated groove morphology, calcite gouge, and calcite coat-
ing of the fault surface. Carbon-oxygen isotopes, 87Sr/86Sr ratios, and rare earth element
and yttrium (REY) patterns indicate various precipitation mechanisms associated with
formation of syntectonic (calcite cement and striations), coseismic (calcite gouge),
and interseismic (calcite coating) precipitates in the fault zone. Using U-Th dating of
samples (e.g., calcite extracted from horizontal fault striations) from fault planes, they
delineated several strike-slip events in the late Pleistocene (Fig. 6.17). Current GPS
studies also demonstrate the importance of strike-slip motion along this sector of the
DST (e.g., Wdowinski et al. 2004; Reilinger et al. 2006; Le Beon et al. 2008). Hence,
imposed N-S shear has been distributed at the juncture between the Hula basin and the
LRB over the history of the DST.
6.6.2 Timing and Significance of Imposed E-W Shortening

and N-S Extension
Field observations and measurements attest to the dominantly contractional (transpres-

sive) nature of the deformation in the Metulla Saddle. The folds measured at a variety
of scales in the study area group into two distinct sets based on their orientations;
NW-SE trending and N-S trending folds (Weinberger et al. 2009). The latter set of
folds includes large-scale folds (e.g., the castle anticline adjacent to the western block,
the broad syncline of the western block and the Shehumit anticline and Qiryat
Shemona syncline in the eastern block) as well as small-scale folds. These folds man-
ifest E-W contraction associated with E-W pure shear. The younger rocks exposed in
the area, the 1.5–0.8 Ma Hazbani Basalt, are affected only by N-S trending folds.
Hence, folding of this set postdates ~0.8 Ma, indicating evolving E-W contraction
during that interval of time.
Another consequence of E-W contraction is a perpendicular response of N-S
extension during pure shear. The abundance of ~ E-W calcite-filled veins and clastic
dikes oriented at high angles to the Qiryat Shemona fault demonstrates this component
of strain within the Metulla Saddle. Nuriel et al. (2012b) presented structural, geo-
chemical and U-Th geochronological data that constrain the mechanism and timing of
the vein formation. U-Th ages correspond to the time of growth episode associated
with major opening events. The oldest ages indicate that veins seldom formed prior to
500 ka (Nuriel et al. 2010). This implies that the E-W contraction was began not very
long before that during the Pleistocene. The overwhelming majority of the veins were
emplaced and developed during the period between 358 and 17 ka.
The obtained U-Th ages and radiometric dating of the folded basalts indicate that
the Pleistocene activity occurred interchangeably (or coevally) along N-S trending
strike-slip faults, N-S trending contractional structures, and E-W calcite-filled veins.
6.6.3 Strain Partitioning During Transpression
The two prominent NNE-SSW trending, en-echelon anticlines (Site D, Fig. 6.3) are
terminated against (or cut by) the Qiryat Shemona fault, forming an angle of ~30° to
the strike of the Qiryat Shemona fault. Formation of such folds is commonly attrib-
uted to premature stages of strike-slip deformation, in which simple shear is dominant
(Harding and Lowell 1979; Sylvester 1988). The initial fold axes may have rotated
counterclockwise during the Neogene up to ~15° due to progressive simple shear
along the transform. This is indicated by the angle between the current trend of the
fold axes and the expected trend based on the infinitesimal strain axes associated with
pure strike-slip deformation (Fig. 6.7). These folds and some other parallel small-
scale folds are attributed to an early phase (pre-Pleistocene) of non-partitioned strike-
slip deformation within the Metulla Saddle (Weinberger et al. 2009).
There is a marked parallelism between the strike-slip faults, the ~ N-S trending
Pleistocene folds and several N-S striking thrust faults in the Metulla Saddle. This
parallelism indicates the coexistence of a strike-slip and contractional deformation
in the form of a (mini) fold-thrust belt adjacent to the bounding N-S trending strike-
slip faults. The coexistence of those structures is best explained by partitioned
transpression along this sector of the DST. This assemblage of structures is attributed
to a late phase of partitioning strike-slip deformation within the Metulla Saddle
during the Pleistocene (Weinberger et al. 2009). The late Pleistocene emplacement of
174 R. Weinberger
calcite-filled veins perpendicular to the DST zone is another manifestation of strain

partitioning during transpression. This style of strain partitioning resembles the defor-
mation adjacent to the San Andreas fault in portions of central California (e.g., Mount
and Suppe 1987, 1992; Zoback et al. 1987; Tavarnelli 1998; Bawden et al. 2001; Fuis
et al. 2003), and in the LRB (Griffiths et al. 2000; Gomez et al. 2007a).
The transpressional-related E-W contraction across the Metulla Saddle has been
necessarily accompanied by compensatory uplift of rocks in the fault zone, as
observed in other transpressional zones worldwide (Sylvester 1988; Mann 2007).
This is demonstrated by localized shortening of up to 30 % in certain regions
(Weinberger and Sneh 2004; Weinberger et al. 2010), leading to a topographic rise
due to folding of at least ~80 m in the last ~1 Ma at Shehumit Hill. More than 400 m
of the Kefar Giladi conglomerate and lacustrine sediments accumulated in a depres-
sion adjacent to the HWBF-Qiryat Shemona fault line during the Late Miocene –
Early Pliocene. While the exact location of the basin’s depoceneter cannot be
pinpointed precisely, the accumulated sediments have certainly been displaced,
uplifted and folded, forming the ~700 m high Metulla Saddle. On the basis of the
assigned age of the Kefar Giladi Formation, this tectonic inversion took place post
Early-Pliocene, coevally with the transpressive phase of deformation along the DST
in northern Israel. Furthermore, the similar degree of tilting of the Kefar Giladi
conglomerate and the younger Hazbani Basalt in the town of Qiryat Shemona (Sneh
and Weinberger 2003b; Weinberger et al. 2010) indicates that this tectonic inversion
took place during the Pleistocene and near the present location of the outcrops.
6.6.4 Transpression During the Convergence

Across the Arabian-Sinai Plate Boundary
The observed strain partitioning during transpression cannot be regarded a product of

Pleistocene north–south relative plate motion along the Metulla Saddle, because it
contains N-S striking faults that show no obvious bend/jump to the right. Furthermore,
the contractional deformation extends and even intensifies next to the NW-SE striking
Margaliyyot fault (Fig. 6.3). These observations corroborate the possibility that the
contractional deformation is a product of increased north-northwestward obliquity of
plate motion relative to the north to north-northwestward strike of the studied Tel Hay
and Qiryat Shemona faults (i.e., the exact strike of the Qiryat Shemona fault is 353°).
It is well demonstrated that strain partitioned during transpression evolves along
obliquely convergent plate boundaries (Fossen 2010). It has been shown that even
a minor component of convergence (α < 5°, where α is the angle between the strike
of the plate boundary and the plate motion velocity vector) resulting from changes
in relative plate motion can lead to a high degree of strain partitioning (Teyssier
et al. 1995). Hence, oblique convergence across the Arabian-Sinai plate boundary
(i.e., Qiryat Shemona segment of the DST) seems to be a viable kinematic explana-
tion for the partitioned transpression observed in the Metulla Saddle during the
Pleistocene. The degree of strain partitioning is nearly complete (see Fig. 3 in
Fig. 6.18 Proposed model for the Pleistocene (current) phase of strain partitioning during
transpression across the DST in the Metulla Saddle. The strike-slip component of plate motion is
localized to discrete N-S fault zones whereas the intervening blocks are subjected to E-W shorten-
ing, resulting in the development of a (mini) fold-thrust belt along the transform margins. Elongated
solid ellipses represent calcite-filled veins associated with N-S extension during strain partitioning.
Potential seismicity (stars and the associated focal plane solutions) arises from slip along the weak
N-S strike-slip faults, reactivation of faults within the blocks, or actively growing blind thrust
faults. Fault segments (vertical and horizontal lines drawn next to the edges of the blocks) form
brittle fault zones adjacent to the N-S bounding faults. Gray lines represent locked faults (After
Teyssier et al. 1995) considering that α > 10° and the 70–90° angle between the
plate boundary and the directions of infinitesimal shortening (as manifested by
fault kinematics in Fig. 6.7) and finite shortening (as manifested by young folds,
thrust faults and veins in Figs. 6.10 and 6.16). Accordingly, the convergent strike-
slip motion produces a major component of N-S shearing accommodated by ~ N-S
striking faults, a significant component of E-W shortening perpendicular to the
DST accommodated by N-S trending folds, and a minor N-S extension as mani-
fested by numerous E-W striking veins (Fig. 6.18).
What makes this case study of the Metulla Saddle unique, and potentially valu-
able for understanding transform-margin deformation globally, is the evidence for
the progression through time from almost pure strike-slip (non-partitioned) to parti-
tioned transpressive deformation. Weinberger et al. (2009) envision an early phase
of almost pure strike slip distributed across the DST. At that point the plate bound-
ary consisted of a limited number of poorly connected fault segments and the upper
crust was strong. With time, slip accrued along the plate boundary and expedited
increasing convergence. The former led to the development of weak, through-going
176 R. Weinberger
and well-connected fault zones in the upper crust, whereas the latter led to transpres-
sion along these zones within the Metulla Saddle and northward. As a consequence,
the late (and current) phase of deformation is partitioned into strike-slip motion
along the weak N-S striking major vertical fault zones and the development of a
(mini) fold-thrust belt due to E-W shortening adjacent to the transform (Fig. 6.18).
6.6.5 Evolving Convergence Due to Possible

Changes in Relative Plate Motion Along the DST
Previous studies divided the history of plate motion along the DST into two main
stages (Garfunkel 1981; Joffe and Garfunkel 1987). In the first stage, pre 5 Ma, pure
left-lateral strike-slip motion prevailed. In the second stage, post 5 Ma, the left-lateral
motion was accompanied by a small component of transverse extension at the
southern sector of the DST (and consequently, a small component of transverse
contraction at the central sector of the DST). The date 5 Ma serves as a convenient
time marker for dividing the history of the Arabian-Sinai plate motion into two
intervals in which the “average” motions are distinct. It is based on the initiation
time of seafloor spreading in the northern part of the Red Sea during that time
(Garfunkel 1981; Joffe and Garfunkel 1987). The transition between these two
stages was most likely a consequence of continuous rather than abrupt changes in
plate motion. This is based on Euler’s theorem that continuous changes of relative
plate motion in a multi-plate system are a foreseeable consequence of plate motion
on a spherical surface (Le Pichon et al. 1973, p. 34). In practice, researchers had to
assume that for some finite time interval the motion between two plates could be
described by a single pole of rotation. The Arabian-Sinai plate motion described by
relocation (migration eastward) of the Euler pole of rotation is based mainly on
studies of fault geometry along the southern sector of the DST. From the Hula basin
northward along the central sector of the DST, the pole inferred by Garfunkel (1981)
predicts increased convergence across the LRB in the last 5 Ma. Notably, the
increasing convergence is also expected to intensify the contractional deformation
evolved along the Yammunneh restraining bend (Gomez et al. 2007b).
Several observations support a more easterly position of the Pleistocene pole
relative to the pole position describing the total motion in the last 5 Ma (Weinberger
et al. 2009; Garfunkel 2010). Late Pliocene – early Pleistocene normal faulting and
joints in the southern Negev indicates increased extension along the Arava Valley in
the southern sector of the DST (Avni et al. 2000; Levi 2003). Concurrently, contrac-
tional structures in the Metulla Saddle presented in this paper are best interpreted as
indicating increased convergence during the Pleistocene from the Hula basin north-
ward. These mutually-related features (divergence-type features at the south and
convergence-type features at the north) indicate an eastward migration of the Euler
pole position. This migration continued the older (Miocene to Pliocene) trend and
suggests that this situation was attained already in the early to mid-Pleistocene. As
noted by Garfunkel (2010), some GPS results (e.g., Reilinger et al. 2006), even if
approximate, raise the possibility that the present Euler pole is located distinctly
east of the poles describing the earlier motions across the DST (see also Butler et al.
1998). If so, then the eastward migration described of the Euler pole before 5 Ma
ago continued in more recent times. The consequence of the pole migration is asso-
ciated with plate convergence across the Qiryat Shemona segment of the DST, pro-
viding a viable kinematic explanation for the Pleistocene transpression and strain
partitioning presented in this study.
Evidence for a Pleistocene tectonic transition might be recognized in a series
of locations along the DST (see summary in Schattner and Weinberger 2008). The
most striking example is the tectonic transition in the Hula basin, which formed
as a pull-apart basin ~4 Ma, but entered a new geodynamic phase during the mid-
Pleistocene. At that time a left-lateral, through-going, diagonal strike-slip fault
developed within the basin (Schattner and Weinberger 2008). Gomez et al.
(2007b) showed that the LRB went through a two-stage tectonic evolution, the
later (current) of which is characterized by strain partitioning during transpres-
sion. The transition between these phases was attributed to changes in plate
motion, with a northward relative motion in the early phase (pre-Pleistocene), and
increasing convergence of the plates during the current phase. At the north end of
the DST in the Karasu Valley, Seyrek et al. (2007) showed crustal thickening and
folding due to transpression, which they attributed to changes in relative plate
motion during the Pliocene.
6.7 Summary
This paper reviews the style and sequence of deformation associated with an
actively convergent section of the DST across the Metulla Saddle. A major struc-
tural element in the study area is the Qiryat Shemona strike-slip faults. It is associ-
ated with numerous subsidiary faults, whose kinematics attests to the dominance
of left-lateral motion along this sector of the DST. This result provides an indepen-
dent indication for the plate-scale kinematics of relative left-lateral motion
between the Arabian plate and the Sinai sub-plate in northern Israel. Using U-Th
dating of samples from fault planes, several deformation events were delineated,
documenting a prolonged history of late-Pleistocene strike-slip activity in the
Metulla Saddle. The strike-slip activity was accompanied by intense folding and
thrusting. A set of N-S trending folds including large-scale folds as well as small-
scale folds manifest significant E-W contraction. Because the younger rocks
exposed in the area, the 1.5–0.8 Ma Hazbani Basalt, are affected only by N-S
trending folds, the folding of this set postdates ~0.8 Ma. The U-Th ages obtained
suggest that the Pleistocene activity occurred interchangeably along N-S trending
strike-slip faults, N-S trending contractional structures, and ~ E-W calcite-filled
veins. The coexistence of a strike-slip and contractional deformation in the form
of a (mini) fold-thrust belt adjacent to the bounding N-S trending strike-slip faults
178 R. Weinberger
is best explained by partitioned transpression along this sector of the DST during
the Pleistocene. The partitioned transpression cannot be regarded a product of
Pleistocene northward relative plate motion, because the Metulla Saddle contains
~ N-S striking faults that show no obvious bend/jump to the right. The present
observations corroborate the possibility that the contractional deformation is the
result of increased north-northwestward obliquity of plate motion relative to the
~ N-S strike of the studied Qiryat Shemona and Tel Hay faults. The oblique con-
vergence across the Arabian-Sinai plate boundary seems to be a viable kinematic
explanation for the partitioned transpression observed in the Metulla Saddle dur-
ing the Pleistocene. The degree of strain partitioning is nearly complete.
Accordingly, the convergent strike-slip motion produced a major component of
N-S shearing accommodated by N-S bounding left-lateral faults, a significant
component of E-W shortening perpendicular to the DST accommodated by N-S
trending folds and reverse faults, and a minor N-S extension as manifested by
numerous E-W striking veins. Several observations support a more easterly posi-
tion of the Pleistocene–Recent pole of rotation of the Arabian-Sinai relative to the
pole position describing the total motion in the last 5 Ma. The consequence of the
pole migration is plate convergence across the Qiryat Shemona segment of the
DST, providing a feasible kinematic explanation for the Pleistocene transpression
and strain partitioning presented in this study.
Acknowledgments This study was supported by grant no. 2004232 from the United States-Israel
Bi-national Science Foundation (BSF) and grants from the Israeli Ministry of Energy and Water
Resources. I am grateful to Zvi Garfunkel for encouraging me to write this review and for illumi-
nating the way in the study of the Dead Sea Transform. I am indebted to Amihai Sneh, Michael
Gross, Uri Frieslander, Uri Schattner, Beny Medvedev, Perach Nuriel, Gideon Rosenbaum, Tsafrir
Levi, Yehudit Harlavan, and Mira Bar-Matthews for helpful discussions, fruitful work, and an
excellent partnership during the course of this study. Constructive reviews of Ian Alsop and an
anonymous reviewer significantly help to improve the paper. The structural data were plotted by
using Rick Allmendinger’s Stereonet and FaultKin programs.
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Chapter 7
Review of On-Fault Palaeoseismic Studies
Along the Dead Sea Fault
Shmuel Marco and Yann Klinger
Abstract The aim of this short note is to provide a summary over on-fault
palaeoseismic works on the behavior of the Dead Sea fault (DSF). Key achievements
of these studies include: the determination of slip rate of the DSF across different
space and time resolutions, which converges at around 4–5 mm/a, confirmation of
the sinistral relative motion between the Arabia Plate and the Sinai Subplate and of
thrust motion and normal faulting associated with restraining bends and pull apart
grabens respectively, and the verification of historical accounts on several strong
earthquakes that were associated with surface ruptures. The comparison between
the state-of-the-art slip-rate determinations along the DSF and the total motion
accommodated by the known historical and instrumental earthquakes shows that
current seismicity rates cannot account for the full slip rate. As previously proposed,
the short-term rate of seismicity is not necessarily representative of the long-term
seismic activity along the DSF. Assuming the historical records of the last two millennia
are complete for strong earthquakes, we note long periods of quiescence in the sections
of the northern Yammouneh, the Jordan Valley, and the southern Araba.
Keywords Dead Sea Transform fault • Tectonics • Active faulting • Earthquakes •

Palaeoseismology • Middle East
S. Marco (*)
Department of Geophysical, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Tel Aviv University,
Y. Klinger
Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Univ. Paris Diderot,
UMR 7154 CNRS, Paris, France
184 S. Marco and Y. Klinger
7.1 Introduction
As early as 1869 Lartet suggested that Arabia and Africa have drifted apart to open
up the Red Sea. Dubertret (1932) followed this idea suggesting a 160 km sinistral
shear along the Dead Sea Fault associated with a 6° rotation between Arabia and
Africa. Wellings (cited in Willis 1938) noted that this hypothesis corresponds to the
offset of the marine Cambrian and Jurassic beds across the rift south of the Dead
Sea. Willis (1938) rejected this hypothesis. During the following years, it was
largely ignored until systematic research by Quennell (1956) provided evidence
for 107 km sinistral slip. Later, with the advent of the plate tectonics, Freund and
collaborators (Freund 1965; Freund et al. 1970, 1968) and Wilson (1965) recognized
the Dead Sea rift as a transform fault zone that transfers the opening at the Red Sea
to the collision zone at the Taurus-Zagros mountain belt.
The evidence for left-lateral shear along the Dead Sea Fault (DSF) since the
early-middle Miocene is based on observations from four independent sources:
regional plate tectonics, local geology, seismology, and geodesy. The plate tecton-
ics shows that the opening of the Red Sea, where the Arabian plate is breaking
away from Africa, is transferred to the collision with Eurasia via sinistral shear
along the DSF (Freund 1965; Garfunkel 1981; Joffe and Garfunkel 1987; Quennell
1956). Sinistral motion explains the systematic offset of numerous pre-Miocene
geologic features by a total of ~105 km, south of the Lebanon Restraining Bend
(LRB) (Bartov et al. 1980; Freund 1965; Quennell 1956). Garfunkel et al. (1981)
mapped the active fault traces of the DSF and associated these scarps with historical
earthquakes that are reported from the region. Later research revealed prehistoric
seismicity as well (Table 7.1 and Fig. 7.1). Focal mechanisms of moderate-to-large
earthquakes show sinistral motion along the DSF (e.g. (Baer et al. 1999; Klinger
et al. 1999; Salamon et al. 1996), Hofstetter et al. 2007). Geodetic measurements
for the very short-term deformation are consistent with overall geologic observa-
tions of a sinistral slip-rate of 4–5 mm/year (Le Beon et al. 2008; McClusky et al.
2003; Reilinger et al. 2006; Wdowinski et al. 2004). In a review of the slip and
seismicity of the DSF, Garfunkel (2011) concludes that the slip rate is slowing
from an average rate of 6–7 mm/year over the last 5 Ma to 4–5.5 mm/year in the
Pleistocene together with a slight eastward shift of the Euler pole of rotation
between Sinai and Arabia.
Several authors noted explicitly that the detailed shape of the DSF had changed
through time e.g. (Garfunkel 1981; Heimann and Ron 1987, 1993; Rotstein et al.
1992; ten Brink et al. 1999; ten-Brink and Ben-Avraham 1989). For the section
south of the LRB, the widest zone of distributed faulting is about 50 km wide. It is
found in the Galilee, where the early-stage (Miocene) faults were associated with
formation of basins (Freund et al. 1970; Shaliv 1991) and with rotation of rigid
blocks about sub-vertical axes (Ron et al. 1984), although the linkage to the trans-
form movement is not well established. In this region, subsequent post-Miocene
deformation took place mostly in the form of normal faulting on E-W trending
faults with some strike-slip motion currently localized in a very narrow zone.
7
Table 7.1 List of on-fault palaeoseismic investigations at the DSF system arranged by time of publication
Achievement Earthquakes/
Slip Rate (SR)/Last Event
# in Fig. 7.1 References Segment Observations Fault type (LE)/Recurrence (Re)
1 Reches and Hoexter (1981) S. Jordan Valley Trenches N 31 BCE, 747 CE
2 Marco and Agnon (1995) Dead Sea Outcrops N Re
3 Amit et al (1996, 1999, 2002) Southern Arava Trenches N Re
4 Marco et al.; Ellenblum et al. (1998) Jordan Gorge Trenches, archaeology LL 1202, 1759
5 Galli (1999) Arava-Jordan-Hula Valley Outcrops, archaeology LL
6 Enzel et al. (2000) Dead Sea Outcrops N Re
7 Klinger et al. (2000a) Northern Arava Archaeology, outcrops LL 1212
8 Klinger et al. (2000b) Northern Arava Outcrops LL SR
9 Niemi et al. (2001) Northern Arava Outcrops LL SR
10 Zilberman et al. (2000) Hula Valley Trenches N
11 Gomez et al. (2001, 2003) Serghaya Fault Trenches, Outcrops LL 1705 or 1759/
12 Meghraoui et al. (2003) Misyaf, Yammouneh Trenches, archaeology LL
13 Marco et al. (2003) Sea of Galilee Archaeology N 749
14 Daëron et al. (2004, 2005, 2007) South Yammouneh Trenches LL 1202
15 Zilberman et al. (2005) South Arava Trenches N 3/1068/
16 Marco et al. (2005) Jordan Gorge Trenches LL 1202, 1759/LE/SR
17 Chorowicz et al. (2005) Yammouneh Outcrops LL SR
18 Akyuz et al. (2006) Northern Yammouneh Trenches, Outcrops LL 859, 1408, 1872
Review of On-Fault Palaeoseismic Studies Along the Dead Sea Fault
19 Nemer and Meghraoui (2006) Roum Fault Trenches, Outcrops LL 1837, SR

20 Haynes et al. (2006) Northern Arava Archaeology LL 634 or 659/660, 873, 1068,
and 1546
21 Elias et al. (2007) Lebanon thrust Outcrops R 551 CE/
22 Thomas et al. (2007) Aqaba Archaeology LL
23 Ferry et al. (2007) Jordan Valley Outcrops LL SR
24 Le Beon et al. (2008) Arava Outcrops LL
(continued)
185
Table 7.1 (continued)
186
Achievement Earthquakes/
Slip Rate (SR)/Last Event
# in Fig. 7.1 References Segment Observations Fault type (LE)/Recurrence (Re)
25 Nemer et al. (2008) Rachaya and Serghaya Outcrops, trenches LL 1759
faults
26 Makovsky et al. (2008) Elat Fault Submarine geophysics LL SR
27 Altunel et al. (2009) S. Turkey Trenches, archaeology LL SR
28 Le Beon et al. (2010) Arava Outcrops LL SR
29 Karabacak et al. (2010) Northern Yammouneh Outcrops LL SR
30 Ferry et al. (2011) Jordan Valley Trenches, archaeology LL SR, Re, LE
31 Le Beon et al. (2012) Arava Outcrop LL SR
S. Marco and Y. Klinger
7 Review of On-Fault Palaeoseismic Studies Along the Dead Sea Fault 187
Fig. 7.1 Location

of palaeoseismic studies
along the Dead Sea Fault.
Numbers refer to entries
in Table 7.1
18
27
29
12
17
21
a
Se
an
11
14
ne
19 25
rra
10
te
4
di
16
Me
13 Se a o f
Galilee
Jordan Valley 30
23
1
6
2 Dead Sea
e
at
7
Pl
y
8
e
lle
ia
9
t
la
20
ab
i P
24
28, 31
a V
Ar
3 15
na
26 22
av
Si
Ar
Eurasia Plate
Medit.
Sea DSF
Sinai
R
Plate Arabia
ed
Red Sea
Plate
S
Africa
ea
Plate
The deformation further south is characterized by a 20–30-km-wide zone with

primarily strike-slip and some normal slip on faults trending sub-parallel to the
main transform fault. The location of the active fault strands along the Dead Sea
Transform fault zone (DSF) changed through time. In the western margins of Dead
Sea basin, the early activity began a few kilometers west of the present shores and
moved toward the center of the basin in four stages. Similar basinward migration of
faulting is apparent in the Hula Valley north of the Sea of Galilee as well as in the
Negev and the Sinai Peninsula. In the Arava Valley, seismic surveys reveal a series
of buried inactive basins whereas the current active strand is located along the eastern
margin. In general, the faulting along the DSF became localized by the end of the
Miocene. The subsidence of fault-controlled basins in the early stage, stopped at
the end of the Miocene. During the Plio-Pleistocene, new faults were formed in the
Negev west of the main transform, possibly manifesting another cycle that has
begun with the widening of the fault zone (Marco 2007).
This paper reviews the contribution of recent studies on the most recent activity
of the DSF (mostly its southern section, south of the LRB) and its subsidiary faults.
These studies contributed to the recognition of the active strands in the fault zone,
constrained the slip rates and recurrence intervals of the various fault segments, and
determined the time of the last slip event after which the segment had remained
locked. The offset geological and archaeological bodies confirm the plate tectonics
paradigm and provide an independent examination of the structural complexities
such as restraining bends, pull-apart basins, and distributed slip among fault branches.
The fault was characterized as a “leaky transform” because of these pull-aparts
(Garfunkel 1981). The temporal overlap of geological and historical-archaeological
information provides important crosschecks of the sources of data. On-fault research
requires the identification of faults. This is relatively easy where the fault zone is
narrow and exposures are good. It is less complete where the fault zone is wide and
consists of many branches, or where the faulting activity shifts location and young
sediments or basalt flows cover the faults.
7.1.1 Detailed Mapping of the Fault Zone
The first detailed maps of the DSF zone that emphasized the offset of Pleistocene to
sub-recent units were published by Garfunkel et al. (1981). Various structures such
as pull apart grabens, restraining bends, branching faults, and folds, which comprise
the fault zone were also described and analyzed at the same time (Eyal et al. 1981;
Garfunkel 1981). The recognition of small displacements of young geological
features such as alluvial fans or lake deposits opened the road for neotectonics and
palaeoseismic research. These studies showed that the fault consists of numerous
segments separated by discontinuities or sharp changes in their strike. A GIS-based
map of the faults suspected as being “active” (Bartov et al. 2002) was generated by
defining active faults as those that either cross or bound Pliocene and younger
stratigraphic units. It is not clear yet whether the strong earthquake ruptures are
arrested at the mapped segment ends. This question is important because the length
of the ruptures correlates with the earthquake size (e.g., Wells and Coppersmith
1994). The detailed maps reveal that the structure of the DSF is variable (described
from south to north): The southernmost part is the Gulf of Aqaba-Elat, where a
series of left-stepping, en-echelon fault arrangement forms three elongate deep pull-
apart basins separated by shallow thresholds (Ben-Avraham and Garfunkel 1979).
The largest earthquake (M7.2) ever recorded instrumentally occurred in the gulf on
November 22, 1995 (Klinger et al. 1999; Pinar and Turkelli 1997; Shamir et al.
2003). The next section toward the north is the Araba Valley, characterized by a narrow
fault zone that offsets a series of Pleistocene-Holocene alluvial fans (Garfunkel
et al. 1981). Several palaeoseismic studies quantify the displacements (Klinger
et al. 2000a; Le Beon et al. 2010, 2012; Niemi et al. 2001). Seismic reflections
reveal that the subsurface structure of the Araba Valley includes buried Miocene
grabens (Frieslander 2000). The next section is the pull-apart basin of the Dead Sea,
where two sub-parallel faults bound the deepest place on the Earth continents. The
Dead Sea pull-apart structure is bounded by the Amaziahu Fault on the south, where
a sharp scarp in Late Pleistocene lake deposits reaches a height of up to 30 m. The
northern boundary does not have a surface expression. The western fault continues
due north along the Jordan Valley, where it is recognized as a narrow fault zone in
Pleistocene sediments (Ferry and Meghraoui 2008; Ferry et al. 2007; Garfunkel
et al. 1981). Two faults branch off the main fault zone. One at the northeastern end
of the Dead Sea a NE-striking fault scarp manifests normal slip component, and the
second, further north, a NW-striking fault branches off the Bet She’an Valley, also
has a normal slip component with Mount Gilboa at the footwall. The northern end
of the Jordan Valley section is where the fault zone consists of two parallel faults,
which form the graben structure of Kinarot and the Sea of Galilee further north. The
western boundary fault of the southern Sea of Galilee bends westward, making the
northern part of the basin wider. This branch crosses the town of Tiberias (Hazan
et al. 2004; Marco et al. 2003). The eastern boundary fault bends northeastward. In
contrast to the dual fault at the south there is a single fault to the north of the Sea of
Galilee, known as the Jordan Gorge Fault, which offsets manmade structures
(Ellenblum et al. 1998) and Holocene stream channels (Marco et al. 2005; Wechsler
et al. 2011). The Hula pull-apart basin to the north of the Jordan Gorge section
is also where the fault system splays into several branches, namely (east to west)
the Rachaia Fault, Serghaia Fault, Yammouneh Fault, and Roum Fault (Fig. 2). The
Yammouneh, which takes up most of the plate motions, continues northward to
the triple junction in southern Turkey, where it joins the East Anatolian Fault on the
northeast and the Eastern Mediterranean collision zone on the west.
The on-fault studies resolve the debate revolving around the identification of the
active branch. The suggestions that the main active fault is the Carmel Fault (Girdler
1990) or the Roum Fault (Butler et al. 1997, 1999) are not supported by the observa-
tions. Although they do take a small portion of the plate motions, the Yammouneh
exhibits the major activity as well as the most prominent topographic feature,
with some local contribution of the Lebanon Bend-related Rachaya-Serghaia

fault branches (Daëron et al. 2005, 2007; Fleury et al. 1999; Gomez et al. 2003).
Palaeoseismic records from the DSF in Syria and in southern Turkey also reveal
major earthquake ruptures along the northern extension of the DSF (Akyuz et al.
2006; Altunel et al. 2009; Karabacak et al. 2010; Meghraoui et al. 2003). The analysis
of three GPS campaigns between 1996 and 2008 shows an oblique motion along
the Carmel Fault with about 0.7 mm/year left-lateral and about 0.6 mm/year N-S
extension (Sadeh et al. 2012).
7.1.2 Test Plate Tectonic Paradigm
The debates on the nature of movement along the DSF (e.g., Vroman 1973) have
been replaced by widely-agreed consensus on its left-lateral sense. Euler’s theorem
provides the means for resolving the relative motion on any one of three plate bound-
aries in a triple junction given the motions of the other two. The DSF connects the
northern Red Sea spreading center to the collision zone located in South Eastern
Turkey. If the fault were a pure transform, i.e., along a perfect small circle, the calcu-
lated DSF motion should be the same when solved for either junction, and this should
conform to results from the DSF itself. In practice, the determination of accurate slip
rates at both the southern end of the DSF, where it connects with the Red Sea and the
Gulf of Suez, and at the northern end, where it connects with the East Anatolian fault
and the subduction zone of the Cyprus arc, are poorly constrained and do not allow
for such theoretical proof. Qualitative and quantitative confirmation for sinistral
movement along the DSF, however, are validated by numerous observation of sinis-
tral displacements of geological and archaeological bodies, as well as normal dis-
placements of strata at the margins of pull-apart basins and all along the DSF itself.
At present, the slip rates determined by the palaeoseismic studies alone (Table 7.3) are
too variable to provide a definite quantitative confirmation of the plate tectonic models.
Many of the on-fault palaeoseismic studies document the vertical components of slip.
The few locations with suitable markers for measuring strike slip invariably confirm
the sinistral nature of the motion. These data include offset alluvial fans (Garfunkel
et al. 1981; Klinger et al. 2000a; Le Beon et al. 2010, 2012; Niemi et al. 2001),
stream channels (Ferry et al. 2007; Marco et al. 2005; Wechsler et al. 2011), and
archaeological structures (Table 7.1).
7.1.3 Earthquake Activity – History, Prehistory
Instrumental seismology along the DSF is limited to only one strong earthquake, the
MW7.2, 1995 Nuweiba, and one moderate, ML6.1, 1927 Jericho earthquake. In order
to recover earthquake history we must combine historical records, archaeological
observations, and geological evidence for earthquake fault ruptures. All three kinds
of data can either relate to off-fault or on-fault phenomena. The off-fault effects are
reviewed by A. Agnon in Chapter 8. The on-fault research essentially relies on
identification of surface, or near-surface, disruptions of geomorphic features, soil
layers and man-made structures, either naturally outcropping or exposed in man-
made trenches.
The first palaoeseismic trench was opened near Jericho across the fault trace
identified by Garfunkel et al. (1981). Offset strata were dated using indicative
archaeological artifacts (Reches and Hoexter 1981) and interpreted as the ruptures
of the historically-recorded earthquakes of 31 BCE and 747 CE. Another set of
pioneering palaeoseismic research trenches explored slip on normal faults and the
development desert soils as a means to decipher tectonics at the western border of
the fault zone in the southern Arava (Amit et al. 1995; Gerson et al. 1993). Several
studies were aided with geophysical detection of faults, e.g., by GPR (Basson et al.
2002), high-resolution seismic reflection (Marco et al. 2005; Agnon et al. 2006),
and magnetic field (Altunel et al. 2009). These, and later on-fault palaeoseismic
observations, are summarized in Table 7.1.
7.2 Achievements of DST On-fault Studies
7.2.1 Test Reliability of Historical Records
Abundant accounts on historical earthquakes have been catalogued (e.g., Ambraseys

2009; Ambraseys and Finkel 1995; Ambraseys et al. 1994; Amiran et al. 1994;
Guidoboni and Comastri 2005; Guidoboni et al. 1994; Russell 1985; Sbeinati
et al. 2005). The catalogues include descriptions of damage to property, natural
phenomena, human reactions, and fatalities. Reference to fault ruptures are usually
missing. It is assumed that this lack of reference is not because there were no surface
ruptures but rather because the contemporary reporters of these accounts were
not aware of the association between earthquakes and faulting. Hence, pairing an
historical earthquake to a specific fault often remains difficult. A major uncertainty
is related to dating because the commonly used methods in palaeoseismic research,
namely radiocarbon and luminescence, have large error margins and these need to
be correlated with the often-uncertain dates of reported earthquakes. Several authors
have pointed out the pitfalls of potential circular reasoning (e.g., Ambraseys 2005;
Marco 2008; Rucker and Niemi 2010). Commonly, the geologists who find evidences
for past earthquakes look for records of historical earthquakes listed in catalogues
whose dates fall within the geological dating ranges. This practice works fine for
the section south of the Hula Valley, where the fault zone is relatively simple. It is
less certain for the fault zone farther north, where several branches, in addition to
the Yammouneh fault that continues northward to Turkey, may be associated with
strong earthquakes.
Table 7.2 Historical DSF earthquakes confirmed by surface ruptures observed in palaeoseismic
investigations
Locations
Fig. 7.1 Date Segment References
1 31 BCE Jordan Valley Reches and Hoexter (1981)
12 115 CE Misyaf, YammounehMeghraoui et al. (2003)
21 551 Lebanon thrust Elias et al. (2007)
13, 1 749 Jordan Valley Marco et al. (2003) and Reches and Hoexter (1981)
18 859 Northern Yammouneh
Akyuz et al. (2006)
15 3/1068 South Arava Zilberman et al. (2005)
12 1170 Missyaf, Yammouneh
Meghraoui et al. (2003)
14, 4 1202 South Yammouneh Daëron et al. (2005), Ellenblum et al. (1998),
and Marco et al. (1997, 2005)
8, 9 1212 Northern Arava Klinger et al. (2000b) and Niemi et al. (2001)
18 1408 Northern Yammouneh Akyuz et al. (2006)
8 1458 Northern Arava Klinger et al. (2000b)
11 1705 Serghaya Fault Gomez et al. (2001)
4, 16 10/1759 Jordan Gorge Ellenblum et al. (1998), Marco et al. (1997),
and Marco et al. (2005)
14, 11, 25 11/1759 Serghaya Fault Daëron et al. (2005), Gomez et al. (2001),
and Nemer et al. (2008)
19 1837 Roum Fault Nemer and Meghraoui (2006)
18 1872 Northern Yammouneh Akyuz et al. (2006)
An example of successful matching between geological and archeological data is

found at the site of Ateret, where structures were built on top of the active fault.
There, accurate measurements of the slip associated with the earthquakes of 1202
and 1759 CE were possible (Ellenblum et al. 1998; Marco et al. 1997). Palaeoseismic
trenches dug some 10 km southward confirmed these archaeoseismic results (Marco
et al. 2005; Wechsler et al. 2011), while trenches along the Yammouneh fault
(Daëron et al. 2005, 2007) were crucial to determine the northward extension of the
ground ruptures associated with these two events. The rupture sizes and locations
are remarkably in accord with independent analysis of historical reports on these
earthquakes (Ambraseys and Barazangi 1989; Ambraseys and Melville 1988;
Sieberg 1932). Table 7.2 lists all the historical records that were confirmed by direct
observations. The observations include faulted strata and archaeological structures.
The evidence for surface ruptures indicates that the earthquakes magnitudes were
greater than M6, and that the historical records are largely reliable in such magni-
tude range.
Assuming the historical earthquake catalogues of earthquakes that were not
confirmed yet by geological studies are also reasonably reliable, we illustrate their
locations along the DSF system (Fig. 7.2). We interpret the locations to be close to
the maximum reported damage area, although ideally it would be better if more data
were available and more robust objective methods could be used (e.g., Bakun and
Wentworth 1998; Sirovich et al. 2002; Zohar and Marco 2012).
Fig. 7.2 Historical earthquakes distribution in space and time. Each bar corresponds to an approximate
earthquake location along the DSF at the map. Red dates are earthquakes whose ruptures were
found in palaeoseismic studies (see Table 7.2). Abbreviations: EAF East Anatolia Fault, RC Rachaya
Fault, RM Roum Fault, SG Sea of Galilee, DS Dead Sea (Partly based on Garfunkel et al. 1981)
7.2.2 Slip Rate – Miocene to Holocene
Dated geological slip markers of two kinds are used for constraining slip rate
(Table 7.3). One kind is pre-Miocene, which determines the total offset and thus
the long-term slip rate. The other kind uses features that formed while the DSF
was active, which determine short-term rates of individual sections of the fault.
Palaeoseismic studies aim in particular at the Pleistocene-Recent activity. The
short-term slip rate may be used for estimating the slip deficit by assuming that
the total slip is represented either by the long-term slip rate, and/or the geodeti-
cally measured velocity away from the plate boundary. Along the southern section
of the DSF, a minimum long-term rate is determined by dividing the 107-km total
slip that is determined from the offset of pre-DSF geologic features visible both
in the Negev and in Jordan, by the time of earliest faulting, about 20–25 Ma ago.
The youngest rock unit that is offset by the full 107 km are 20-Ma dikes exposed
in Sinai and Arabia (Bartov et al. 1980), providing a minimum long slip rate of
about 5.35 mm/year. The motion post-dates the dikes but the precise initiation
time is unclear yet.
Table 7.3 Slip rate estimates of the DSF
194
Period Span, Ma Rate mm a−1 Max Min Data Published Reference

? Geological 1947 Dubertret (1947)
Miocene ? 5 Geological 1956 Quennell (1956)
Late 0.1 10 Geological 1968 Freund et al. (1968)
Pleistocene-
Recent
7–10 Ma 10 5±1 4 6 Geological 1970 Freund et al. (1970)
Last 1,000 years 0.001 0.8–1.7 Historical seismicity, magnitudes estimates 1981 Garfunkel et al. (1981)
based on extent of damage, seismic
moment based on M-Mo empirical relation
in California
Plio-Pleistocene 5 7–10 Geological 1981 Garfunkel et al. (1981)
Last 4,500 years 0.0045 2.2 Estimates of slip associated with historical 1981 Ben-Menahem (1981)
seismicity. Based on the assumption of GR
relation extrapolated to high M earthquakes
20 Ma 20 5.1 ± 0.3 4.8 5.5 Total offset, initiation based on pre-DSF dikes. 1981 Eyal et al. (1981)
Minimum rate. Dating – composite
isochron
1733 years section 0.0017 6.4 ± 0.4 6 6.8 Recurrence based on deformed uppermost 1986 El-Isa and Mustafa (1986)
in the Late Lisan beds, rate of seismicity, assuming
Pleistocene GR logN = 5.24–0.68 M calculated from the
1733-year-long section
Plio-Pleistocene 5 20 Geological, based on offset travertines in 1986 Steinitz and Bartov (1986)
northern Hula Valley
Plio-Pleistocene 5 6 (0.283°/Ma) Plate kinematics 1987 Joffe and Garfunkel (1987)
Holocene 0.01 >0.7 Geological, secondary deformation 1990 Gardosh et al. (1990)
Plio-Pleistocene 5 5.4–6.1 Geological 1990 Heimann (1990)
Plio-Pleistocene 5 3–7.5 Drainage systems, Arava Fault 1998 Ginat et al. (1998)
7
Late 0.1 ≥10 Offset fans 1999 Galli (1999)

Pleistocene-
Holocene
Pleistocene 2 2–6, prefer 4 Alluvial fans, N. Arava 2000 Klinger et al. (2000a)
Pleistocene 2 4.7 ± 1.3 Alluvial fans, Arava 2001 Niemi et al. (2001)
Holocene 0.01 1–2 Serghaya Fault 2001 Gomez et al. (2001)
Last 2,000 years 0.002 6.9 ± 0.1 Displaced aqueduct; Paleo and 2003 Meghraoui et al. (2003)
Archaeoseismology, Missyaf (DSF in
Syria). Assuming straight original shape
1996–1999 0 2.6 ± 1 Geodesy, GPS 2003 Pe’eri et al. (2002)
Survey-Mode 0 5.6–7.5 Increase from south to north 2003 McClusky et al. (2003)
GPS
Holocene 0.01 1.4 ± 0.2 Serghaya Fault 2003 Gomez et al. (2003)
1996–2003 0 3.3 ± 0.4 Geodesy, GPS results mostly on W side of 2004 Wdowinski et al. (2004)
fault. Based on model assuming fit to
arctangent and locking depth
25 ka 0.025 3.8–6.4 3.8 6.4 Geological, Lebanon 2004 Daëron et al. (2004)
Last 5,000 years 0.005 ≥3 3 – Single stream channel, Jordan Gorge. Northern 2005 Marco et al. (2005)
margin offset 15 m, southern margin 9 m.
C14 age of bulk organic matter. Minimum
for that point, fault zone may be wider than
trench
Last 6 Ma 6 c. 3.3 Offset c. 6 Ma NW margin of the Shin Volcano 2005 Chorowicz et al. (2005)
Review of On-Fault Palaeoseismic Studies Along the Dead Sea Fault
by c. 20 km
1996–2003 0 4.4 ± 0.3 GPS 2005 Mahmoud et al. (2005)
Last 47.5 k years 0.0475 4.7–5.1 mm/ Offset channels incised into the Lisan, Jordan 2007 Ferry et al. (2007)
year Valley. Main channel predates highest stand Comment/Reply: Ferry
and Meghraoui (2008)
and Klein (2008)
4 years 0 4 5 GPS 2007 Gomez et al. (2007)
(continued)
195
Table 7.3 (continued)
196

1999–2005 0 4.9 ± 1.4 GPS 2008 Le Beon et al. (2008)
Holocene 0.01 2.7 ± 1.5 Offset reef 2008 Ma kovsky et al. (2008)
Last 2,000 0.002 >2.8 ± 0.2 Offset Hellenistic walls, Ateret, – Agnon et al. (2010)
7 kyears 0.007 6 Offset archaeology 2009 Altunel et al. (2009)
8 years 0 1.8–3.3 GPS 2010 Alchalbi et al. (2010)
25 ka 0.025 5 Offset channels, archaeology 2011 Ferry et al. (2011)
141 ka 0.141 5.4 ± 2.7 Offset channels 2011 Le Beon et al. (2010)
4.5 ± 0.9
8.1 ± 2.9
Last 300 ka 300 ka 5–7 Offset channels 2012 Le Beon et al. (2012)
The consistency of instantaneous GPS rates (Le Beon et al. 2008), Quaternary
rates (Klinger et al. 2000a; Niemi et al. 2001; Le Beon et al. 2010, 2012) and several-
millions-years-long slip rates (Bartov et al. 1980) stands out. However it contrasts
with the large variability of rates determined by paleoseismological studies and archae-
ological markers. For example, offset of a Roman period aqueduct is interpreted to
show 7 mm/a (Meghraoui et al. 2003) whereas offset walls from the late twelfth century
are offset only 2.1 m (Ellenblum et al. 1998). This may be explained either by distrib-
uted deformation unaccounted for by on-fault palaeoseismic investigations or, more
probably, by too short time-windows of observation along some fault segments spans.
The discrepancy between short-term slip rates calculated by adding earthquake
ruptures, and long-term rates is referred to as slip deficit. The long-term rate of
105 km slip in 20–25 Ma is 4–5 mm/year, in agreement with GPS results. Garfunkel
et al. (1981) assigning sinistral slip to most of the historical earthquakes along the
DSF, estimated that the sum of the seismic slip accounts for about two thirds of the
long-term slip. Salamon et al. (1996) focusing only on the twentieth century seismic-
ity found that only 7 % of the long-term slip was accommodated by earthquakes,
leaving 83 % of the slip needed to match the long term slip-rate unexplained.
Hence, such calculations show with little ambiguity that one needs to be able to docu-
ment earthquake time series significantly longer than one earthquake cycle to be able
to know something sensible about slip-rates from paleoseismology (Wechsler et al.
2011). This is particularly evident where the seismic activity might not be homoge-
neous but rather clustered, as it has been suggested for the DSF (Marco et al. 1996).
And yet, the results of the palaeoseismic studies on the main strand of the DSF, which
span enough time, are also in agreement with the geodetic and with the long-term rates
(Ferry et al. 2011; Klinger et al. 2000a; Le Beon et al. 2010; Niemi et al. 2001).
7.2.3 Structural Details, Pull-Aparts, Thrusts
Structurally complex sections along the DSF include overlapping segments, com-
monly associated with pull-apart basins, right jogs where push-up swells occur, and
splay faults of various strike directions. These complexities give rise to a variety of
types of faults.
Thrust faults are mostly common along the Lebanese Restraining Bend (Elias
et al. 2007) and the nearby Palmyride folds range, in Syria (Abou Romieh et al.
2012; Alchalbi et al. 2010; Chaimov and Barazangi 1990). Also the slip rates on
the different thrust faults outcropping in these two areas is still subject to active
discussion, the thrust associated to the LRB seems to be currently the most active
with several large historical earthquakes associated with these structures.
Normal faults are usually associated with the occurrence of pull-apart basins
(Garfunkel 1981), although several normal faults are also visible in the region of
Galilee. Morphological analyses and palaeoseismic trench studies at the margins of
the southern Arava confirm the normal nature of the fault on the west (Amit et al.
2002, 1999; Zilberman et al. 2005) and on the east (Thomas et al. 2007). Holocene
activity of normal faults has been documented at the eastern boundary fault of the
Hula pull-apart valley (Zilberman et al. 2000). In Tiberias city, on the western shore
of the Sea of Galilee, a normal fault offset early eighth century CE buildings, whereas
late eighth century buildings located on top of the fault are not affected, bracketing an
earthquake during the eighth century (Marco et al. 2003). Late Pleistocene normal fault
zones were documented as active during the deposition of the Lisan Formation, at the
western margins of the Dead Sea Basin (Bartov and Sagy 2004; Marco and Agnon
1995, 2005). On the western bounding fault of the Gulf of Aqaba Shaked et al. (2004,
2012) reconstruct vertical movements by dating buried coral reefs and submerged
archaeological site. These palaeoseismic studies confirm the “leaky” nature of the DSF
(Garfunkel 1981) and the paradigm of pull-apart structures (rhomb grabens) along
strike-slip faults.
The structural role and history of activity of apparently “incongruent” faults that
strike NE but show normal displacement instead of reverse motion that is expected
to conform with NW-SE shortening, are not explored yet. These include the Sheikh
Ali Fault at the NE end of the Sea of Galilee, a fault at the NE corner of the Dead Sea,
and the NE corner of the Gulf of Aqaba. The NW-SE extension there is incompatible
with the maximum horizontal compression that is inferred on the basis of analysis
of meso-structures in the region (Eyal and Reches 1983).
7.3 Discussion
On-fault studies have confirmed the location of the main active strands of the DSF.
In many cases, those studies have also brought new information about past earth-
quakes, documented, or not, in historical records. Building on these observations,
we try to interpret the space-time distribution of earthquakes over the last two
millennia (Fig. 7.2) and to suggest that a short-term pattern, periods without significant
seismicity alternating with periods of intense activity, might exist.
Several earthquakes appear to define a seismic sequence rupturing from north to
south. The most conspicuous series starts with the 1114/1115 CE earthquakes on
the East Anatolian Fault and continues with the earthquakes of 1157, 1170, and 1202
CE. If these sequences indeed happen as outlined above, we do not see a similar or
repeat pattern in the past. If this is correct, the famous North Anatolian Fault
sequence of the 20th century, when a sequence of strong earthquake ruptures began
on the east and propagated westward (Barka 1996; Stein et al. 1997) may not be a
recurring sequence either.
Striking quiescence periods, of the order of several hundreds of years, appear to
indicate imminent ruptures of several section of the fault. The segment between the
Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea ruptured in 31 BCE, 363 CE, 749 AD, and 1033
CE, followed by a millennium-long quiescence in which only moderate earthquakes
occurred. The northern segment in Syria has been quiet for over 8 centuries
(Meghraoui et al. 2003). Finally, the southern segment of the DSF along the Wadi
Araba, has apparently not ruptured significantly for at least six hundred years. One
might wonder if the Mw7.3 Nuweiba earthquake in 1995 in the Gulf of Aqaba
marks the beginning of a new seismic sequence that could rupture a longer section
of the DSF in the near future.
The estimated Late Pleistocene – Holocene slip rates seem to converge between
4 and 5 mm/year. The long-term rates that are based on offset Miocene and Pliocene
geological bodies are in agreement with plate motion rates as determined geodetically.
We therefore regard the variation in palaeoseismically-determined rates as indications
of insufficient temporal coverage for some segments. The conversion of modern
seismicity to slip also does not amount neither to the long-term slip nor to the geodetic
slip rate (Garfunkel 2011), most probably because it represents a short time.
7.3.1 Future Targets
More data are needed to examine whether ruptures stop at mapped segment boundaries.
We can at least confirm that several large earthquakes, such as the 1202 rupture, went
through segment boundaries. Smaller earthquakes such as the October 30, 1759 were
probably confined to a single segment but there are no data from the adjacent
segments that could definitely rule out ruptures there as slip partitioning occurs
where parallel or sub-parallel fault segments occur, e.g., the bounding faults of
pull-apart grabens and where there are branches that split off the main fault, e.g., the
Carmel Fault, Serghaya Fault, and Roum Fault.
The rupture history of transverse faults that connect overlapping faults at the
boundaries of pull-apart basins is also unknown. To date none of the palaeoseismic
studies addressed faults such as the Amatzyahu Fault that forms the southern
boundary of the Dead Sea. These faults may either act independently or as rupture
terminations of longer strike-slip faults. Comparisons of palaeoseismic records can
reveal which is correct.
The structural role of the extension features at the NE corners of the Gulf of Aqaba,
the Dead Sea, and the Sea of Galilee is unclear yet. Exploring the NE-SW-striking
normal faults that appear in all these locations and express “incongruent” ~ NW-SE
extension can shed light on these structures.
Acknowledgments Partial funding was provided by the Israel Science Foundation grant
1736/11 to SM.
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Chapter 8
Pre-Instrumental Earthquakes
Along the Dead Sea Rift
Amotz Agnon
Abstract The Dead Sea rift offers a wealth of information about pre-instrumental
earthquakes. The types of potential archives include historic seismicity, archaeo-
logical sites, disturbed beds in lake deposits, rockfalls within caves as well as on
free slopes, and displaced marine terraces. The rich historical archive is useful as a
key for deciphering the geological archives.
Of the geological archives developed for the Dead Sea rift, lake sections stand
out due to the long periods covered with high resolution. Lake deposits contain long
and potentially continuous archives of the environment, and of earthquakes in par-
ticular. The Holocene drop in Dead Sea level, accentuated with a fast anthropogenic
drop, have triggered incision and outcrop formation, permitting access and direct
investigation of archives. The ongoing analysis of cores from lake drill-holes will
augment the continuity of the archive.
The historical information spans periods that exceed the seismic cycle of
individual fault segments. One of the provoking results of the comparisons of his-
torical versus geological archives of earthquake activity is the significant difference
in the apparent length of the earthquake cycle, where prehistorical data indicates
long quiescence periods. This suggests that even the long historical record of the
Levant does not encompass the full earthquake cycle along the entire Dead Sea
fault. This result underscores the significance of paleoseismic research for the
understanding of earthquake-fault mechanics and for hazard assessment.
Keywords Paleo-earthquakes • Earthquake clustering • Historic earthquakes

• Dead Sea earthquakes
A. Agnon (*)
of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra campus, Givat Ram, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
208 A. Agnon
8.1 Introduction
The study of pre-instrumental earthquakes has made considerable progress in the

world during the last 40 years since the introduction of geological observations to a
subject previously dominated by historic research. Paleoseismology has opened a
new dimension in the study of recurrence and magnitudes of past earthquakes (Sieh
1978; Swan et al. 1980; Yeats et al. 1997; McCalpin 2009). Paleo-earthquake
research is essential for the study of any fault system for which the loading-
unloading cycle is longer than the period covered by history.
The historical archive for the Dead Sea rift (DSR) is extensive over the last three
millennia and, at times, includes complementary sources from coexisting cultures
(Guidoboni et al. 1994; Ambraseys et al. 1994; Guidoboni and Comastri 2005;
Karcz 2004; Sbeinati et al. 2005; Ambraseys 2005a, b, 2009).
The value of pre-instrumental seismicity has been underscored by several
authors, and several articles have reviewed preinstrumental earthquakes in the
Levant (see Garfunkel 2011, for a recent review). Ambraseys (1971) has detected a
pattern of interaction in catalogues of historic earthquakes along the two conjugate
faults that bound the Anatolian block (NAF and EAF in Fig. 8.1). Karcz et al. (1977)
have used archaeological evidence to test historical catalogues, and found a different
distribution of damage, where the former exhibit higher concentration along the rift.
Garfunkel et al. (1981) have used historic earthquakes to identify a spatio-temporal
35°N
30°N
+ + + +
Block
Sinai
+ + + + + +
35°E
35°E
+ +
Hula
Arabi
Plate
Valley
Dead
Sea
Galilee
Sea of
36°E
36°E
+
a
+
100 km
35°N
30°N
+ + + +
+ + + + + +
Fig. 8.1 Basins along the Dead Sea rift. Inset shows the adjacent plate boundaries: EAF East
Anatolian fault, CA Cypriot arc, NAF North Anatolian fault (Generated by http://woodshole.
er.usgs.gov/mapit/). Lower panel - from © 2012 GoogleEarth
8 Pre-Instrumental Earthquakes Along the Dead Sea Rift 209
pattern of seismic gaps. Stiros (2001) has used historical accounts, archaeological
excavations, and geological observations for identifying a cluster of activity that
spanned three centuries along four plate boundaries in the Eastern Mediterranean,
including the Dead Sea rift. Agnon et al. (2006) have reviewed recent research
focused on lake sediments for studying historic and pre-historic earthquakes. They
reaffirmed temporal earthquake clustering with a long cycle of activity, of order
10 kyear, longer than the historic period.
The present review attempts to be more comprehensive, including historical,
archaeological, and geological information, and spanning historical and prehistori-
cal times. Comparison between alternative sources is given where applicable. We
start with a systematic review of the sources that include historical catalogues, exca-
vated archaeological ruins (on- and off-fault), and geological evidence of several
types: lake seismites, coastal terraces with related sediments, and rock falls (in
caves and on free slopes). A discussion of the extent and the reliability of each type
follows its description. A following section presents the temporal correlations
between the various sources. In the spirit of the present review, an attempt is made
to cover all possible correlations. Subsequently we consider the issue of c ompleteness
of the archives, critical to the assessment of recurrence patterns, which comprises
the discussion section.
8.2 Sources of Information
This review focuses on earthquakes recorded by off-fault effects, including collapsed

and cracked buildings (from historical accounts and archaeological excavations),
disturbed sediments, and displaced coastal features. Direct evidence of surface rup-
tures is reviewed in a different chapter (Marco and Klinger 2014), but on occasion
such information is used here for supporting the present interpretations (Ellenblum
et al. 1998; Gluck 2001; Haynes et al. 2006; Akyuz et al. 2006; Ferry et al. 2011;
Sbeinati et al. 2010).
8.2.1 Historic Earthquakes
During the time of the development of the paleoseismic research in the Dead Sea
rift, namely the last two decades, several comprehensive catalogues have been pub-
lished under a modern standard. The catalogues of Ambraseys et al. (1994) and
Guidoboni et al. (1994) mark the transition to such a standard. The extent of litera-
ture on historic earthquakes of the Levant is formidable, and often catalogues are
conflicting and confusing, as pointed out by Karcz (2004). Since that review, focused
on Jewish sources between the second century BCE and the eighth century CE, three
additional catalogues have been published (Guidoboni and Comastri 2005; Sbeinati
et al. 2005; Ambraseys 2009). The present review is written from a geological
210 A. Agnon
perspective by a non-historian so only recent extensive regional c atalogues are used

systematically. When physical evidence for earthquakes support the catalogues of
Ben Menahem (1991) and Amiran et al. (1994), they are used to augment the ones
mentioned above. Sbeinati et al.’s (2005) catalogue is focused on the northern
Levant, whereas Ambraseys et al. (1994) focus on the Red Sea; the others include
areas around the Mediterranean. Ambraseys (2006a, b) filtered the larger events for
which he estimated surface wave magnitudes (Ms) from macroseismic data. Salamon
(2010) and Kagan et al. (2011) compiled lists of larger and generally consensual
events reported in these catalogues to have shaken the Levant, and in particular
the DSR.
Figure 8.2 displays sites central to the historical discussion of earthquakes (a)
and interpreted locations of historic events (b–d). Some of the events require special
attention due to possible bias in the historic documents and interaction with other
disciplines (e.g. Karcz 2004; Ambraseys 2005a, b). Archaeological evidence for
demise has been associated with historic earthquakes even when the dating of dam-
aged structures was poorly constrained. Thus questionable dating could be pre-
sented as infallible. This approach can potentially introduce spurious interpretations
of archaeological as well as historical data.
Kagan et al. (2011) have recently compiled a list of historic events that could
potentially affect the Dead Sea basin, and tested for correlations between each event
and dated lake seismites. They have used an attenuation relation that describes the
decay of macroseismic intensity with distance from the source in the Eastern
Mediterranean and Middle East (Ambraseys and Jackson 1998):
M S = −1.54 + 0.65 ( I i ) + 0.0029 ( Ri ) + 2.14 log ( Ri ) + 0.32 p, (8.1)

where MS is estimated surface-waves magnitude and Ii is the Medvedev-Sponheuer-
Karnik intensity. Ri = ri2 + r02 with ri being the mean isoseismal radius of inten-
sity Ii, and r0 = 9.7 km. Equation (8.1) was based on 488 isoseismal contours that
were fit to about 9,000 intensity points originating from 123 shallow instrumental
earthquakes. Ambraseys (2006a, b; 2009) studied different seismogenic zones, the
DSR being one of them. He adjusted the coefficients of Eq. (8.1) to macroseismic
data of 59 instrumental DSR events, and obtained:
M S = −0.138 + 0.554 ( I i ) + 0.0033 (ri ) + 1.54 log (ri ) + 0.31 p, (8.2)

where ri (in km) in the near-field is the distance from a point with the i th intensity
to the source or its nearest rupture. Ambraseys (2006a, b, 2009) used Eq. (8.2) to
assess source location and magnitude of 80 pre-instrumental events. This allowed
him to calculate frequency-size distribution and rate of moment release.
Hough and Avni (2011) used extensive data by Avni (1999) from the M6.3 1927
Jericho earthquake to calibrate the attenuation relation for the region using the
schemes of Bakun and Wentworth (1997). They have augmented the calibration by
“did you feel it” reports for the M5.0 2005 Lebanon earthquake (Atkinson and Wald
2007). Hough and Avni (2011) extend the attenuation relation derived by Malkawi
Fig. 8.2 Sites of documented historic earthquakes (a) and inferred source zones for BCE (b), 1st
Millennium CE (c) and second Millennium CE (d)
and Fahmi (1996) (see review by Al-Qaryouti 2008) to include the M7.3 1995 Gulf
of Aqaba event. Rearranged in the form of Eqs. (8.1 and 8.2), a preliminary cali-
brated attenuation relation for DSR is given by:
212 A. Agnon
1000
Hough &
DSR Eq. (3)
Avni, 2011
DSR Eq. (2)
Ambraseys
500 Mid East - Eq. (1)
2006,2009
Mediterranean
Log (km) epicentral distance
200 III
100 IV
III
50
IV
VIII
V
V
20 VI
VII
VIII
VI
VII
VIII
10
6 7 8
magnitude
Fig. 8.3 Attenuation relations used in this and previous studies that correlate historical macroseis-
mic data with physical evidence for earthquakes. The curves represent Eqs. (8.1, 8.2 and 8.3),
where for Eq. (8.1) r0 was set to null in accordance with Ambraseys (2006a, b, 2009). Setting r0 to
9.7 km makes a minor difference
M = 0.388 + 0.588 ( I i ) + 0.00282 (ri ) + 0.98 log (ri ) . (8.3)

Hough and Avni (2011) use Eq. (8.3) to assess the magnitudes of two historic
earthquakes, 1170 and 1202 CE, as 6.6 and 7.6, respectively (compared with
Ambraseys (2006a, b) who estimates 7.3 and 7.2 respectively).
Figure 8.3 displays Eqs. (8.1, 8.2 and 8.3) where iso-intensity lines are plotted on
(log r, M) field. At small epicentral distances (<20 km) or at moderate magnitudes
(<6.5) the three equations predict similar intensities (to within the scatter of the
data). At large distances, Eq. (8.3) predicts intensities higher by one (low magni-
tude) to two (high magnitude) units. A general observation is that the curves are
progressively more convex (downward) from (8.1, 8.2 and 8.3). We will return to
these attenuation relations for correlation of historical seismicity and physical
evidence.
8.2.2 Archaeological Evidence of Earthquakes
The DSR and its surroundings are dotted with numerous archaeological excavations
that have generated reports of earthquake damage tied to particular strata and hence
often associated with historic events (Fig. 8.4) (Karcz et al. 1977). As is generally
the case for seismology and paleoseismology (Yeats et al. 1997; McCalpin 2009), in
archaeoseismic studies the distinction between on-fault and off-fault phenomena is
Fig. 8.4 Archaeological sites where earthquake evidence has been reported (a) The main fault
segments forming the Dead Sea Rift are shown (b)
central. The DSR is unique in that it offers clear cases of on-fault archaeoseismic
sites. Marco (2008) has recently reviewed archaeoseismic studies along the Dead
Sea rift. In this section we present cases that are pertinent to the present discussion.
The study of earthquakes via the archaeology of ruins should benefit from close
collaboration between geologists and archaeologists (and historians if the period in
question is documented in chronicles). Coauthoring of papers with archaeologists
increases the prospects for professional reading of the archaeology (Karcz et al.
1977; Marco et al. 1997, 2006; Ellenblum et al. 1998; Marco et al. 2003; Shaked
et al. 2004; Thomas et al. 2007; Wechsler et al. 2009; Sbeinati et al. 2010; Ferry
et al. 2011). The first example described below is a unique case where excavations
have been systematically driven and steered in collaboration between a historian
and earthquake geologists, where the on-site archaeologists made their operational
decisions in order to address seismological issues.
8.2.2.1 Tel Ateret
The most striking example of an on-fault archaeoseismic study is the excavations of

Tel-Ateret (Fig. 8.5). Marco et al. (1997) have documented the Crusader castle of
Vadum Iacob (Tel Ateret) over which an Ottoman mosque had been constructed,
respectively offset sinistrally 2.1 and 0.5 m (Fig. 8.5). Ellenblum et al. (1998) have
214 A. Agnon
Fig. 8.5 Tel Ateret. (a) A satellite photo (GoogleEarth) of the Ateret – Benot Ya’aqov bridge.
Vadum Iacob castle straddles the fault trace, that runs through an aqueduct system south of the
castle. (b) The outline of Vadum Iacob Crusader castle (curtain wall) and the Ottoman mosque.
(c) Aqueduct photo taken down and to the south-south-west. The red-and-white scale is 0.5 m
aligned north to south
assigned individual earthquakes to the two offset events: 20 May 1202 CE (1.6 m)
and 30 October 1759 (0.5 m). These earthquakes have been independently assigned
macroseismic magnitudes of 7.2 (Ambraseys 2006b) and 6.5 (Ambraseys and
Barazangi 1989). The macroseismic magnitudes are compatible with displacement-
magnitude systematics (Wells and Coppersmith 1994).
The advantage of archaeology is its precision in determining the amounts slip.
When combined with history, archaeology can resolve the timing of slip events as
no other method can. The Crusader’s curtain wall was meticulously laid, allowing a
precision approaching 1 cm. The Ottoman wall allowed ~0.1 m precision. Very
similar and synchronous offsets, albeit with lower precisions in amount and date,
have been recorded by paleoseismic trenching of fluvial channels some 10 km south
of Tel Ateret (Marco et al. 2005; Marco and Klinger 2014).
Meghraoui et al. (2003) and Sbeinati et al. (2010) reconstruct an offset aqueduct
at Al-Harif, where they assign an offset of 13 m and an age of ~2 ka (Fig. 8.4b). The
challenge with deciphering offset from aqueducts is often the lack of control on ini-
tial, pre-deformation structure. In addition, archaeological dating of damage to an
aqueduct is not as precise as dating of living quarters, where one may find a wealth
of well dated artifacts, and floors that demonstrate a stratigraphic context, constrain-
ing the age of the vertical features. Not only the destruction of aqueducts is difficult
to date, their construction date is typically vague for similar reasons. We have exca-
vated an aqueduct at the site of Tel Ateret and, ironically, it is dated based on its left-
lateral offset of 2 m, similar to the offset of the nearby Crusader’s castle (Fig. 8.5c).
The dating of the earthquakes associated with the offset of Vadum Iacob are
exceptionally well constrained by history, documented both by Crusaders and
Muslims. The castle was erected during 11 months and, before completion, con-
quered and demolished by Saladin in late August, 1179 CE (Ellenblum 2007). The
floor at the time of construction and conquest stands out due to its conspicuous lime
color and richness with metallic weapons and construction tools. In the subsequent
22.5 years, thin (several-cm scale) soil accumulated on the rubble to be ruptured
during the earthquake of 20 May 1202 CE. A meter (or more) of soil has accumu-
lated during the last eight centuries. A fraction of this soil layer (30 % or more) was
ruptured during the 30 Oct 1759 M ~ 6.5 event.
8.2.2.2 Qasr Tilah
An additional case where the DSR or its branches offset archaeological structures
have been documented, where the archaeological context jointly with radiocarbon
dates allow particular earthquakes to be suggested. A water reservoir and an associ-
ated aqueduct in Qasr Tilah, south of the Dead Sea (Fig. 8.4), are offset by about
2 m (Klinger et al. 2000; Haynes et al. 2006). The dates of damage from the last four
rupture events was correlated by Haynes et al. (2006) to the historic earthquakes of
634 or 659/660, 873, 1068, and an Ottoman Period event. The assignment to a sev-
enth century CE earthquake was based on dates of construction and repair during
the occupation of the site, that has seemed to be abandoned during later centuries.
Haynes et al. (2006) have assigned a historic earthquake from 873 CE to the second
rupture at a paleoseismic trench. The epicenter of 873 CE earthquake was placed by
Ambraseys et al. (1994) well in the Arabian Plate, yet Haynes et al. (2006) suggest
that due to sparse population the catalogue is biased. Haynes et al. (2006) disregard
the possibility that one of the mid eighth century earthquakes was candidate. Bikai
(2002) attributes collapse of the Blue Chapel to the mid-eighth century AD earth-
quake. Eklund (2008) infers widespread destruction by a mid-eighth century earth-
quake, and this may suggest rupture during this time south of the Dead Sea.
The third rupture in the trench, being the penultimate event, crosses a layer of
seventh–tenth century CE dated by Haynes et al. (2006), who suggest the earth-
quake of 18 March 1068. Haynes et al. (2006) select the earthquake of 1546 as the
best candidate for the most recent event to rupture Qasr Tilah, since the layer cut
during this rupture is dated to the Ottoman period (1515–1918 CE). The earthquake
of 1546 was played down by Ambraseys and Karcz (1992) as one that affected only
Jerusalem, hence being exaggerated. An alternative is the earthquake of 1834 with
reported damage from Karak to Caesarea (Fig. 8.2) and asphalt emissions in the
216 A. Agnon
Dead Sea (Amiran et al. 1994; Ambraseys 2009). Garfunkel et al. (1981) interpreted
this event as a rupture in the Dead Sea and northern Arava, based on the then avail-
able catalogues. Ben-Menahem (1991) placed the 1834 epicenter at the southern
dead sea, noting toppling of structures east of the Dead Sea. More data is needed for
ruling between the historic earthquakes of 1546 and 1834 as the ultimate event in
Qasr Tilah.
8.2.2.3 Fallen and Cracked Off-fault Structures
Severe ground shaking having caused structural destruction can be recorded and
subsequently unearthed in archaeological sites. Marco (2008) has surveyed some
cases of fallen and cracked masonry structures to exemplify useful diagnostics
for earthquake related damage. Additional cases, some mentioned by Russell
(1980) include Petra, Sephourias, Bet Shearim, and Scythopolis for the 363 earth-
quake, and several others. Distinct features that testify for earthquake damage
include lack of evidence for alternative causes of damage, and special features
such as human skeletons in positions indicating attempts for self-protection (Nur
2008).
Archaeology often extends the seismic record beyond the historic period. An
ongoing collaboration between archaeologists and geologists enabled the inter-
pretation of destruction layers and masonry damage in Megiddo (Fig. 8.4), per-
petually reconstructed for twenty-six centuries (e.g. Porat et al. 2012). This site
offers unique data on the Carmel fault branch of the Dead Sea rift. Marco et al.
(2006) have documented 18 instances of damage, of which 16 may have resulted
from seismic shaking. They denote ten of the cases as “probably catastrophic”,
of which seven indicate shaking (four of them horizontal). In a single case, a
liquified sand bed is taken as clear evidence of catastrophic shaking. Altogether,
the damage seems to had happened in six events, where at least two of them had
been caused by earthquakes: shortly before 5 ka and between 2.8 and 2.9 ka.
Another likely event preceded the latter by about a century. Evidence for addi-
tional events lacks confidence in source of damage or dating, or both. The likely
source of the earthquake damage is rupture on the Carmel fault that runs appar-
ently underneath the site (Fig. 8.4), yet the Jordan fault, less than 40 km away, is
a viable candidate.
Russell (1980) and Hammond (1980) have based their arguments for a large 363
earthquake, damaging the entire southern sector of the continental DSR, on the col-
lapse of the Temple of the Winged Lions in Petra and destruction at the Main Theatre
(Fig. 8.6a). This dramatic finding matched well with the concept of a drastic decline of
Petra during the fourth–fifth century CE up to a complete abandonment following
destruction by a mid sixth century earthquake, namely 551 CE. The excavations of
1991–1993, that have casted doubt on damage by the 551 CE event. These excavations
have demonstrated that the site continued to function to a final destruction during the
very late eighth century or the ninth century CE (Eklund 2008). The impressive col-
lapse of a colonnade from the Great Temple, likely due to an earthquake (Fig. 8.6b) is
yet to be dated.
Fig. 8.6 colonnades (a) Temple of Winged Lions; (b) Great Temple; (c) Hippos SE church;
(d) Hippos NW church
Some archaeological sites show damage in more than a single layer. Tsafrir and
Foerster (1997) documented impressive damage from a 363 CE earthquake to
Scythopolis. Earthquake damage from 363 CE has been cited by many authors for
many sites (e.g. Russell 1980). Scythopolis was hit again early-to-mid seventh cen-
tury CE before seismogenic demolition (under the Arab name Baishan) during the
mid-eighth century CE. Tsafrir and Foerster (1997) used numismatic evidence to
date the latter event as 749 CE. Karcz (2004) pointed out that this find does not rule
out an earlier event (747 CE) while Ambraseys (2009) argued that the case is not
closed without ruling out later events (757 or 768–775 CE). All these discussions
underscore the precision available in historical documents buttressed by archaeo-
logical evidence which allow accuracy not attainable in purely geochronological
studies. However, geological evidence can help when the resolution is sufficient, as
discussed below in the “Correlation” section.
The attribution of damage in ruins to earthquakes in general and to particular
historical temblors is often challenged. Magness (1997) has argued against the
assignments of a pair of earthquakes, 306 CE and 419 CE, to damage in Khirbet
Shema’ (Fig. 8.2a) (Meyers et al. 1976). The argument is based on a lack of positive
evidence of earthquake destruction at 306 CE; Meyers et al. (1976) merely present
precise numismatic evidence for prominent occupation between 306 and 341 CE,
interpreting it as a building phase following a putative earthquake. Magness (1997)
have accepted the evidence for earthquake destruction of the top layer, but assigns
it to the mid-eighth century CE, long after abandonment of the site. This case dem-
onstrates the sensitivity of earthquake chronologies derived from archaeology to the
assumptions at the basis of the interpretation.
218 A. Agnon
Fig. 8.7 Qal’at Subayba

keystone
Several authors have commented on the circular reasoning and feed back between
archaeological, historical, and geological interpretations, giving rise to false identi-
fications (Karcz and Kafri 1978; Karcz 2004; Ambraseys 2005b, 2009; Rucker and
Niemi 2010). The case of Qal’at Subayba is a useful example for the pitfalls (Figs. 8.3
and 8.7). Nur (2008) have attributed the damage in Qal’at Al-Subayba (“Qal’at
Namrud”) to the 1202 CE earthquake, whilst the damaged building was only erected
later around 1230 and buttressed only towards 1260 (Ellenblum 1989). This precise
dating is based on massive inscriptions in the site (Amitai 1989). The damage,
erroneously attributed by Nur (2008) to the 1202 CE earthquake, is likely dated to
the earthquake of 30 October 1759 CE (Hartal 2001).
A comprehensive and critical review of historic earthquake catalogues versus
archaeological and geological evidence from DSR, a long overdue foundation for
earthquake research and hazard assessment, is beyond the scope of this paper. Yet
the Correlation section below discusses some promising research opportunities.
8.2.3 Lake Seismites
Seilacher (1969) pioneered the systematic identification of beds deformed at the

water-sediment interface during earthquakes. He has coined the genetic term “seis-
mite” for sedimentary rocks displaying structures that can be interpreted to result
from earthquake shaking. Several types of textures in lacustrine facies have been
since recognized:
1. Liquefied and fluidized beds: structures indicating folding and intrusion of
coarse grain layers (Sims 1973, 1975).
2. Intraclast breccias (mix layers): beds comprising of clasts derived from the local
pre-shaking sediment (Marco et al. 1996; Agnon et al. 2006).

3. Homogenites: Homogeneous massive intervals in the otherwise layered to
laminated section; the composition within the homogenite is identical to a homog-
enous mixture of the compositions of the different layers or laminae (Chapron

et al. 1999, following Cita et al. 1984).
4 . Turbidites and silt layers: graded bedding, typically a thin bed of coarser material
within fines (Siegenthaler et al. 1987, and Doig 1990, following Heezen and
Ewing 1952).
Sims (1973) has underscored the potential in the study of earthquakes in active
continental zones from liquefaction structures in lacustrine beds. He subsequently
analyzed late Quaternary sections and inferred recurrence intervals (Sims 1975).
Hempton and Dewey (1983) described a sequence of five seismites in the East
Anatolia fault (EAF, Fig. 8.1), and interpreted one to reflect higher shaking inten-
sity. With the absence of age data they used spacing for conjecturing a non regular
recurrence pattern. Siegenthaler et al. (1987) have attributed a homogenite to slump-
ing during seiche triggered by a historic earthquake in Lake Lucerne, Switzerland.
They identified such homogenites in cores and seismic reflection profiles and opened
the way to reconstruction of recurrence intervals and patterns. Doig (1990, 1991)
had observed discoloration in small lakes at the epicentral zone of an instrumentally
recorded earthquake in Canada. He inferred that graded silty layers penetrated in
short cores represent earthquake induced slumping in the catchment (Doig 1998).
Correlation with historic events based on constant sedimentation rate and extrapola-
tion to prehistorical times revealed variable recurrence rates.
Marine paleoseismology has developed in parallel to lacustrine paleoseismology
(Kastens 1984; Adams 1990; Roep and Everts 1991; Cita et al. 1996; Moretti et al.
1999; McHugh et al. 2006; Monecke et al. 2006; Moretti and Sabato 2007), where
the distinction between seismites and other structures reflecting high mechanical
energy has remained a challenge (Cita et al. 1984). In a recent issue devoted to soft
sediment deformation triggered by earthquakes (Owen et al. 2011, and references
therein), Gibert et al. (2011) have cast doubts on the inference of earthquake histories
from one of the most common sedimentary structures used to infer earthquake
shaking, namely load structures: multiple superimposed liquified layers may result
from a single shaking event. Therefore, seismites that evidently formed at the water
sediment interface are more useful for determining the timing of individual events
and recurrence patterns.
While lacustrine paleoseismology has flourished elsewhere (e.g. Davenport and
Ringrose 1987; Jones and Omoto 2000; Waldmann et al. 2011), certain properties
of the sediments in the Dead Sea and its ancestral lakes (Lake Lisan in particular)
have enabled unique contributions to the discipline.
8.2.3.1 Prehistoric Dead Sea Seismites
Laminated lacustrine sediments, common around the Dead-Sea Basin (Fig. 8.8),

provide a recorder of high energy events at the lake bottom (Manspeizer 1985). The
last global glacial cycle and the ensuing rise of lake level have deposited laminar,
perhaps varved, sedimentary sections dominated by alternation of detrital and pure
aragonite laminae (Begin et al. 1974; Katz et al. 1977; Barkan et al. 2001). Aragonite,
220 A. Agnon
Fig. 8.8 Extent of late Pleistocene lakes and locations of paleoseismic study sites in the area.
White curve Lisan Formation, White broken curve Ze’elim Formation, PC Pratzim Creek, LP
Lisan Peninsula, MT Masada Terrace, ZC Ze’elim Creek, DC Daraje Creek, EG Ein Gedi, EF Ein
Feshkha, HE Ha’Onn Escarpment, SH Soreq and Hartuv Caves, DH Denia Cave at Haifa, PS
Palmahim slump. The shaded relief map is by Hall (1996)
a polymorph of calcium carbonate, has the advantage of preserving the primary

chemistry and isotopic composition (Katz et al. 1977), hence allowing radiometric
dating (Haase-Schramm et al. 2004; Stein 2011). A typical facies in the Lisan
Formation comprises alternations of dark detritus versus pure white aragonite,
deposited during periods of a stratified lake (Katz et al. 1977). These can be
explained as seasonal laminae, or varves, where the detritus was transported to the
lake during flash floods and subsequent evaporation led to aragonite precipitation
(Katz et al. 1977; Barkan et al. 2001).
Laminated sections are found up to levels of ~200 m below sea level (b.s.l.,
where during the twentieth century A.D. the level declined below 400 m b.s.l.
(Bookman et al. (2004))). The late Pleistocene Lisan Formation line the valley floor
on a stretch 275 km long; the Holocene Ze’elim Formation stretches about 170 km
(Fig. 8.8). The Lisan Formation (Shaw 1947) has long been recognized for unique
study opportunities due to lithological uniformity, high resolution stratigraphy, and
well exposed beach deposits (Bowman 1971; Bartov et al. 2002). The unit has been
studied extensively in recent years (e.g. Haase-Schramm et al. 2004; Enzel et al.
2006; Ron et al. 2007; Belmaker et al. 2007; Torfstein et al. 2008; Prasad et al.
2009). The distortion and destruction of lamination in the otherwise laminated
sediments of Lisan Formation has been used as an indicator for paleo-earthquakes
by several authors (Pettijohn and Potter 1964; Seilacher 1984; El-Isa and Mustafa
1986; Marco and Agnon 1995; Agnon et al. 2006; Heifetz et al. 2005; Katz et al.
2009; Wetzler et al. 2010; Alsop and Marco 2011). The Ze’elim Formation (Yechieli
1993) shows similar facies, with beach ridges limited to levels lower than 370 m
b.s.l., and laminar aragonite lower than 400 m (Bookman et al. (2004)). The unit
exhibits seismites similar to those described in Lisan Formation (Ken-Tor et al.
2001; Migowski et al. 2004; Agnon et al. 2006; Kagan et al. 2011). The upper part
of the section corresponds to historic times, enabling correlation of seismites with
historic earthquakes (Ken-Tor et al. 2001; Migowski et al. 2004; Agnon et al. 2006;
Kagan et al. 2011).
El-Isa and Mustafa (1986) have recognized the scientific potential of i ntraformational
structures indicating post depositional seismic shaking (seismites). They listed three
categories of processes generating structures that can be used to study paleo-earth-
quakes. The first category includes local faulting, cracking, and slumping. The faults
are normal or horizontal, of various size and age. The second category comprises
effects of liquefaction: sand boils in coarser sediments and destruction of lamination
in fine grain sediments. The latter is associated with loss of cohesion and “ultimate
mixing of the particles”. The third category of processes was the focus of El-Isa and
Mustafa’s (1986) work, namely folding over décollement surfaces. Marco and Agnon
(1995, 2005) used detailed stratigraphy to establish a link between faulting events and
phenomena of the likes of El-Isa and Mustafa’s (1986), with emphasis on their first
and second categories.
The Dead Sea near-shore facies exhibits the more common types of seismites.
Enzel et al. (2000) have documented 11 liquified layers in fan delta Holocene sedi-
ments of Daraje Creek (DC, Fig. 8.8). These include ball-and-pillow structures,
clastic dike intrusions, convolute lamination, and micro-faults.
8.2.3.2 Seismites in Beds from the Historic Period
Several authors approached late Holocene beds exposed by recent retreat of the
Dead Sea lake, attempting to correlate seismites with historic earthquakes. These
correlations are discussed in a separate section below. Enzel et al. (2000) identify
the ultimate rupture exposed in Daraje Creek with the M = 6.2 1927 event. Ken-Tor
et al. (2001) have identified eight seismites in the fan deposits of Ze’elim Creek
(ZC, Fig. 8.8). They have extracted 24 radiocarbon dates from the 7 m section that
featured two unconformities representing significant hiatuses. They dated these to
eighth–tenth and late thirteenth–fifteenth centuries CE, paving the way for high
accuracy lake level curves (Bookman et al. (2004)). They were able to correlate all
eight seismites from the section studied to historic earthquakes, although some
ambiguities could not be resolved with the data. In particular, a seismite deposited
around 400 CE could be interpreted as 363 or alternatively ad 419 CE (see their
Figs. 8.4 and 8.3b respectively). We return to the correlation between individual
seismites and particular historical events in a later section.
To circumvent the hiatuses, and to access the lacustrine laminated facies a ppropriate
for high resolution studies, Migowski et al. (2004) have collected continuous cores
from the Dead Sea shores. Three coring sites along the western shore were designed
222 A. Agnon
to provide lateral coverage (Fig. 8.8): Ein Feshkha (EF), Ein Gedi (EG), and Ze’elim
Creek, which allowed outcrop control with Ken-Tor et al. (2001) data. They studied a
core from Ein Gedi in considerable detail. The lacustrine facies, with alternations of
detritus and chemical precipitates (aragonite with, in places, halite), builds 3 m of the
section of Ein Gedi core, corresponding to a historic period.
Migowski et al. (2004) had counted laminae from a 2.2 m continuously laminated
section under a microscope for construction of a chronological model. The age
model was constructed under the following assumptions: (i) each cycle of detritus/
chemical laminae represents a year of deposition; (ii) the top of IBLs correspond to
years of historic earthquakes; each calibrated radiocarbon age represents a terminus
post quem for the deposition. They resolved breccia layers as thin as 2 mm; the
thickest seismite they report is 9 cm and the average 1.4 cm. They counted 22 seis-
mites within the otherwise laminated interval and correlated them to earthquakes
between the 140 BCE and 1293 CE events.
Given the uneven distributions of earthquakes in history and of IBLs in the core,
a unique age model anchored by seismite-earthquake correlation to the absolute
time scale seemed plausible. The correlation was constrained by four radiocarbon
dates that yielded ages 100–250 years older than the historic dates of the earth-
quakes. This was explained by the long time of deposition for organic matter through
the dense brine formed the hypolimnion. Such a dense hypolimnion, separated from
the surface water, is expected for the counted interval with its facies of inter-
laminated aragonite and detritus (Barkan et al. 2001).
Only two deformed layers, correlative to dates of ~90 CE and ~175 CE, could
not be matched with historic events. A striking example of the high resolution of
this study was given by Agnon et al. (2006) who show that the 1202 CE earthquake
can be resolved from the 1212 CE earthquake.
As a test for the correlation, Migowski et al. (2004) and Agnon et al. (2006) have
evaluated the local intensity of historic earthquakes in the Ein Gedi site based on the
historical epicenter and magnitude, with the aid of attenuation relations (Fig. 8.3). All
correlated earthquakes had high expected intensities (right-lower side of the distance-
magnitude diagram), whereas earthquakes that are missing from the record were
expected to have low intensity (left upper side). Some medium intensity earthquakes
were identified, and some were missing for the Ein Gedi core. This test corroborates
the correlation of deformed layers with earthquakes and at the same time lends sup-
port to the assumption of annual laminae cycles.
Four prominent historic events did not show in the interval where laminae were
counted; these events could have been masked by successive events (1063 followed
by 1068 CE), or had been duplicated in the historical catalogues due to spurious read-
ing of multiple calendars (1032 versus 1033 CE, Ambraseys et al. 1994). Agnon et al.
(2006) suggested that the earthquake of 1202 CE left a faint mark, barely resolved in
the successive IBL assigned by Migowski et al. (2004) to the 1212 CE event.
Agnon et al. (2006) have revised the analysis of Ken-Tor et al. (2001) using a
uniform deposition rate between unconformities. With such a model they found a
unique match between each of the eight seismites and a historic event. They have
accounted for the masking of event horizons by subsequent earthquakes and ana-
lyzed the resolving power of the section (see below).
Kagan et al. (2011) have studied an extended section in the more lacustrine facies
of Ze’elim Creek and added seismites from sections that fill in the hiatuses in the
original section. Ongoing retreat of the lake has enhanced the exposure, affording a
continuous section of the last three millennia. They also collected data from an addi-
tional section at Ein Feshkha in the northernmost Dead Sea (Fig. 8.8) and analyzed
the outcrop data jointly with Migowski et al.’s (2004) data from Ein Gedi core.
Altogether, Kagan et al. (2011) study over a 100 seismites, half of which in the
northern (truncated) Ein Feshkha section. The relative abundance of seismites in the
northern section has been attributed to preferential recording of the northern extent
of the rift, perhaps by waves guided through the Jordan/Jericho fault. The compari-
son of the three sites allows to single out events that have affected the entire basin,
generating wide spread deformation dubbed “intra-basin seismites” (IBS).
Levi et al. (2006) have studied the magneto-fabrics of clastic dikes that intrude
the Lisan Formation (Marco et al. 2002). They conclude that some of the dikes, in
particular those showing evidence of horizontal propagation, were injected laterally
during earthquake shaking. Porat et al. (2007), based on optically stimulated lumi-
nescence (OSL) dating of dike material, infer ages of between 15 and 7 ka for injec-
tion. With the caution that the mechanism for resetting the OSL signal is not yet
known, they suggest that such ages can be of use in paleoseismology.
8.2.3.3 Convolute Lamination (Intraformational Folds)
Convolute lamination – a manifestation of intraformational folding in the laminated

Lisan Formation – provides a spectacular manifestation for the mechanical energy
that reach the normally quiet lake bottom (Fig. 8.9). Such structures have long
attracted the eye of geologists who typically associate the deformation with earth-
quake shaking (Pettijohn and Potter 1964). El-Isa and Mustafa (1986) were the first
to systematically approach the recurrence of intra-formational folds in a partial sec-
tion of the Lisan Formation ~17 m thick, east of the Lisan Peninsula (Fig. 8.8). They
have documented folded beds with amplitudes between 1 and 15 cm. They have
assumed a relation between the amplitude of the fold and ground acceleration, and
estimated respective magnitudes. The frequency-size relation derived should be
regarded with care for three reasons: (1) without knowledge of the epicentral dis-
tance the magnitude estimates are minimal; (2) disregard for breccia layers may
trim the strongest earthquakes from the archive; (3) the frequency of recurrence is a
lower bound, as multiple events may be erroneously amalgamated (Alsop and
Marco 2011). An additional source of uncertainty arises from the possibility that
folding occurs at finite depth in the sediment (Gibert et al. 2011).
Heifetz et al. (2005) have noted the geometrical similarity between the convolute
beds and deformation structures that develop between fluid layers. They differenti-
ated between symmetric folds and asymmetric billow-like structures, and conjectured
that the billows are precursors to a state of total turbulence, represented by breccia
layers. This suggested a mechanism for the formation of folds: Kelvin Helmholtz
instability (KHI) caused by vorticity transfer into a pair of layers of contrasting
density (and possibly viscosity) sliding horizontally at different speeds in response
224 A. Agnon
Fig. 8.9 Intraformational folds in Lisan Formation, Peratzim Creek
to a seismic shock. Such layering is bound to form in compacting muds due to fluid
expulsion, hindered settling, and formation of sedimentation fronts (Thacker and
Lavelle 1977).
Heifetz et al. (2005) have linearized the KHI problem and inferred a dependence
of inception of billows on driving wave and sediment properties. The higher peak
horizontal acceleration, the shorter the time required for fold growth; the longer
the period of the driving wave, the longer the time available for fold growth; the
thinner the bed undergoing folding, the smaller the acceleration required for onset
of folding instability. The density difference has two contradicting effects, ulti-
mately resulting in an inverse proportion with the threshold for billowing.
Assuming small (<10 %) density contrasts (merely due to progressive dewatering)
and estimating the viscosity from the seismic wave attenuation, the threshold for
any folding of a layer 0.1–1 m thick under a driving frequency of 1Hz is 0.2–0.7 g
(where g ~ 10 m/s2). Such conditions are possible near the epicenter of a M6.2
earthquake in the Dead Sea (Oth et al. 2007). Under bottom gradients the critical
acceleration is smaller.
Wetzler et al. (2010) have corroborated the KHI approach by noting a scaling in
the power spectrum of the folds which is identical to that observed in other KHI
systems. They have furthered the link between horizontal peak ground acceleration
and the onset of folding. The KHI approach is a promising avenue for further
research, and laboratory experiments on mud will be very useful for testing the
application.
Two aspects of mud, a two-phase fluid, are very different from experimentally
tested single phase fluids that can develop turbulence in layers via KHI. The first
aspect is that mud can develop localized states that do not propagate. Lioubashevski
et al. (1999) have shown that thin mud suspensions subject to vertical shaking
develop localized sub-harmonic states (oscillons) known previously only in dry
granular media. A more essential aspect is the expulsion of the suspending fluid
(brine in the case of Dead Sea – Lisan sediments) from the grains which fossilizes
the folding. This is the process that enables us to access the geometry of these
dynamic states long after stabilization.
8.2.3.4 IBLs (“Mixed Layers”)
Seilacher’s (1969) type example for a seismite comprised sequences of three

sub-units from bottom: block faulted, rubble, and liquefied. The contacts between
sub-units are gradual and so is the bottom of the sequence, in contrast to the top
contact that is sharp. These features are replicated in the Dead Sea seismites identi-
fied by Marco and Agnon (1995, 2005). Owing to the seasonal lamination, the Dead
Sea lacustrine seismites stand out in outcrop and drill holes, allowing calibration
with historic earthquakes (Ken-Tor et al. 2001; Migowski et al. 2004; Kagan et al.
2011) and offering a unique insight into the long term seismic behavior of an active
plate boundary (Marco et al. 1996; Agnon et al. 2006).
Agnon et al. (2006) renamed the “mix layers” of Marco and Agnon (1995) to
“intraclast breccia layers” (IBLs), a descriptive rather than a genetic term. In the
typical laminated facies of the lacustrine Dead Sea Quaternary sections, these brec-
cias form conspicuous massive intervals, where in places fragments of laminae float
in a fine grain matrix (Fig. 8.10). The top contact is sharp where a single laminae
can be traced overlying the breccia layer for the entire extent of outcrops (tens of
meters and possibly more). By contrast, the bottom contact is gradual, in places
involved with intraformational folding (Fig. 8.10). The research focus on IBLs in
the late Quaternary Dead Sea initiated due to their relations with intraformational
faults (Fig. 8.11). Marco and Agnon (1995) have noticed the stratigraphic relations
indicating that IBLs form simultaneously with small scale faulting and formation of
micro topography (scale 0.1–1 m) on the lake bed. Marco and Agnon (2005) have
documented these temporal relations in detail, and Fig. 8.11 represents visually one
of their examples. Striking correlation between columnar sections on faulted blocks
is limited to intervals in the hanging wall (h). Three intervals are not correlated and
signify events of fast subsidence of the hanging wall followed by sedimentation that
fills the tectonic micro-bathymetry. Of six IBLs in a 9 m section (7 m on the foot-
wall), three are followed directly by the three differential subsidence events. Marco
and Agnon (1995, 2005) have interpreted these relations as evidence for a causative
relation between faulting and IBL. Such cases of clear thickening of IBL in the
hanging wall, and slumping down the fault plane, are common near Masada and in
a number of additional sites. These indicate that the resuspended material settled
right after local faulting, so local faulting might have driven local resuspension.
226 A. Agnon
Fig. 8.10 A photograph of a sequence containing an intraclast breccia layer (a). (b) shows detail
of lower contact with upward transition from folded to fragmented structures as traced in (c).
Masada Terrace
Alternatively, faulting on a different but not too distant fault caused re-suspension
and was followed by an aftershock that was related to the local fault that cause the
bathymetry. In the more common setting as featured in Fig. 8.11, IBLs do not
exhibit significant difference between adjacent fault blocks, so the sediment of the
IBL had resuspended and resettled due to somewhat remote faulting.
The mechanism of formation of the IBLs is not yet clear, but a tentative e xplanation
was offered by Heifetz et al. (2005) together with the mechanism for formation of
convolute lamination discussed above. According to this suggestion, the transition
from folding to brecciation corresponds to the transition from billows to turbulence.
Such a transition is the extreme case of Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, where the drive
(seismic waves) overcomes the damping due to gravity and viscosity (see Section
“Intraformational folds” above).
We note the fundamental difference between KHI and Rayleigh-Taylor instability
that more commonly cause seismites (e.g. Hempton and Dewey 1983): the latter
depends on a gravitational drive. In Rayleigh-Taylor instability an inverse density
gradient (denser on top) is rectified where the role of shaking is to overcome static
friction and initiate the flow. In the case of the intraclast breccias of Lisan Formation
the density gradient is normal due to compaction, and it acts to attenuate the instabil-
ity. So seismic energy is required during the development of the instability, cascading
Fig. 8.11 An intraformational fault, Lisan Formation, Masada terrace. (a) A photograph with
demarcations of selected sections expanded in panel c. (b) A line tracing of panel a. (c) Selected
sections taken respectively on the foot wall (1 and 2) and the hanging wall (3). Sections are laid out
to emphasize the remarkable visual correlations between the faulted blocks at the bottom and top,
where the middle section of 3 is missing between 1 and 2. For lithological and attempted temporal
correlation, see Marco and Agnon (2005)
into smaller scales down to the laminar scale required for complete brecciation (and
to the grain scale for forming homogenites). Some gravitational energy may become
available during instability because sliding on a slope is involved. The relative role of
gravitational and seismic energy depends on the initial slope. The initial slope can be
constrained from measurements of lateral variations in thickness of deformed units.
8.2.4 Coastal Marine Environment
DSR is one of a few transform boundaries tearing continental crust and allowing
seawater to inundate some of the basins. The connection with the sea provides a
datum – the global sea level, and as the case is for the DSR, coral and vermetid reef
228 A. Agnon
tables allow precise dating of these levels. In addition to their use as reference levels
for precise determination of vertical throw, paleo-shorelines can provide piercing
points for measuring strike slip. As the DSR is leaky in the south and restrained in
its central (Lebanon) section, contrasting styles of slip partitioning are displayed.
Slip partitioning in a restraining setting is manifested in the coastal marine and
offshore Lebanon work (Elias et al. 2007). Sonar images of the bottom revealed
fresh scarps in the soft sediment associated with a >100 km long trace of a the
Beirut thrust that is partitioned from the Yammouneh transform segment in the rift
(Fig. 8.4). Abrupt emergence of a vermetid reef by ~0.8 m has been dated to the
sixth century CE and attributed to the 551 CE earthquake (Morhange et al. 2006).
Geomorphic similarity of three successively higher benches suggests a recurrence
of a similar M ~ 7.5 event every ~1.6 kyear, since the Holocene sea level maximum
(Elias et al. 2007).
Slip partitioning in a leaky setting is evident in the Gulf of Eilat-Aqaba (Deves
et al. 2011). Makovsky et al. (2008) have demonstrated that slip is partitioned
between the western boundary normal fault (Eilat fault) and a parallel fault that
accommodates much of the strike-slip (Avrona fault) (Fig. 8.12). The details of the
seismotectonic history of the northern gulf are yet to be resolved. Shaked et al.
(2004, 2011) inferred catastrophic submergence for a reef flat in the northernmost
Gulf of Aqaba (Fig. 8.12). The seemingly truncated reef table is 4–5 m deep, cov-
ered with a few decimeters of sand. Most notably, loose blocks of basement rocks,
up to 50 cm in dimension, are laid in a plan similar to archaeological nomadic sites
on land (Avner 1998; Avner et al. 1994) (NS in Fig. 8.12). Such loose blocks get
carried away by seasonal southern storms at bottom depth of up to 2 m, so the per-
sistent arrangement in a plan reminiscent of archaeological sites indicates fast, per-
haps catastrophic submergence. A support for catastrophic events associated with
submergence was unearthed onshore: a buried reef with corals in living position,
preserving fine skeletal details without any bioturbation or reworking, topped by an
unsorted conglomerate (ET near Elat fault in Fig. 8.12). The buried reef preserved
evidence for an abrupt sedimentation event ~4.7 ka and a terminal event associated
with subsidence and massive sedimentation at ~2.3 ka. A ~4 m vertical displace-
ment is suggested by the submerged reef table (Shaked et al. 2004). At least 2 m and
likely the entire 4 m were catastrophically thrown, corresponding to M7¨ ± 0.5
(Wells and Coppersmith 1994). For comparison, trenches in the fan of Sh’horet
Creek (Fig. 8.12, ST) reveal 0.1–1.3 vertical displacement events during the same
period (Amit et al. 2002). The difference may signify the transition from the Arava/
Araba valley to the gulf, yet it may also be related to the difference of seismic
response between fan deposits and coral beach.
Additional dating of coral terraces, together with dating turbidites in the deep
facies of the Gulf of Aqaba, might complement the history of earthquakes in the
southernmost segment of the Dead Sea rift. Efforts to date such deposits are on the
way. A control for earthquake dates is provided by Thomas et al. (2007) who report
seven archaeological layers damaged by earthquake faulting (some subsequently
repaired) since the second century CE. They conclude that historical catalogues are
incomplete in this region.
Fig. 8.12 The tectonic setting of the southern Arava/Araba Valley and northern Gulf of Aqaba.
The background topography and the curving faults are from Kesten et al. (2008.) Eilat Fault
(Modified after Garfunkel et al. 1981). Shaked et al. (2004) have trenched Holocene marine
sediments (ET) that together with a submerged nomadic site (NS) constrain vertical coseismic slip
of 4 m ~2.3 ka. The plate boundary northward was mapped by Garfunkel et al. (1981) and strike
slip was established based on observation of a small pull-apart basin (PA) when this concept was
quite young (Zak and Freund 1966). Holocene sediments crossing this segment, renamed Avrona
fault after a playa carrying this name, were trenched by Amit et al. (2002) (VT). They report trenching
of Pleistocene sediments cut by nearby marginal normal faults (ST). Zilberman et al. (2005)
surveyed an irrigation system from early Islamic times that was deformed co-seismically during
the 1068 CE March event. Makovsky et al. (2008) have identified this fault in the gulf and estab-
lished left lateral motion of ~30 m on a submerged reef terrace at ~65 m depth. Using this beach
line as a piercing point and eustatic curves with estimated age of ~11 ka they inferred a strike slip
rate of 2.7 ± 0.5 mm/year. Slater and Niemi (2003) trenched Holocene sediments across Aqaba
fault (QT). Thomas et al. (2007) have analyzed the adjacent archaeological Ayla sites (AS) and
identified seven damaged layers, attributing them to earthquakes. Some of the layers show faulting,
and some walls record minor strike slip. An earthquake following 360 CE was identified with the
19 March 363 CE event. Tibor et al. (2010) have collected multibeam bathymetric data and verified
Makovsky et al. (2008) estimate of offset submerged reef terrace. They have also identified a
conspicuous lineament splitting the northern gulf (Ayla fault)
In addition to the direct effect of the Dead Sea rift on the tongue of the Red Sea
in the Gulf of Aqaba, and the effect of the Beirut thrust that branches from the rift,
earthquakes from the rift affect the entire continental slope of the Mediterranean
(Fig. 8.1). Slumps triggered by DSR earthquake show on the bathymetry of the
Mediterranean shelf and slope (PS, Fig. 8.8) and seem to generate local sea waves
on the Mediterranean coast (Almagor and Garfunkel 1979; Ambraseys and Melville
1988; Ambraseys and Synolakis 2010; Salamon et al. 2007, 2011). Elias et al.
230 A. Agnon
(2007) argue that, for the Lebanese coast, tsunamis are generated by submarine
thrusting. High energy deposits in the port of Caesarea (Fig. 8.3), together with
destruction of the port, have also been associated with a remote DSR earthquake –
the 115 CE event (Fig. 8.2c) (Reinhardt et al. 2006). A sea wave in Yavne was
reported for this earthquake (Fig. 8.2a) (Ambraseys et al. 1994). A strong earth-
quake at Antioch was reported for the same year (Guidoboni et al. 1994). The likely
mechanism for sea waves generated by an earthquake rupturing the northern DSR is
submarine slumping.
8.2.5 Damage Recorded in Hard Rock
Earthquake shaking often shifts suspended rock masses so they can fall and activate
a geological clock. Calcite precipitated in caves, if containing sufficient radioactive
Uranium, provides such a clock. Free slope rock falls may become clocks if they
contain minerals useful for cosmogenic and luminescence dating, or if they bury such
minerals. Indirect clocks can form by modification of the local drainage and accumu-
lating of sediments behind fallen rocks or slides. Researchers of the Dead Sea rift
have used all these instances in the quest of dating paleo-earthquakes and assessing
their magnitudes.
8.2.5.1 Cave Deposits (Speleothems)
Cave deposits are potentially a useful recorder of ground shaking. The cave protects
the deposits from much of the variations in the external environment, and speleo-
thems often show fine lamination, enabling high resolution sampling for dating and
for reconstructions of the physico-chemical conditions. In cases where the deposits
are datable with sufficient resolution, and deposition is continuous, damage due to
earthquakes can be dated. The optimal climate zone for this study should be suffi-
ciently humid to prevent desiccation and sufficiently warm to prevent freezing. The
Judean Hills, abutting the Dead Sea rift, proves ideal for the development of this
method: deposition in caves is continuous through the dating range of the U-Th
method (Bar-Matthews et al. 2000). This has motivated Kagan et al. (2005) to study
two adjacent caves in the Judean Hills (Fig. 8.8, SH), where they have documented
preferred orientation of severed stalagmites. They have argued that north–south and
east–west dominant orientations of fallen stalagmites is consistent with westward
propagating surface wave fronts, where the respective polarization of Love and
Rayleigh waves would accord with the orientations of fallen stalagmites. Kagan et al.
(2005) seem to be the first to present an extended archive of earthquakes based on
cave deposits, spanning the last 185 kyear. They have identified 38 datable speleothems
seemingly damaged by earthquakes (“speleoseismites”), most of which showing
micro-stratigraphic evidence of renewed calcite precipitation following damage.
Such evidence together with dating laminae predating and postdating the damage,
bracket the age of damage. Some samples could not be bracketed from both ends, but
belonged to clusters of ages; these clusters where taken as a limit for the age of an
event. Because Kagan et al. (2005) dated the last damaging event to around 5–6 ka,
they inferred that these pre-historic earthquakes were stronger than any historic event.
Braun (2009) has studied Denya Cave in Haifa (Fig. 8.8), a city straddling the
Carmel fault (Fig. 8.4). This active branch of the Dead Sea rift bounds the Jezre’el
Valley from south (Fig. 8.1). The fault runs closest to heavily populated areas, yet
the maximum magnitude expected from the fault and the recurrence rates are poorly
constrained. Braun (2009) has devised an isochron method for mitigating sensitivity
to the anomalous initial isotope ratios in samples from this cave.
Kagan (2011) and Braun et al. (2011) combined results from the two speleoseis-
mic sites to assess coupling between the Carmel branch and the main Dead Sea rift
during the Holocene. They find that the last event to have been well recorded in the
Judean Hills, around 5 ka, is the ultimate at Denya Cave, Haifa. The penultimate
event hit the two sites respectively at 8–9 ka and 10–11 ka. The authors then use
these examples together with data from the Tell Megiddo (Marco et al. 2006) and
from the rift valley to lay out possible scenarios for coupling between segments and
branches of faults.
8.2.5.2 Free Slope Failure
As in other active regions (McCalpin 2009), landslides and rockfalls in the Dead
Sea rift have been used to constrain dates and intensities of seismic shaking.
Recently, Katz et al. (2011) have studied landslides triggered by large earthquakes
along Ha’Onn Escarpment (Fig. 8.8), east of Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee).
Measuring optically simulated luminescence (OSL) of buried quartz sand they
obtain the following dates for land sliding events: before 65 ka, around 65 ka, 6 ka,
and 5 ka. In addition, paleoseismic trenching yielded the following OSL dates for
earthquake ruptures: 45, 40, 35, 10, 5 ka, and a younger (<5 ka) event. The 5 ka slide
was likely triggered by the earthquake rupture observed in the trench. This work
followed Yagoda-Biran et al. (2010) who calculated peak ground accelerations of
0.15–0.5 g required for mobilizing three slides around Lake Kinneret.
Katz and Crouvi (2007) have considered the effect of foundations in ancient
settlements: they found that the town Safad/Zefat (Fig. 8.2a) that has been inhabited
for more than two millennia, suffers from reduced stability of foundations. Buildings
founded in archaeological debris are more susceptible to landslides induced by
earthquakes and to amplification of ground shaking. The authors caution that sites
like Safad, having been demolished by numerous historic earthquakes, might have
biased the historical catalogues towards high magnitudes.
Wechsler et al. (2009) have described a landslide that displaced archaeological
remains including an aqueduct in Umm-El-Qanatir, east of Ha’Onn Escarpment
(Fig. 8.3). They attribute the damage to the 749 CE earthquake based on the in-site
finds limited to sixth to mid-eighth century CE. All these studies manifest the role
of earthquakes in triggering land sliding around Lake Kinneret.
232 A. Agnon
A novel approach to earthquake driven gravitational collapse on slopes is given

by Matmon et al. (2005). They use cosmogenic dating together with OSL for dating
collapse of several meter large sandstone boulders in Timna (Fig. 8.8). They iden-
tify three distinct events around 3–4.5 ka, 15 ± 1 ka, and 31 ± 5 ka respectively.
Notably the oldest event recorded is associated with a ~5 m boulder displaced 20 m
horizontally from its source cliff, with merely 2 m vertical drop. The boulder is
found due north of its north-facing scar, suggesting a significant role of horizontal
acceleration parallel to the slip vector. Matmon et al. (2005) point out that the
cycle of boulder shedding off the cliff may be limited by either of the steps: under-
cutting and ground shaking. The apparent cycle of 12–15 ka may be determined
by the rate of undercutting after a large earthquake. On the other hand, a similar
period (yet with a different phase) seems to emerge from Kagan et al. (2005)
cave deposits (discussed in the following section). Further research is required for
ruling between these proposed mechanisms for determining the period of boulder
shedding events.
8.3 C
orrelation of Historical, Archaeological,
and Geological Evidence
The foregoing sections demonstrate that the DSR stands out in the richness of his-
torical, archaeological, and geological evidence of earthquakes. The availability of
these three independent and interdisciplinary sources of paleo-earthquake data in
the DSR enable cross tests between individual data sets. As pointed out by several
authors, the mutual independency of these sources is not always warranted, and
circular reasoning should carefully be avoided (Karcz 2004; Ambraseys 2006a;
Thomas et al. 2007; Rucker and Niemi 2010).
8.3.1 Prior to the First Millennium BCE
Kagan et al. (2005) have discussed the correlation of speleoseismites and lake
seismites. The possibility to match lake seismites to each of the fewer speleoseis-
mites (during times of deposition of the appropriate facies in the lake) has suggested
that the cave acts as a filter recording only very strong events. This is in line with the
absence of speleoseismites in the historical period. An event dated to earlier than
5.1–6.3 ka can be correlated with a lake seismite dated ~6 ka by Migowski et al.
(2004). The correlation between Judean Hills speleoseismites and Lisan seismites
was noted by Kagan et al. (2005). Out of four speleoseismic event in the interval
70–15 ka, one was dated to a time of hiatus in the Lisan formation record (event xv).
Table 8.1 Correlation of selected prehistoric earthquakes inferred from archaeologic sites with
geochronologically dated seismites
Range Archaeological Geochr-onol. Refs.
[ka] years BCE Ruin [ka] Geological site notes
5.9–6 Fortieth century Ghassul 5.9–6.3 Ein Gedi core a, b, c/1
5.9–6 Fortieth century Ghassul >5.3–6.1 Judean Hills caves a, b, d
5.0–5.1 End 4th mill. Megiddo 4.2–5.6 Judean Hills caves d, e
5.0–5.1 End 4th mill. Megiddo 4.2–5.6 Denya Cave, Mt. Carmel e, f
5.0–5.1 End 4th mill. Megiddo 4.7–5.3 Sea of Galilee – Ha-’On e, g
4.6–4.7 Twenty-seventh Ai 4.4–5.0 Ein Gedi core b, c/1
century
4.6–4.7 Twenty-seventh Ai 3.7–5.5 Tamar Creek b, c, h/2
century
4.2–4.3 Twenty-seventh H. Ifdan 4.2–4.0 Ein Gedi core b, c, i/1
century
4.2–4.3 Twenty-seventh H. Ifdan 3.7–5.5 Tamar Creek i, h/2
century
3.3–3.4 ~ 1365 Ugarit 3.3–3.5 Ein Gedi core c, j/1
3.3–3.4 ~ 1350 Pella 3.3–3.5 Ein Gedi core c, k/1
3.1–3.2 ~ 1150 Pella 3.0–3.2 Ein Feshkha c, k/1
3.1–3.2 Twelfth century Deir’Alla 3.0–3.2 Ein Feshkha l, l
3.0–3.1 ~1050 Timna 3.0–3.2 Ein Feshkha m, n
3.0–3.1 ~1050 Timna 2.0–4.2 Mt. Timna n, o/3
2.75–2.76 ~760–750 various 2.75–2.85 Ein Gedi, Ein Feshkha c, m, p/1
2.75–2.76 ~760–750 Deir’Alla 2.75–2.85 Ein Gedi, Ein Feshkha c, m, l, p/1
2.65–2.75 ~700 Various 2.65–2.75 Ein Gedi, Ein Feshkha c, m/1
2.65–2.75 ~700 Deir’Alla 2.65–2.75 Ein Gedi, Ein Feshkha c, m, l/1
References: (a) Hennessey (1969). (b) Karcz et al. (1977); Karcz and Kafri (1978). (c) Migowski
et al. (2004). (d) Kagan et al. (2005). (e) Marco et al. (2006). (f) Braun (2009); Braun et al. (2011).
(g) Katz et al. (2011). (h) Gluck (2001). (i) Levi et al. (2002). (j) Schaeffer (1948); Hanfmann
(1951). (k) Bourke et al. (1999); Bourke (2004). (l) Ferry et al. (2011), based on Franken (1992).
(m) Kagan et al. (2011). (n) Ben-Menahem (1991). (o) Matmon et al. (2005). (p) Ambraseys
(2009); Austin et al. (2000)
Comments: (1) Range calculated from sedimentation rates in Ein Gedi core constrained by radio-
carbon dates. (2) Large uncertainty in geochronologic date based on OSL. (3) Large uncertainty in
geochronologic date based on cosmogenic nuclides
For the other three speleoseismic events, the uncertainty in dating disallows
correlation to individual Lisan seismites, yet they seem to correlate to periods of
high recurrence rate (see below in the Recurrence section).
There is little data for correlating prehistorical archaeology with geological
observations of earthquake damage (Table 8.1). Migowski et al. (2004) correlated
the ~6 ka event with archaeological destruction at the Tells of Ghassul (Fig. 8.3).
This is one of a series of destructions from the Bronze Age attributed to earthquakes
234 A. Agnon
(Hennessey 1969; Karcz et al. 1977). The speleoseismic date has also been correlated
with a 5.3–5.4 ka breccia layer from Ein Gedi core (Migowski et al. 2004; Kagan
et al. 2005).
Braun et al. (2011) correlate the latest speleoseismite in the Carmel cave with
damage recorded at Megiddo (Marco et al. 2006). This date – ~5 ka – is common to
the Judean Caves (Kagan et al. 2005), the ruins of Ai (Karcz et al. 1977), surface
rupture documented south-west of the Dead Sea (Gluck 2001), and lake seismite
from Ein Gedi core (Migowski et al. 2004) (Table 8.1).
Migowski et al. (2004) correlate a breccia layer from Ein Gedi core dated 4.7 ka
with archaeoseismic damage of Ai (Karcz et al. 1977; Karcz and Kafri 1978). This
archaeoseismic event also correlates with ground rupture documented south-west of
the Dead Sea (Gluck 2001). The uncertainty of dating this rupture, based on OSL,
allows correlation also with earthquake evidence 4.3 ~ 4.2 from Khirbet Hamrat
Ifdan in Wadi Araba (Levi et al. 2002).Ferry et al. (2011) cite archaeological reports
from ongoing excavations and conclude that an earthquake hit the central Jordan
Valley around 4.3 BCE.
Ben-Menahem (1991) assigns the Biblical destruction of Jericho to an earthquake,
and notwithstanding the delay of seven centuries in writing the text, he calculates a
date of 1560 BC for this event. Ambraseys (2009) notes that the biblical story men-
tions no earthquake. He rejects the archaeological evidence for the biblical Jericho
event for which he adopts a date of ~1400 BCE. A seismite from Ein Gedi core is
dated to ~3.3–3.4 ka (Migowski et al. 2004) so, in the absence of positive evidence
for contemporary earthquake damage in Jericho, one might conjecture that seismic
damage elsewhere has inspired the biblical stories from that era.
Migowski et al. (2004) correlate the seismite dated ~3.3–3.4 ka with an earth-
quake that perhaps destroyed the fortifications of Ugarit (Fig. 8.3) and was arguably
referred to by a contemporary tablet in El Amarna in Egypt and by a letter from
Abimilki of Tyre (Schaeffer 1948; Hanfmann 1951; Ben-Menahem 1991).
Nur and Cline (2000) suggest that much of the damage to Aegean and East
Mediterranean sites around 1200 BCE is due to a 50-year sequence of earthquakes
(“storm”). Incidentally, this time window is one of quiescence in the Ein Gedi core
(Migowski et al. 2004).
8.3.2 Tenth to Second Centuries BCE
For the last three millennia it is possible to estimate the extent of rupture of historic
earthquakes with the aid of archaeological and geological data. The completeness of
this information is improving for each consecutive millennium, and for the first half
of this period it is clearly insufficient. Figure 8.13 displays interpreted locations of
ruptures based chiefly on historical data, with complementary information from
archaeology (gray bars) and Dead Sea lake seismites (stars) as they correlate with
the historic data. We mark earthquakes matched to Dead Sea lake seismites in
Ze’elim Creek, Ein Feshkha (Kagan et al. 2011), Ein Gedi (Migowski et al. 2004),
and Daraje Creek (Enzel et al. 2000). The format follows a preliminary attempt by
a
-2000 1995
1927
1872
-1800 1834 1837
1759
1822
1712↓
-1600 1588 1656?
1546
-1400 1456/8
1408
1312 1293 1303↓
-1200 1212 1202 1156/7 1138/9
1113 -1117 1170
1068 1063
-1000 1033
991
1042
972
956
853/4↓
- 800 746 -749
859 -860
747
660
- 600 634 601
4th -5th century 550
502
- 400 ~360 419
363
303/306
- 200
115
- 0 -31
33
-64
37
-92
Legend local
mid 2nd century
- -200 -525
historic
earthquake
earthquake
correlated a
-199
correlated 1712↓ seismite -331
- -400 uncorrelated
historic
seismite
correlated
1063 earthquake with -525
- -600 estimated
a historic
earthquake
historic or
mid 8th century
- -800 rupture
assumed
a range of
events
historic seismite
--1000 rupture
archaeo -
without a
historic event
seismic information ° ° 11 -12th century
--1200 rupture gap
-100 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 km

I I I I I I I I -1365 I
EF
EG
Masada
DC
Jerusalem
ZC
Phaneas
Ayla
Petra
Baalbek
Antioch
Nablus
Aleppo
Fig. 8.13 (a) Estimated spatial extent of ruptures from the historic periods along the DSR. The
extent of rupture (horizontal lines) is based on documents and physical evidence. (b) Map showing
principal archeoseism and paleoseism sites indicated in (a) projected on the main segments of DSR
Garfunkel et al. (1981), which did not have geological data to compare. This update
is based on recent catalogues, and includes historical information from older peri-
ods, starting with the Biblical earthquake of 759/760 BCE (Guidoboni et al. 1994;
Ambraseys 2009). The present version also extends 200 km south-south-west to
include the Gulf of Aqaba, where the latest strong earthquake ruptured the DSR: the
Earthquake of Nueiba on 22 Nov 1995 amounted to M7.2 or more (Klinger et al.
1999; Shamir et al. 2003; Baer et al. 2008). The interpretation is naturally biased by
236 A. Agnon
the preconceptions of the present author, and it should be taken as a preliminary

rather than a definite summary.
As is apparent from the panels of Fig. 8.3 and from Fig. 8.13, the information is
sparser for older times and southern locations, in accord with population trends.
However, the ability to match a great majority of Dead Sea seismites with historic
earthquakes may suggest that the completeness of the historic and seismite archives
are not so dissimilar. In this sense, the uneven distribution of ruptures in space and
time exhibited in Fig. 8.13 may reflect genuine spatio-temporal clustering of earth-
quakes in historical times. As Garfunkel et al. (1981) argue, the relative quiescence
in Wadi Araba/Arava during the instrumental period supports a different seismic
behavior along different segments of the rift.
We start the history of the first Millennium BCE with the earthquake of the mid
eighth century as this event is reflected in numerous archaeological sites (Ambraseys
2009). However, note that the Iron Age stratigraphy is being hotly debated, including
the role of the earthquake in the cultural transitions (e.g. Herzog and Singer-Avitz
2004; Fantalkin and Finkelstein 2006). Whether all that damage is the result of a sin-
gle seismogenic rupture remains to be determined. The dates referred to in the Bible
enable researchers to name 759 (Ben-Menahem 1979; Ambraseys 2009) as the year of
the event. This earthquake is correlated in all three Dead Sea paleoseismic sites (stars
in Fig. 8.13). Kagan et al. (2011, Appendix C) point out that each of the three seismite
sites exhibits two eighth century events. This is in line with the large areal extent of
damaged archaeological sites that led researchers to infer a very high magnitude sin-
gle event. Austin et al. (2000) assign M8.2 to this earthquake. Ambraseys (2005a)
notes that such a high magnitude earthquake would completely demolish Jerusalem,
where historical or archaeological evidence for destruction is not established.
The assumption of a regular repeat time of a century for Dead Sea earthquakes is
central to the Austin et al. (2000) argument. And indeed, a superficial inspection of
the catalogues for the last millennium can yield an approximately uniform rate of
repeat times for destructive earthquakes in the Holy Land, namely once a century.
However, a closer look shows pairs of events that often span a wide section along
the transform. Salamon (2010) has reviewed sequences of historic earthquakes and
identified 13 cases where successive events did not necessarily form as aftershocks.
We note two pairs of earthquakes separated by a decade or less: 1202 CE ruptured
Lebanon, severely shaking Syria and northern Israel; 1212 hit the Gulf of Aqaba.
These events with magnitudes estimated 7.0–7.5 could erroneously be taken as a
single M > 8 event if we did not have the temporal resolution. The pair of 1834 CE
(M ~ 6) and 1837 CE (M7.0, Ambraseys 1998) at the Jordan and Dead Sea Valleys
and Lebanon, respectively, would be taken as a single M ~ 7.5 event.
In addition to the unjustified assumption of a century long seismic cycle, criticism
of Austin et al. (2000) comes from archeological grounds. Fantalkin and Finkelstein
(2006) argue that some of the damage purported to originate from seismic shaking
could have resulted from static loads.
The successive seismite found in Ein Gedi core (Migowski et al. 2004) and at Ein
Feshkha (Kagan et al. 2011) is correlated to 525 BCE. This earthquake is listed by
Ben-Menahem (1991) and Sbeinati et al. (2005), with damage to the southern
Lebanese towns Sur and Sidon, and a local sea wave. Morhange et al. (2006) document
variable uplift of paleo-shore-lines from this period, and suggest multiple seismic
events. The 551 CE event, with perhaps larger macroseismic effects, (Elias et al.
2007) is recorded as well at both these seismite sites, yet in addition it is correlated to
a seismite at the southern (further form the epicenter) Ze’elim Creek site. The fact
that 550 BCE is not correlated in Ze’elim Creek may be due to a smaller source, or
due to less favorable sedimentary conditions (e.g. lack of lamination) in this particular
interval. Additional studies in a lake-ward section, being exposed due to the ongoing
level drop, may resolve this issue.
The three overlying clear seismites in Ein Feshkha (Kagan et al. 2011) were not
correlated, largely due to sparse historical evidence from that period (deformed
layer is considered “questionable”). The correlation of an overlying seismite to 331
BCE in Syria is based on a nineteenth century chronicle (“many victims and destruc-
tion”) interpreted by Sbeinati et al. (2005) as intensity I = VI. Enzel et al. (2000) date
a seismite from Daraje Creek to 2.0–2.4 ka, correlative with the 331 BCE Ein
Feshkha seismite, or with one of the adjacent uncorrelated seismites.
Two additional seismites at Ein Feshkha are uncorrelated between 331 and
199–198 BCE, yet the error in dating could allow respective correlation with the
adjacent seismites. The latter date corresponds to a damaging earthquake in the
southern Lebanese coast, with more than half of Sidon destroyed by a landslide, for
which Guidoboni et al. (1994) and Sbeinati et al. (2005) respectively assign inten-
sity X and VIII. This event was not recorded in Ein Gedi core and Ze’elim Creek.
Of the 30 deformed layers in Ein Feshkha section overlying the one correlated to
199–198 BCE, spanning second century BCE to fourteenth century CE (the
sequence is truncated), three are labeled “questionable” seismites. All 30 deformed
layers could be matched with historic earthquakes to within he dating error (Kagan
et al. 2011). While each individual deformed layer can be matched to one or several
earthquakes, a unique match of the entire set is not possible: the best fit Bayesian
model of radiocarbon ages anchored to historic earthquakes (Kagan et al. 2010)
leaves 2 out 30 seismites unmatched at respective model dates (95 % confidence) of
101–42 BCE and 365–595 CE (the latter considered “questionable”).
Except for the last century in this sixteenth centuries long interval, the Ein Gedi
core is particularly detailed as it corresponds to the chronologic model based on lami-
nae counting anchored to 22 seismites (Migowski et al. 2004). Two of these are not
matched to historic earthquakes, at respective model dates of ~90 and ~175 CE. Note
that the two pairs of unmatched events in from each section considered are not cor-
related mutually, suggesting four local shocks that were not recorded historically.
Several earthquakes from the counted laminae interval are worth noting. These
are large historical events that are expected to affect the Dead Sea basin.
The information about a mid-second century BCE events is scant and comes from
secondary but relatively reliable sources. Several dates between 148 and 130 BCE are
mentioned in the sources, and the confusion is yet to be resolved (Ambraseys 2009;
Guidoboni et al. 1994; Karcz 2004; Sbeinati et al. 2005). Significant destruction of the
city of Antioch was reported (Guidoboni et al. 1994; Ambraseys et al. 1994; Guidoboni
and Comastri 2005; Sbeinati et al. 2005; Ambraseys 2009). Historical accounts cannot
238 A. Agnon
distinguish between a Dead Sea rift source and adjacent plate boundaries. A tsunami
hit the Lebanese coast near Sidon. A collapse of a village “above Sidon” (Karcz 2004,
and historical sources therein) suggest ground shaking and a regional earthquake. For
a single event to be responsible to the damage from Antioch to Ptolemais, some 400 km
(Fig. 8.2), it should be M ~ 8. Yet a pair of events, each around M7.5, is consistent with
the geological data (Kagan et al. 2011) and with the historical evidence for two sepa-
rate earthquakes. Ze’elim Creek and Ein Gedi core feature each a seismite from the
mid-second century BCE (Migowski et al. 2004; Agnon et al. 2006; Kagan et al. 2011).
Ein Feshkha section features two clear seismites from that time, separated by a 4 cm
undisturbed sequence. The calculated mean rate of deposition – 0.27 ± 0.03 cm/year,
yields a minimum of 13–17 years between events. Including an additional 1 cm of
sequence embodied in the upper seismite would give 17–20 years. This is similar to the
upper range of difference between various interpretations of historic dates.
8.3.3 First Century BCE to Seventh Century CE
A regional earthquake is reported for 92 BCE with tsunami in Lebanon and flooding
in Egypt, but its source location is not clear. This event is correlated to seismites in
Ein Feshkha and in Ein Gedi core, while Ze’elim Creek sections show undisturbed
laminar facies. We will use this information for a comparison with more recent
events for which we have more information.
The 64 BCE earthquake was studied in detail by Karcz (2004). He concluded
that “it is unlikely that local intensity was much in excess of human perception”.
Sbeinati et al. (2005) have reevaluated this event (65 BCE) and classify the com-
pleteness of data as “acceptable”. An intensity VI is assigned to Jerusalem, where
the source is likely in western Syria (VIII > I > VII in Antioch). While Ken-Tor et al.
(2001) identify this event with a seismite in Ze’elim Creek, Agnon et al. (2006)
preferred a mid-second century source for that seismite. They based their correla-
tion on a deposition model with a uniform sedimentation rate except in hiatuses.
Accepting this model, the 64 BCE event would be reworked and “masked” by the
subsequent 31 BCE earthquake. Migowski et al. (2004) were the first to acknowl-
edge that the subsequent 31 BCE event would mask 64 BCE. Recently however,
Kagan et al. (2011) have found a seismite at this period in the Ein Feshkha section,
in agreement with Sbeinati et al. (2005) intensity assessment. If we are to accept
Karcz’ (2004) assessment that the Syrian earthquake was only felt around the Dead
Sea, we miss a local event during that period that left a mark on the Dead Sea sedi-
ments, and perhaps was erroneously amalgamated with the large 64/65 BCE earth-
quake that hit Antioch.
The 31 BCE and the subsequent 33 CE earthquakes are well known due to their
contemporaneity with dramatic political and military events. Kagan et al. (2011)
classify these earthquakes as two of the nine forming “intra-basin seismites”, identi-
fied in the three sections considered in detail. In addition, a seismite dated ~2 ka in
Daraje creek (Enzel et al. 2000) could be correlated to one of these earthquakes.
The 362/363 CE earthquake deserves special attention, as since Russell’s (1980)

work it is considered one of the largest events on DSR (e.g. Ambraseys 2009). Kagan
et al. (2011) suggest that two events of M ~ 6.5, one from 363 north of the Dead Sea
and one from a close date south of the Dead Sea, had been erroneously amalgamated
to a single M > 7 event. The sites north of the Dead Sea are skewed significantly to
the west, suggesting a Carmel Fault source. The Seismite C in Ze’elim Creek section
of Ken-Tor et al. (2001) was constrained by radiocarbon dates to correlate with
either the 363 or 419 CE earthquake. A uniform deposition rate model of Agnon
et al. (2006), anchored to historic earthquakes, ruled in favor of the latter date.
Likewise, an Ein Gedi core seismite from the laminae counting interval was corre-
lated with 419 CE, where 363 CE was not correlated (Migowski et al. 2004). Kagan
et al. (2010, 2011) section in Ze’elim Creek was fit better to models with a seismite
from 419 CE, where again 363 CE was not correlated. By contrast, their models for
Ein Feshkha section show correlation of seismites to both earthquakes. They suggest
that the Ein Feshkha records a moderate earthquake that hit the north, whereas the
southern earthquake did not generate seismites in the study sites. A single large
earthquake that demolish the entire region from the Galilee to Petra and Aila would
correspond to M7.4 (Ambraseys 2006b, 2009; Russell 1980; Thomas et al. 2007).
This would result in broad scale damage on the east of the rift, in contrast to the
observations (Russell 1980). Kagan et al. (2011) interpret the historical and the
physical observation as a pair of consecutive smaller events, one in northern Israel
(perhaps on the Carmel fault) and one in the Arava/Araba Valley. This issue requires
additional research.
The earthquake of 419 CE, generating “intra basin seismites” according to Kagan
et al. (2011), is likely a local moderate event. The limited reports of damage do not
allow a precise location of source, but it may be similar to 1927 Jericho M6.2 earth-
quake. By contrast, the 551 CE earthquake that is also considered by Kagan et al.
(2011) an “intrabasin seismite” is a remote and strong event: it ruptured a putative
thrust under Lebanon with an estimated M ~ 7.5 (Elias et al. 2007).
Rucker and Niemi (2010) speculate that a strong earthquake hit east of the Dead
Sea 597–598 CE, based on an inscription in Areopolis. Since historic documenta-
tion from Petra is missing after 597 CE, such an event might have escaped the
chronicles. Ambraseys (2009) also lists an earthquake earlier than 597 in Areopolis.
Hence the correlation of all sixth century seismites with the Lebanon event is still
not certain.
The Jordan Valley has been struck by three earthquakes during the seventh cen-
tury CE: one at 634 and two at 660 (Amiran et al. 1994; Guidoboni et al. 1994).
Tsafrir and Foerster (1997) dated earthquake damage in Scythopolis/Baishan to
between the end of the sixth century and the second half of the seventh. Additional
archaeoseismic evidence was reported nearby in Ein Hanatziv (Karcz et al. 1977).
Kagan et al. (2011) found two seismites in Ein Feshkha, while a laminated sequence
was deposited in Ze’elim Terrace. Migowski et al. (2004) correlated the single
seismite from Ein Gedi core with the latter year. This is consistent with northerly
local sources, and a stronger shaking in the Dead Sea from the 660 event that is said
to had been strong at Jericho (Amiran et al. 1994).
240 A. Agnon
The high resolution of late Holocene sequences exposed during the recent retreat
of the Dead Sea lake is used by Neumann et al. (2009) for assessing possible
geobotanic response to large earthquakes. They have investigated the Ein Feshkha
section, exposed on the north west corner of the lake (Fig. 8.7), and found inconclu-
sive evidence for possible seismic effects on olive pollen.
8.3.4 Eighth Century CE
Karcz (2004) and Ambraseys (2005a) studied the historical sources of this period
and suggest that damage reports for a 749 CE earthquake were accentuated by
confusion with an earlier event (~747 CE); amalgamation of these two (and perhaps
more) events gave an overestimation of the size of the 749 CE event. The mid-
eighth century CE events have been reportedly recognized in a number of additional
sites (Marco et al. 2003). The assignment of the spectacular parallel pair of fallen
colonnades of a Byzantine church in Hippos (Fig. 8.6c) to the 749 CE event (e.g.
Nur 2008) is not based on archaeological evidence. A fallen colonnade from another
Byzantine church on the site can be tied to the mid-eighth century events, based on
an inscription from the late sixth century CE on one of the columns (Fig. 8.5d)
(Marco 2008; Segal 2007). In any case, such spectacular manifestations of ground
shaking may be misleading in that they strongly depend on the masonry, and the
information they give on ground motion turns out to be limited (Hinzen 2011). The
above mentioned earthquakes during the seventh century CE, while less famous,
can be associated with the Hippos damage.
Kagan et al. (2011) report two seismites from the mid eighth century. This may
seem consistent with a pair of earthquakes at Jerusalem at 746 and 757 CE, report-
edly damaging Al Aksa mosque (Ambraseys 2009). However, their correlation
hinges on the assignment of the underlying seismite to 873 CE discussed below.
The rupture in Qasr Tilah trenched and dated seventh to tenth century CE by
Haynes et al. (2006) could be associated with a mid eighth century event. Support
to this hypothesis is given by Bikai (2002) and Eklund (2008), who infer terminal
destruction of Petra due to an earthquake at the mid eighth century.
8.3.5 Ninth to Eleventh Centuries CE
This period is marked by the transition of the center of the Muslim empire from
Damascus to Baghdad, and a consequent deterioration of the quantity and quality of
chronicles. This is evident in the confusion regarding some of the earthquake reports
from the period, and in particular for the years 873, 956, and 1068 CE. Despite
becoming a periphery, the Levant is mentioned in numerous earthquake reports
(Ambraseys 2009). During this period the Ein Feshkha paleoseismic sites show
high rate of activity, and it is difficult to identify individual events.
853/4 CE: An earthquake with dramatic mass movements and tragic consequences
had been recorded in Tiberias and vicinity (Sbeinati et al. 2005; Ambraseys 2009).
This event is likely recorded in one of the numerous seismites from this period, yet
no particular correlation has been suggested (Table 4 of Kagan et al. 2011).
873 CE: The historical evidence originated from well within the Arabian Plate
(Ambraseys et al. 1994; Ambraseys 2009). Haynes et al.’s (2006) conjecture that
this earthquake originated from a surface rupture at Qasr Tilah constrained to
between the seventh and tenth centuries. In order to accept this conjecture, we need
to accept that “due to the sparse population of the Hejaz and Wadi Araba, the his-
torical record of the earthquake maybe distorted or biased, thus the catalogue may
be incorrect”. As suggested above, the Qasr Tilah rupture might be associated with
one of the mid-eight century events. Kagan et al. (2011) tentatively identify the 873
earthquake in the northern (Ein Feshkha) and central (Ein Gedi) sections of the
Dead Sea, but not in the southern (Ze’elim Creek) (Fig. 8.13). Barring directivity
effects, this could indicate a lower sensitivity of the southern site. More likely, and
considering the historical indications for a remote source, the 873 event is not
recorded in the Dead Sea.
Tenth century: Only a few seismites are apparent in the sections correlated to the
tenth century: two in Ein Feshkha (Kagan et al. 2011) and one in Ein Gedi (Migowski
et al. 2004). Likewise, only a few earthquakes appear in historical catalogues cover-
ing that period in the Levant (Sbeinati et al. 2005; Ambraseys 2009). As pointed out
by Ambraseys (2009), the earthquakes of 952 (on the junction of the DSR with
EAF) and 956 (Eastern Mediterranean with damage in Egypt) had been confused by
a contemporary chronicler. The single seismite identified in Ein Feshkha at the mid-
tenth century (Kagan et al. 2011) reflects one of these large events or a smaller one
not recorded historically.
1033 CE: This event ruptured the surface in the Jordan Valley and had been
designated 7.0 ≤ Ms < 7.8 (Ambraseys and Jackson 1998). More recent work
excluded that earthquake from the set of Ms ≥ 7.0 events on the DSR (Ambraseys
2009). Ferry et al. (2011) associate the ultimate rupture trenched in the Jordan
Valley with this event, reasserting that this is one of the largest historic earthquakes
recorded on this segment. Migowski et al. (2004) identify a 7.4 thick breccia layer
with the 1033 CE earthquake, for which Kagan et al. (2011) correlate a 1.5 cm seis-
mite. The absence of a seismite report from Ze’elim Creek may be due to sandy
facies and difficult access.
1063 CE: Significant damage in Tripoli (VII-VIII, Sbeinati et al. 2005) led Elias
et al. (2007) to infer rupture on a local fault that they mapped traversing the coast and
bounding the Lebanon Thrust from north. A rupture of the entire mapped length,
65 km, would generate M ~ 7 earthquake, which is a likely upper bound for this earth-
quake. Such a magnitude would be consistent with Eq. 8.3 and the systematics of
Wells and Coppersmith (1994). This earthquake is correlated to a seismite in Ein
Feshkha. Migowski et al. (2004) considered this earthquake to be masked by the sub-
sequent 1068 CE earthquake. However, using the resolving power criterion of Agnon
et al. (2006), it seems that this earthquake might be resolved in case that it generated
242 A. Agnon
a seismite: the 1068 seismite is only 4 mm thick; the resolution for this thickness
varies between 2 and 5 years during the time between the eighth and thirteenth centu-
ries. If the absence of a seismite in the laminae counting interval in Ein Gedi core can
be corroborated in nearby sections, it can be used for calibrating the attenuation rela-
tion as discussed below. Yet this potential can be realized only if it can be shown that
no small, local, and forgotten event is responsible for the Ein Feshkha seismite.
1068 CE: The latter earthquake was also identified with archaeological damage
in the southern Arava (Zilberman et al. 2005). These authors detected vertical dis-
placement of up to a meter across an early islamic irrigation system. Using accepted
magnitude – rupture length – slip systematics (Wells and Coppersmith 1994),
Zilberman et al. (2005) suggest an M > 6.6. Accepting that the rupture extended to
Qasr Tilah, about 150 km to the north, this earthquake could have reached M7.2–
7.8 m, consistent with several m average lateral slip. The event is recorded both in
Ein Gedi core (Migowski et al. 2004) and Ein Feshkha, where the Ze’elim Creek
sections are in sandy facies with difficult access (Kagan et al. 2011).
8.3.6 Twelfth to Fifteenth Centuries CE
Historically, this period from the Crusades to the Ottoman conquest is very well
represented by chroniclers from both the Frankish and the Muslim cultures.
Historical records of seven large earthquakes found in catalogues are correlated to
Ein Feshkha seismites (Kagan et al. 2011): 1114/1117, 1150, 1170, 1202, 1212,
1293, 1312. Of these, four are correlated in the laminated section of Ein Gedi core
(Migowski et al. 2004; Agnon et al. 2006): 1114/1117, 1202, 1212, 1293. Only two
thirteenth century events are correlated in Ze’elim Terrace (Kagan et al. 2011, fol-
lowing Ken-Tor et al. 2001). The southward diminishing abundance of seismites
may reflect the observation that the historic earthquakes from the twelfth and four-
teenth centuries ruptured north of the Jordan Valley (Ambraseys 2006a, b, 2009;
Sbeinati et al. 2005). The 1202 CE event is a special case: it was very large (M ~ 7.5)
and closer to the Dead Sea than the earthquakes from adjacent centuries. Also, 1202
is so close in time to 1212 that the two seismites are not always resolved from each
other (Agnon et al. 2006). So a generalization may be made that large earthquakes
from north of the Jordan Valley may be sufficiently intense at the north of the Dead
Sea to generate a seismite, but the intensity decays significantly to the south of the
lake. We use this observation in calibrating the attenuation relation below.
8.3.7 Sixteenth to Nineteenth Centuries CE
This period is not represented in the Ein Feshkha section due to local truncation, and
future work on nearby outcrops can fill this gap. Ein Gedi core shows eight seismites
correlated to the historic earthquakes of 1456/1458, 1546, 1588, 1868, 1712, 1759,
1822, 1834/1837. Ze’elim Creek shows a 10 cm thick seismite for the first and a
25 cm thick one for the last of these events (Kagan et al. 2011). The facies in the
sixteenth-seventeenth centuries of this site does not allow rejection of sedimentary
disturbance. Yet the eighteenth to early nineteenth centuries left a laminar and
undisturbed deposit, suggesting that the 1712, 1759, and 1822 earthquakes were not
intense there. This is in agreement with the northerly epicenters of these events
(Sbeinati et al. 2005; Ambraseys 2009).
A comment on 1546 CE: As mentioned above, Enzel et al. (2000) have identified
the topmost liquified layer in Daraje Creek with the instrumental 11 Jul 1927 M6.2
Jericho earthquake. Ambraseys and Karcz (1992) note that the 1546 earthquake was
similar in damage distribution to the 1927 event, so the penultimate rupture in
Daraje Creek (dated mid-2nd Millennium CE) could arguably associated with this
rupture. Kagan et al. (2011) assign both earthquakes to the Kalia fault that traverses
the basin some 20 km north of the Daraje Creek rupture. Yet it is not inconceivable
that the ruptures recorded in the fan delta are of large aftershocks: a M6.2 event
typically triggers aftershocks up to M5.2. Wells and Coppersmith (1994) give this
as the lower limit for breaking the surface by normal faults, with rupture lengths of
several km. The age of the penultimate event determined by Enzel et al. (2000) is
400–500 years, in agreement with the 1546 CE date of the historic event similar in
damage distribution to the 1927 Jericho earthquake (Ambraseys and Karcz 1992).
The penultimate Daraje seismite can again be interpreted as an aftershock of a
M ~ 6.2 event on Kalia fault. Alternatively, a shore-parallel fault segment in the
north-west of the lake was the source for either or both these moderate events.
8.4 Completeness
All the records used by seismologists are incomplete in one or more aspects.
Historical, archaeoseismc, and paleoseismic archives have the advantage of going
back in time, as compared with the more systematic instrumental archives. However,
the non-instrumental archives suffer from inherent problems of completeness. The
more complete the archive, the more one can use it as an independent data set to
correlate with others.
Historical archives are limited by the availability of cultures writing history and
by preservation of these writings. During several periods the Levant was populated
by coexisting (often competing) literate cultures, leaving complementary archives
that can be mutually cross-checked. This was the case at Medieval times, when
Muslim and Crusader historians described the same earthquakes (e.g. Ellenblum
et al. 1998; Guidoboni and Comastri 2005) or during the Roman times, for which
Roman as well as Jewish sources are available (e.g. Karcz 2004). When the center
of the Islamic empire moved from Damascus to Baghdad, during the mid eighth
century CE, the reports of earthquakes became vague. This process culminated with
the 1068 CE earthquakes. Al-Bana, a contemporary chronicler who lived in
Baghdad, reported two events for the same year – 18 March and 29 May. The two
244 A. Agnon
reports are very similar- except that the latter states a complete devastation for
Ramla and only Ramla. Makdisi (1956) suggested that Al-Bana got two versions of
the same event from two independent sources, where the date records the time of
arrival of the report or of its recording in writing. The former report was accurate
(an earthquake in the south corroborated by additional sources) and the latter was
spurious (devastation of Ramla). Perhaps it confused the more likely devastation of
Ramla in the 1,033 event which was confirmed by other sources (Ambraseys 2009).
This case exemplifies the effect of political geography, demography, and in particu-
lar distribution of literate population. A well known general observation is that the
southern parts of the rift, that bisects large deserts, is clearly less represented in the
historical archive. Further advance in the use of historical data in seismological
research requires a systematic assessment of the completeness of the archives.
8.4.1 Archaeological Archives
Archaeological archives are possibly incomplete due to discontinuous occupation

and also due to poor conservation or lack of excavations. For example, Tel Ateret
records the 1202 CE earthquake during the Ayyubid times when it was used as a
shrine, shortly after the site was constructed by Crusaders and conquered by Saladin
(Ellenblum et al. 1998; Ellenblum 2007). Archaeology sets a limit also on the time
of the ultimate earthquake: it had ruptured during the Ottoman times, after the intro-
duction of tobacco. This is due to the discovery of smoking pipes on a floor in
context with a wall displaced ~0.5 m (Marco et al. 1997; Ellenblum et al. 1998).
During that time the site was not occupied, although it was in marginal use as a
shrine. Luckily, historical considerations including reported damage could distin-
guish between 1759 and 1837 CE, and between the two shocks of the former year
(Ambraseys and Barazangi 1989; Ambraseys 1998; Ellenblum et al. 1998).
The distribution of archaeological sites during the period of consideration is a
key to the potential of retrieving a complete archive. Sparse monumental building
during antiquity is reflected by localized evidence for destruction. The Chalcolithic
Tells of Ghassul (Table 8.1) are a good example. As has been said for the historical
archive, the southern parts of the rift that bisects large deserts is clearly less repre-
sented in the archaeological archive.
8.4.2 Lake Archives
Lake archives are limited by hiatuses, not always evident in outcrop (e.g. Machlus
et al. 2000), and by facies. When layering is obliterated during diagenesis by turba-
tion (e.g. shallow facies susceptible to wave action) there is no mark of earthquakes.
In the case of the Dead Sea, seismites from evaporites such as halite and gypsum
1000
Isoseismals from Equation (3)
1822 ZC
500 1157 1822
822 EG
0 EG
1170
860 1170 EF
G
1063 EG
063 EF
1063
epicentral distance (km)
1588 EG 551
200 1759 ZC 1202
1759 EG 746
V 1212
100
192
1927 ZC
50 VI
1548 EG
1548 ZC
20 VII
1956 EG
10
6 7 8
magnitude
Ambraseys Ellenblum Ken Tor et al., 2001 Elias et al. Salamon
Source
2006, 2009 et al., 1998 Migowski et al., 2004 2007 et al., 1996
Correlated
Missing in a
laminated section
Fig. 8.14 Distances of selected historic ruptures (logarithmic) from Dead Sea seismite sites v ersus
macroseismic magnitudes. The empty symbols denote sites without a correlated seismite for a
given earthquakes (years CE)
have not been studied. The advantage of lake records is that superposition is dictated
by gravity, and layers (down to laminae scale) are continuous and sub horizontal on
outcrop scale and larger. Therefore disturbances due to high mechanical energy at
lake bottom tend to stand out in outcrop and attract attention.
A method to test the completeness of the lake events during historic periods is
presented in Fig. 8.14. The format is familiar from Fig. 8.3, but this time we only
plot isoseismals V-VI-VII using Eq. 8.3 (Hough and Avni 2011). We plot indi-
vidual earthquakes using a solid symbol for those correlated to a Dead Sea seis-
mite, and an empty one for uncorrelated ones. For this preliminary edition we
focus on events with better constrained magnitudes and locations, and in particu-
larly on events that are correlated for one of the sites and absent in another. This
helps to constrain a hypothetical critical isoseismal for the generation of seismites
in the Dead Sea (gray broken curve). The critical intensity required for seismite
formation seems to diminish with magnitude and distance: for a close epicenter
(<40 km) and small m agnitude (≤6) the critical local intensity is close to VII; for
a distant epicenter (>300 km) and high magnitude (≥7.2) the local intensity is
V-VI. The critical curve in Fig. 8.14 gives a preliminary criterion for the com-
pleteness of the lake record.
246 A. Agnon
8.4.3 Cave Archives
Cave archives require special caution with regard to completeness. Limestone pre-
cipitation is not regular and the ensuing stratigraphy may be complex. Recently,
Kagan (2011) and Braun et al. (2011) have reported a paleo-earthquake in the
Judean Hills caves (SH and in Fig. 8.8) at ~8.6 ka. They go on to compare the
archive from this site with the Denya Cave site (DH in Fig. 8.8), considered a proxy
for activity on the Carmel fault, and with lacustrine and landslide archives. This
comparison allows Kagan (2011) and Braun et al. (2011) to discuss coupling of the
transform with its Carmel fault branch. For the Pleistocene however, such a discus-
sion would critically depend on the assumption that both records are complete.
A complete speleoseismic record will be achieved only at the limit where additional
age determinations give no new dates of paleo-earthquakes. Another issue with the
present state of the art is that five out of 18 speleoseismites reported by Kagan et al.
(2005) had no dated material preceding damage, so they were biased by the use of
the terminus ante quem as damage date.
8.4.4 Rockfall Archives
Rockfall archives also require statistically significant sampling, such that new
sampling adds no new dates. With the present costs of cosmogenic dating, and with
the low availability of new techniques such as in situ C14 dates, this requirement is
not realistic, so rockfall archives can hardly be considered complete.
8.5 Discussion: Recurrence Patterns
A chief goal of paleo-earthquake research is resolving recurrence patterns and, in

particular, recurrence intervals characteristic of the seismogenic zones in question.
Goes (1996) has used historical and paleoseismological records from the American
continent to evaluate aperiodicity (α) of large earthquakes, using a definition of α as
σ (τ)
α= (8.4)
τ

In Eq. (8.1) τ represents the distribution of recurrence intervals, the <brackets>
denote average, and σ is the standard deviation. A perfectly periodic behavior is
represented by vanishing α whereas clustered behavior yields α larger than unity.
Goes (1996) also recognized the limitation imposed by the brevity of archives, one
that is alleviated by the long time recorded for the DSR.
Table 8.2 Distributions of recurrence intervals at different locations and times along the Dead
Sea rift
Window Recurrence σ(τ)
Site/segment [ka] interval [kyear] SDEV aperiodicity α 〈 n Reference
Mean Max Min
Judean Hills 185–0 9 24.5 3 6.7 0.73 K05, B11
Peratzim Creek 72–25 1.6 8.5 0.25 2.9 1.8 29 M96, A06
Ein Gedi Core 4–0 0.1 0.088 0.9 M04, A06
Ein Gedi Core 2–0 0.05 0.07 0.75 M04, A06
Ein Feshkha 2.5–0 0.05
Ze’elim Terrace K11
Dead Sea
Yammounneh ~12–6 1–1.2 Unknown 5–6 D07
Yammounneh 6–0 1–1.2 Unknown 5 N08
Jordan Valley 25–0 0.79 1.5 0.28 0.52 0.66 5 F11
A06 – Agnon et al. (2006), B11 – Braun et al. (2011), D07 – Daeron et al. (2007)
F11 – Ferry et al. (2011), K05 – Kagan et al. (2005), K11 – Kagan et al. (2011)
M04 – Migowski et al (2004), M96 – Marco et al. (1996), N08 – Nemer et al. (2008)
α “intra basin seismites” (IBSs), simultaneously recorded at Ein Feshkha, Ein Gedi core, and
Ze’elim Terrace
The foregoing section clarifies that a discussion of recurrence based on the

records we have may suffer from their incompleteness. Yet such a discussion can
help point out gaps in the information needed for advancing our understanding of
the nature of seismogenic zones. Table 8.2 summarizes data on recurrence from
several studies that provide sufficient information for characterizing the distribution
of intervals.
Marco et al. (1996) have identified 29 seismites in the dated section of Peratzim
Creek and inferred a mean recurrence interval of 1.6 kyear between ~72 and ~25 ka.
Agnon et al. (2006) have revised the estimate based on more extensive ages of
Haase-Schramm et al. (2004). This age scheme recognized a 5 kyear hiatus in the
Lisan Formation around 45 ka (Fig. 8.15). The variation, between 250 and
8,500 years, is a clear manifestation of temporal clustering of earthquakes. More
accurate and extensive dating of Lisan Formation will modify the figures (Stein
2011) but clustering of seismites will likely prevail (Kagan 2011).
Figure 8.15 shows the cumulative number of seismites versus interpolated age
using Haase-Schramm et al.’s (2004) age model. Anomalous lithology and hiatuses
are marked following Stein (2011) who has tabulated the ages versus depth and
interpolated for seismite ages. Figure 8.16 shows smoothed recurrence intervals on
a logarithmic scale. Despite the periods of poor dating constraints (including hiatus
43–48 ka), Figures 8.15 and 8.16 show a pattern of long quiescence periods between
quasi-periodic clusters. During each cluster of seismicity the recurrence interval is
quite uniform, varying among clusters between 200 and 1,400 years. Quiescence
periods may linger 3–10,000 years.
248 A. Agnon
N
20
IV
gypsum unit
15 QUIESCENCE III
no pure aragonite laminae
gypsum unit
hiatus hiatus
clastic
10
QUIESCENCE II
QUIESCENCE I
60 55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20
Age (ka)
Fig. 8.15 Clustering of seismites in Lisan Formation. The horizontal axis shows model ages
(Stein 2011) according to stratigraphic heights in PZ1 (Marco et al. 1996) of dated samples (Haase-
Schramm et al. 2004). Anchors for the age model are marked by magenta rectangles beneath the
axis. The blue diamonds denote cumulative number of seismites. Periods of anomalous deposition
(gypsum, clastics, their aragonite-poor inter-lamination) or lack of are shown by colored shading.
Four periods of apparent quiescence emerge separated by quasi-periodic clusters of activity
(See Fig. 8.16)
55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20
Judean Hills speleoseismites

1 100
Lisan Formation
lacustrine seismites
seismicity rate
[log(event/kyr)]
0 1,000
-1 10,000
recurrence
hiatus interval
(yrs)
55 50 45 40 35 30 25 20
U/Th ages [ka]
Fig. 8.16 Rates of seismicity recorded in the Lisan Formation and Judean Hills caves. The
ordinate gives the logarithmic rate of Lisan seismites (event per millennium; see right hand axis
for recurrence intervals in years). The gray rectangles represent the uncertainty: upper bound is
calculated based on the intervals represented by continuous deposition of datable sediments; lower
bounds assume no large earthquakes during non-datable intervals (data as in Fig. 8.15). Cyan
rectangles represent date ranges of Judean Hills speleoseismites following Kagan et al. (2005).
Other colored rectangles as in Fig. 8.15
The high rate of seismicity at ~52 ka (an event in ~200 years) is anomalous for
the entire period represented by sediments within Lisan Formation, but a similar or
higher rate (an event per ~100 years) during the last millennium is indicated in
Ze’elim Creek (Migowski et al. 2004). Agnon et al. (2006) argue that the resolution
of seismites in the ~52 ka cluster of seismites in Lisan Formation at Peratzim Creek
would not allow recording of a rate higher than an event in 200 year. Kagan et al.
(2011) study seismites from the last two millennia in three sites currently onshore
the Dead Sea northern basin. They distinguish events recorded simultaneously at the
northernmost, the center, and the southernmost basin (“intra basin seismites” of
Kagan et al. 2011). These events, seemingly with higher local intensity around the
Dead Sea, show an average recurrence interval of ~200 years, about twice that of
any individual section.
Marco et al. (1996) have used the aperiodicity (Eq. 8.4) to illustrate and quantify
earthquake clustering in the distribution of intervals: if the aperiodicity is smaller
than unity the distribution is periodic, whereas exceeding unity indicates clustering.
The dated section of Lisan Formation has featured aperiodicity around 1.75. Agnon
et al. (2006) found that the correction of the age model to include Haase-Schramm
et al. (2004) dates decreases the aperiodicity only slightly to about 1.6.
Independent indication for long-term clustering has been reported for the Arava/
Araba Valley (Fig. 8.1). Amit et al. (2002) dug paleoseismic trenches and dated
clastic sediments with optically simulated luminescence (OSL) up to 90 ka. The
dates constrained the ages of dip-slip events on marginal faults, showing more fre-
quent activity of smaller events during the Holocene, and migration of activity
across a shear zone.
The Holocene Dead Sea archive shows a quasi-periodic behavior. Aperiodicity
for Ein Gedi core varied from 0.75 for the historic period to 0.9 for the entire upper
5 m (3.8 ka to present). The changes of recurrence during the late Quaternary may
indicate transitions, or mode switchings, from clustered distributions via quasi-
periodic distribution to a pronounced periodicity during the late Holocene. Such
mode-switching was anticipated in simulations using two different physical models
(Ben-Zion et al. 1999). Lyakhovsky et al. (1997) matched the behavior of the Lisan
archive reported by Marco et al. (1996) with a model that explicitly computes dis-
tributed damage in the plate. In that model, mode-switching emerges when the rate
of healing of fractures in the seismogenic zone balances the rate of mechanical load-
ing (determined by the long-term slip rate). A simpler model that displays clustered
versus periodic behavior accounts for distributed damage by stress variations off-
fault (Kenner and Simons 2005).
Kagan et al (2005) found a mean recurrence interval of 10–14 kyear with
aperiodicity of 0.6 for the cave seismites (interpreted to represent M ≥ 7.8) during
the last 185 kyear. These are likely of the largest events along the adjacent segment
of DSR. However, correlation with lake seismites (discussed in the next section)
does not show a consistent relationship with their clusters (Stein 2011), and in view
of the completeness problem explained above, we may be looking at a partial set of
such events.
250 A. Agnon
A key variable in any long term seismological analysis is the ratio between the
durations of the seismic cycle and the available archive. Each segment of the plate
boundary may show a cycle given simply by the interval between the largest events
on that segment. However, segments may interact in a complex manner, particularly
where the plate boundary is complex (Braun et al. 2011). Several cycles of i ndividual
segments may combine to show a cycle for the system. Such cyclic behavior may
explain the long-term earthquake clustering apparent in Lake lisan’s record (Marco
et al. 1996; Lyakhovsky et al. 1997).
Migowski et al. (2004) noted another manifestation of complex cycles: a lternating
periods (several centuries each) of high versus low rates of seismicity recorded in
the Dead Sea basin, correlating them to similar periods in the East Anatolian fault
(EAF, Fig. 8.1), and out of phase with the North Anatolian fault (NAF) (Ambraseys
1971). Agnon et al. (2006) found that the increase in activity at NAF and decrease
at EAF at around 500 CE is heralded by a decrease at DSR, with more complicated
relations around 1000 CE. These correlations suffer from two aspects: (1) the
Anatolian data is somewhat out of date; (2) the Dead Sea record is local, biased due
to minor events with epicenter close to the Dead Sea. In addition, a comparison of
the rate of seismic moment release is likely to be more meaningful.
The recent compilation of the Dead Sea archive of historic seismites (Kagan
et al. 2011) shows a cyclic behavior similar to the Ein Gedi core archive of Migowski
et al. (2004) and Agnon et al. (2006) (Fig. 8.17a): the mean recurrence rate more
than doubles during the tenth–twelfth centuries CE relative to the rest of the first
millennium and the rest of the second millennium. The aperiodicity α calculated for
that time (Eq. 8.4) changes only slightly around 0.6. Ambraseys (2006a, b, 2009)
estimated magnitudes of 139 events during the period 100–2000 CE from macro-
seismic data and computed an average slip rate. He found an abrupt increase in slip
rate after 1150 CE, from values that fluctuated between 0.22 and 0.26 cm/year since
the 700 CE to the range 0.35–0.4 cm/year (Fig. 8.17b). Note that each of the three
periods delineated in Fig. 8.17a is punctuated by a short interval of accelerated
macro-seismic slip rate (Fig. 8.17b), associated with very large earthquakes. During
the first period, this interval spans 530–560 CE, where the 551 CE earthquake (per-
haps with associated activity) is recorded in the Dead Sea. The second period is
associated with the 1156–1157 and 1170 CE earthquakes by Ambraseys’ data
(2006a, b, 2009). The third period is associated with the 1759 CE double event
(Ambraseys and Barazangi 1989; Ellenblum et al. 1998). If this pattern is verifi-
able, it might have far reaching implications for the seismic behavior of the Dead
Sea rift and other plate boundaries. However, a recent revised estimate of the 1170
and 1202 magnitudes (Hough and Avni 2011) might increase the acceleration of slip
during this period (Table 8.3); more significantly, the revision would delay the tim-
ing of acceleration to the end of the middle period (thirteenth century). Figure 8.17
underscores the need for more paleoseismic data and additional historic macroseis-
mic analyses.
Migowski et al. (2004) noted alternating activity cycles between south and north
within DSR (see their Fig. 8.7b). Ambraseys (2006b, 2009) elaborated on this pat-
tern (Ambraseys 2006b’s Fig. 8.7). He inferred that earthquakes with Ms ≥ 7.2
a
cumulative number
40
α=0.73 yrs
rs 65±36
of quakes
y
30 55±40
yrs α .5
= 0
20 6 ± 15
2 6
rs α=0. Dead Sea Basin
10 70±47 y number of events
0 α=0.7 data from Kagan et al., 2011
b
0.5
plate velocity cm/yr
0.4
0.3
1202 CE
1759 CE
Dead Sea rift
0.2 macro-seismic
550 CE
1156/1157 &
1170 CE
0.1 slip-rate
after Ambraseys (2006, 2009)
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000
years CE
Fig. 8.17 Temporal variation of activity along the Dead Sea rift during the last nineteenth
centuries. (a) cumulative number of events recorded by Dead Sea seismites (Fig. 8.13a; Kagan
et al. 2011). The slopes of the graph suggest three periods with alternating recurrence intervals:
100–950 CE (70 ± 47 years), 950–1250 (26 ± 15 years), 1250–2000 (65 ± 36 years). The aperiodici-
ties of the three periods are, respectively, 0.68, 0.57, and 0.55. For comparison, the mean recur-
rence interval for the entire period is 55 ± 40 years, with aperiodicity of 0.73. (b) Temporal variation
of macro-seismic slip rate along the Dead Sea rift following the estimate by Ambraseys (2006a, b,
2009). Three periods of accelerated seismicity are discernible (vertical gray arrows beneath time
axis), associated with the seismic episodes of the sixth-, twelfth-thirteenth-, and eighteenth-
centuries CE (vertical broken lines denote historic earthquakes)
Table 8.3 Magnitude estimates of key historic earthquakes along the Dead Sea rift
Year CE Ambraseys (2006b, 2009) Other estimates Reference
363 M 7.4 M 6.5–7 Present studya
551 M 7.3 M 7.4–7.6 Elias et al. (2007)
1170 M 7.3 M 7.5 Hough and Avni (2011)
1202 M 7.2 M 7.8 Hough and Avni (2011)
a
The magnitude estimate is based on respective rupture of the Carmel fault along 60 km and the
Arava/Araba Valley segment along 100 km. This choice seems appropriate for generating the dam-
age pattern recorded by Russell (1980) and extended to account for the damage in Aila (Thomas
et al. 2007)
propagate along a regular oscillatory trend. In view of the paleoseismic evidence

from the Dead Sea, the assignment of M7.4 to the first event in the series (19 May
363 CE) is likely exaggerated – a result of amalgamation of the two events, one in
the northern and the other in southern Holy Land. The revision of magnitudes of the
1170 and 1202 CE events (Hough and Avni 2011) further obliterates the oscillatory
pattern inferred by Ambraseys (2006b, 2009).
252 A. Agnon
Daeron et al. (2007) found a recurrence interval of 1.0–1.26 millennia for M ~ 7.5
ruptures on the Yammounneh fault, determined reliably for a limited period
(~12–6.4 ka). Nemer et al. (2008) obtained similar results for the last six millennia.
The dating uncertainty in both studies does not allow us to assess the aperiodicity.
Ferry et al. (2011) combined trenching, archaeology, and historical catalogues to
study the earthquake history of the Jordan Valley (Fig. 8.1). They determined a
mean recurrence interval of 790 years for the last four millennia, where intervals are
smaller than age uncertainties. The standard deviation for this period is 520 years
and the nominal aperiodicity at 0.66. This low figure is likely the result of the
small number of intervals – (only five) and the limited period for which the dating
precision is sufficient.
Ambraseys (2006b, 2009) compute frequency-size distributions for DSR.
Notably, the macroseismic data covering the last two millennia are distributed sig-
nificantly differently from the instrumental data. The macroseismic data taken
together with the instrumental data seem to indicate a characteristic earthquake
behavior with up to three times higher frequency for events of Ms ≥ 7. Only if the
assessment of Ms based on macroseismic analysis (Ambraseys 2006b, 2009) is sys-
tematically overestimated by the maximum reported uncertainty of 0.3, the distribu-
tion could follow a Gutenberg-Richter’s relation. Yet if the macroseismic analysis
has systematically underestimated the actual magnitudes, the Gutenberg-Richter
relation underestimates the frequency of Ms ~ 7 by a factor around 30.
Hough and Avni (2011) construct a composite frequency-size distribution
based on a modified version of the data of Ambraseys (2006b, 2009). The distri-
bution, within the uncertainty of data, conform separate Gutenberg-Richter
relations (“b-value” of unity) for either historical or instrumental data. For the
M7, the historic earthquakes are four times more abundant than what would be
predicted by extrapolation of the instrumental; for M7.6 the factor is 8. Ambraseys
(2006b, 2009) frequency size relation for 4.5 ≤ Ms ≤ 5.5 fits a Gutenberg-Richter
relation with a similar “b value”. The historical data then exceeds the extrapola-
tion of instrumental data by a similar order, with a factor of about 5 between
Ms6.7 and Ms7.3 .
To summarize the discussion of recurrence, the DSR shows variable recurrence
in time and space (Table 8.2). The different types of archives with different
sensitivities and uncertainties, and the bias of Dead Sea seismites toward local earth-
quakes, prevent definite statements to be made as yet. However, two broad conclu-
sions can be drawn:
1. The historic period is represented well in the late Holocene lacustrine sections,
with seemingly periodic behavior, with aperiodicity (standard deviation over mean
recurrence interval) α ~ 0.6 ± 0.1. The common recurrence time is 65–70 years, yet
between the tenth and the twelfth centuries CE the period is around 26 years.
2. While recurrence intervals for large earthquakes may be stable for periods up to
several millennia, they are not stable over the 10-millennia duration scale. Yet,
the longest archive of the strongest events, namely the speleoseismic archive,
exhibits quasi-periodic behavior.
The latter conclusion may be a consequence of the incompleteness of this record,

which is being complemented by further dating of damaged cave deposits.
Alternatively, the largest earthquakes (say M > 7.5) may be controlled by the
broad-scale segmentation of the rift, which may be considered constant for the
10–100 millennial time scale. Lyakhovsky et al. (1997) and by Kenner and Simons
(2005) have proposed mechanical models for transitions between two patterns of
frequency-size statistics and for the anoalous incidence of larger earthquakes. The
large scale segmentation of the rift with segment lengths of ~100 km (Fig. 8.4b)
may be reflected in the high abundance of larger earthquakes.
Acknowledgments The author is grateful to G.C.P. King and S. Wesnousky for thoughtful
reviews, and to his numerous collaborators for inspiring discussions over two decades of research.
Special thanks to E.J. Kagan for a meticulous editorial work. This research was supported by Israel
Science Foundation (grant no. 1181/12), The German-Israeli Bi-national Science Foundation
(GIF), the Helmholtz Association (Virtual Institute DESERVE), and by the Earth Science
Administration in the Ministry of Energy and Water.
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Chapter 9
Instrumental Data on the Seismic Activity
Abraham Hofstetter, Catherine Dorbath, and Louis Dorbath
Abstract We analyzed the catalog of instrumental recordings of seismic activity

from 1900 to 2010 along the Dead Sea Transform. The seismicity pattern reveals
significant activity confined to 5 main sections of the transform. In all the sections
of the transform there is a significant amount of seismic activity at depths of
9–10 km (lower part of the upper crust). The seismic activity extends to large depths
of 20 km and more, where about 30 % of the seismic activity occurs in the lower
crust, especially in the Dead Sea basin and the Arava Valley. The deep seismicity is
correlative with previous low heat flow measurements along the transform, and thus
suggesting a relatively cold crust. We analyzed more than 4,300 S-wave spectra of
earthquakes in the magnitude range is 0.8 ≤ Md ≤ 6.2, with M0 values ranging from
3.1x1011 N · m to 5.4x1018 N · m, and Brune stress drop estimates, Δσ, between
0.1 MPa and 15 MPa. The total seismic moment release in the years 1900–2010 in
the Dead Sea Transform due to all the earthquakes, including the earthquake in
1927, is only a fraction of the expected seismic moment release.
A. Hofstetter (*)
Geophysical Institute of Israel, Lod 71100, Israel
Ecole et Observatoire des Sciences de la Terre,
University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
C. Dorbath
Ecole et Observatoire des Sciences de la Terre, University of Strasbourg,
Esplanade, Strasbourg 67000, France
IRD, UMR 154, 14 Avenue Edouard Belin, Toulouse 31400, France
L. Dorbath
Ecole et Observatoire des Sciences de la Terre, University of Strasbourg,
Strasbourg 67000, France
264 A. Hofstetter et al.
Keywords Dead Sea Transform • Earthquakes • Catalog • Instrumental data

• Seismic networks
9.1 Introduction
The Dead Sea Transform (DST), which accommodates the left-lateral motion
between the Sinai Subplate and the Arabian plate, is about 1,200 km long, connect-
ing the Taurus-Zagros compressional front, in the north, to the extensional zone of
the Red Sea, in the south. Over the past few million years tectonics has shaped the
Dead Sea Transfrom (e.g., Freund et al. 1970; Ben-Menahem et al. 1976; Ben-
Avraham et al. 2008). The Dead Sea Transform comprises a few major basins being
connected by several large faults, where the Dead Sea basin is the largest one.
Based on historical accounts and instrumental records, some describing harmful
or devastating earthquakes, it is clear that the Dead Sea Transform poses a major
seismic threat to the population on both its sides. Figure 9.1 illustrates the locations
of all instrumentally recorded earthquakes occurring between 1900 and 2010 along
the Dead Sea Transform, or in the commencement of its branching-out faults or
nearby faultings, a total of about 3,800 earthquakes. The seismic activity is some-
what spread in the transform with no clear lineation and thus we include seismic
activity up to about 10 km on both sides of the transform. We also inserted improved
locations of epicenters in the Dead Sea basin (after Hofstetter et al. 2012), based on
the tomoDD algorithm of Zhang and Thurber (2003). One notable earthquake is the
July 11, 1927 earthquake, M 6.2, which occurred in the northern part of the Dead
Sea basin resulting in 285 deaths, 940 wounded, and extensive damage in many
towns and villages on both sides of the Dead Sea Transform (Ben-Menahem et al.
1976; Shapira et al. 1992; Avni 1998). Throughout the twentieth century, several
other widely felt earthquakes occurred in 1903, 1928, 1956, 1970, 1979 and 2004,
with magnitudes M ~5.0–5.5, causing no or minor damage (e.g. Arieh et al. 1982;
Amiran et al. 1994). However, five out of seven relatively moderate-strong events
occurred in the Dead Sea basin and two occurred just north of the basin.
In the past decades a series of intensive seismological studies improved our
understanding of the seismotectonic activity of the Dead Sea Transform, i.e.,
Ben-Menaham et al. (1976) and Salamon et al. (1996, 2003) studied the seismicity
along the Sinai sub-plate. Arie et al. (1982), Shapira and Feldman (1987), Van Eck
and Hofstetter (1989, 1990), Shapira (1997) and Hofstetter et al. (2007) studied the
seismic activity in the Dead Sea basin and along the Dead Sea Transform exhibiting
complex focal mechanisms. Rotstein et al. (1991) and Shamir et al. (2006) studied
the structure of the northern Dead Sea basin and the Jericho valley based on a series
of earthquakes including the mainshock in 2004. Salamon (2005), Al-Tarazi et al.
(2006) and Hofstetter et al. (2008) described the effects of the mainshock in 2004
and their tectonic implications. Below we focus our attention on instrumental data
obtained from the seismic activity along the Dead Sea Transform, which is listed in
the catalog from 1900 to 2010 (http://www.gii.co.il/home.html), where the latitude
range is from 29.5°N (northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba) to 33.5°N (southern
9 Instrumental Data on the Seismic Activity Along the Dead Sea Transform 265
Fig. 9.1 Earthquakes that occurred along the Dead Sea Transform in the time periods: (a) 1900–
2010, Md ≥ 3; (b) 1983–2010, all magnitudes. The Dead Sea Transform is divided to five main
sections: AV Arava Valley, DSB Dead Sea basin, JV Jordan valley, SG Sea of Galilee, HB Hula Basin
Lebanon), as was recorded by the short period and broad band stations of Jordan
and Israel, and using the coda magnitude (Shapira 1988).
9.2 Data and Acquisition Systems
The seismic monitoring in the Middle East started in the end of the nineteenth century
with the installation of station Helwan (HLW) in Cairo, Egypt. From 1898 until 1912
Helwan was the only seismological station that operated in the region, along with
some other more remote operating stations like Athens and Istanbul. Another impor-
tant station that started operating in 1912 was Ksara, which is located in central-east
part of Lebanon. Station JER of the WWSSN, located in the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, started operating in 1954, and was later upgraded in 1963. During the
middle of the twentieth century temporary stations operated for a short period of time
in various part of Israel enriching somewhat the seismological catalog. Two rela-
tively large seismic networks, with up to 35 short period stations in each network,
have been installed in 1983, one in Jordan (JSO, Jordan Seismological Observatory)
and the other in Israel (ISN, Israel Seismic Network), reaching stabilization within a
year. With time those networks have been upgraded and several broad band stations
and many accelerometers have been installed. Since that time the seismicity of the
Dead Sea Transform is continuously monitored by the ISN and JSO (Fig. 9.2). In
2000 the catalogs of both networks were merged to create a common Dead Sea
Transform catalog, and it is an ongoing process since then.
In addition to the above mentioned permanent networks, a few temporary
networks, each time for about 1–2 years, were operating in the Dead Sea Transform
or near its outskirts significantly enriching the database. The temporary network
added important information, however, still the main backbone of the catalog is
based on the permanent networks. Those campaigns include: (1) a portable net-
work comprising of 6 stations that operated in the Dead Sea basin in 1983–1984
and later north of Eilat in 1984–1985; (2) a 12-station-network around the Dead
Sea basin in 1986–1988; (3) a large network including up to 70 stations in Jordan
and Israel south of the Dead Sea Lake, known as DESERT2000 (i.e., Weber et al.
2004), and crossing the Dead Sea Transform in the Arava Valley in a WNW-ESE
line operating from April 2000 to May 2001; (4) a more condensed network in the
Dead Sea basin and its immediate outskirts comprising up to 70 stations and oper-
ating from Oct. 2006 to May 2008, known as DESIRE (i.e., Weber et al. 2009a, b;
Braeuer et al. 2012a, b). The seismicity presented here is based on the compilation
of data, collected by all the above-mentioned networks.
9.3 Distribution of Seismicity in Space and Time
Figure 9.3a, b presents the distribution of earthquakes along the Dead Sea Transform
as a function of depth and time and also the accumulated number of earthquakes as
a function of depth. We avoid all depth determinations prior to 1981, which were
usually obtained using a small number of stations or seismic phases. Epicentral loca-
tion errors are about ±2–3 km for most of the events and about ±3–5 km for the
depth. Location errors are significantly smaller in the case of events that were
reported by DESIRE, or once we apply local earthquake tomography (Hofstetter
et al. 2012; Braeuer et al. 2012a, b) for the events in the Dead Sea basin and its adja-
cent regions. The number of earthquakes in this time period is relatively small (see
Fig. 9.3c) so it does not cause any major bias of the observations. We mark the limits
of the five main sections of the DST: Arava (AV), Dead Sea basin (DSB), Jordan
Valley (JV) north of the Dead Sea Basin and south of the Sea of Galilee Basin (SG)
and Hula Basin (HB). The horizontal dashed lines (Fig. 9.3b) mark the inner sche-
matic division of the crust into the upper and lower parts and the uppermost part of
the mantle, essentially an average of several studies that were conducted along or
across the Dead Sea Transform (Ginzburg et al. 1979a, b; El-Isa et al. 1987; ten
Fig. 9.2 Location of short-period seismic stations (square) and broadband stations (triangle) that
were used for the location of earthquakes along the Dead Sea Transform. The proximity of some
stations is due to the fact that the sites of some stations were changed due to technical issues during
this period of time. The inset represents a schematic Middle East tectonics where the rectangle
marks the study area of the Dead Sea Transform, and the blue arrows present the principal plate
movement on both sides of the transform
Brink et al. 1993, 2006; Gitterman et al. 2006; Mechie et al. 2009). Most of the
seismic activity, in the Sea of Galilee and Jordan Valley, occurs in the upper crust
with two peaks at depths of 2–3 km and about 9–10 km (Fig. 9.3b). The activity in
the HB is relatively constant at all depths. Most of the seismic activity in the Dead
Fig. 9.3 (a) Distribution of earthquakes as a function of depth along the Dead Sea Transform based
on recordings of permanent and temporary stations, where AV Arava Valley, DSB Dead Sea basin,
JV Jordan valley, SG Sea of Galilee, HB Hula Basin (lower part); (b) Accumulated number of
events as a function of depth in the crust and upper part of the upper mantle (upper part) in the five
sections of the DST, where AV (solid line) DSB (dashed line) on the left side and JV (solid line),
SG (dashed line) and HB (dotted line) are on the right side. The horizontal dashed lines present
Sea basin and Arava fault is deep with a pronounced peak at about 9–10 km and a
secondary peak, in the case of DSB, at a depth of 15–16 km. The seismic activity at
shallow depths in DSB and AV is rather minimal as compared to the deeper ones.
In all the sections along the transform there is significant amount of seismic activ-
ity in the lower crust, with a clear peak in the DSB at about 15–16 km. Seismic activ-
ity extends nonuniformly down to depths of 20 km and more in all sections of the
Dead Sea Transform, mainly in AV, DSB, JV and SG. In total, in the Dead Sea
Transform 1,220 out of 3,800 earthquakes (about 30 %) have deep hypocenters in the
lower crust. Several heat flow studies reported on low values along the DST except
for the Sea of Galilee basin (Ben-Avraham et al. 1978; Feinstein 1987). Recently,
Förester et al. (2007) reported low values near the SG and AV and higher values in
the eastern margin of the transform. The occurrences of hypocenters in the lower
crust, as were also reported by Aldersons et al. (2003) and Hofstetter et al. (2012),
requires a relatively thick brittle part of the crust. It can be are in a good agreement
with the observations of the low heat flow measurements, suggesting relatively cold
crust. Förester et al. (2010) and Petrunin et al. (2012) argued that the heat flow should
be 50–60 mW m−2, and in the Dead Sea basin the brittle layer is about 20–22 km and
up to 27 km locally. The maximal depth of earthquakes throughout the Dead Sea
Transform is about 25 km and even deeper in some parts, i.e. the Dead Sea basin
(Fig. 9.3). The DESIRE campaign enriched the database of the Dead Sea basin, how-
ever, one can expect that comparable results could have been obtained in other parts
of the Dead Sea Transform had similar campaigns been operating there.
Most of the seismic activity in the DST occurs in the middle of the sections while
in the borders between two adjacent sections it is rather limited. This fact agrees
with observations of Hofstetter et al. (2012) regarding the seismic activity at the
northern and southern ends of the Dead Sea Basin. Out of seven relatively moderate
to strong earthquakes (Md ≥ 5.0) that occurred along the DST only two are located
in the section of the Jordan Valley, just north of the Dead Sea basin, in 1903 and
1928, and all the other earthquakes in 1927, 1956, 1970, 1979 and 2004 are located
in the Dead Sea basin. Furthermore, the epicenters of all those earthquakes are
located within the basin and relatively far from the southern or northern basin ends,
i.e. the strong earthquake of 1927 with M 6.2.
The distribution of earthquakes along the DST as a function of time is presented in
Fig. 9.3c. It is clear that the rate of occurrence from the early 1980s of last century is
relatively uniform throughout the whole DST, with some temporal higher rate of activ-
ity from time to time. If we use only the observations of the permanent seismic net-
works of Jordan and Israel then for Md ≥ 2.0 the rate of “earthquake productivity” is
rather uniform of about 7–9 earthquakes/km/year in the last 30 years in the five sec-
tions of the Dead Sea Transform. The fact that until the 1980s the number of reported
earthquakes is rather small, can be explained by the sparse operating regional stations
in the whole region, which hampers the possibility to identify any significant change in
Fig. 9.3 (continued) schematic inner division of the crust and upper mantle (After Ginzburg et al.
1979a, b; El-Isa et al. 1987; ten Brink et al. 1993, 2006; Gitterman et al. 2006; Mechie et al. 2009);
(c) Distribution of earthquakes as a function of time along the Dead Sea Transform. The DESIRE
recordings, marked as DES, are mainly in the Dead Sea basin
the seismic activity at any section of the DST. Furthermore, in those years the Arava
Valley appears to be depleted from any seismic activity, as there were no operating
local stations in its vicinity recording the microearthquake activity. Any strong earth-
quake that might occur in the Arava Valley would have been recorded by some distant
regional stations, which is the case for several moderate to strong earthquakes that
occurred in the other sections and were recorded by the sparse regional network in the
Middle East.
The DESIRE campaign focused mainly on the southern Dead Sea basin, providing
very detailed measurements in this region (Weber et al. 2009a, b; Braeuer et al.
Braeuer et al. 2012a, b) during 18 months. The DESIRE recordings were added in
Fig. 9.3. Most of the events were of small magnitudes and were not recorded by the
permanent networks of either Jordan or Israel. In this study, as observed also by the
permanent networks, there is the clear indication of seismic activity essentially at all
depths down to about 30 km. The activity as a function of the depth as resulted from
the 3-D inversion using the SIMULPS algorithm, done by Braeuer et al. (2012b;
Fig. 9.3b therein), are presented also in Fig. 9.3b and marked as DES. There are two
clear activity peaks at 9, 15 km and a small peak at 26 km. The shape of the event-
depth distribution is similar to the equivalent distribution of DSB. We note that the
second peak in the event-depth distribution of DES at 15 km is the largest one as
compared to the peak at 9 km (by about 50 %), while in the DSB event-depth distribu-
tion we get the opposite order. However, we suppose that a longer period of recording
time is needed in order to reach a more conclusive determination of the pattern of the
seismic activity.
Catalog completeness was studied by Shapira and Hofstetter (2002; see also
http://www.gii.co.il) for the period 1900–2000, taking into account the small number
of local and regional seismic stations in the first half of the twentieth century any-
where in the Middle East, and the increasing number of seismic stations in the second
half in Israel, Jordan and neighbouring countries. Through this period of time the
detectability of seismic events has been improved and catalog completeness is con-
sidered in the following time steps: Md ≥ 5.0 from 1900 to 1939, Md ≥ 4.0 from 1940
to 1962, Md ≥ 3.0 from 1963 to 1982, and Md ≥ 2.0 from 1983 to recent times. The
detectability of earthquakes in the Dead Sea Transform is rather uniform as a conse-
quence of the operation of both seismological networks in Israel and Jordan since
1983, and the fact that there is a large number of operating stations on both sides of
the transform.
Shapira and Hofstetter (2002) determined the b-value using a maximum
likelihood method (Aki 1965; Wiechert 1980) for the time period 1900 through
2000, a total of 100 years, to be 0.96. There was no significant change in the seismic
activity in the last 11 years and our results are very similar to those of Shapira and
Hofstetter (2002). Overall there is a good agreement with the b-values obtained in
former studies, i.e., by Salamon et al. (1996), b = 1.00 for the whole Dead Sea
Transform (from southernmost part of Sinai to Eastern Turkey) for a 95 year period.
The b-value is within the error bounds (about 0.05 to 0.1 units) of recent studies of
Arieh (1967), b = 0.8 for a 60 year period, Ben-Menahem and Aboodi (1971),
b = 0.86 for a 2,500 year period, and Shapira and Feldman (1987), b = 0.8 for a
10 month period, although different magnitude scales and regions were used in
these studies.
Fig. 9.4 The relation between the seismic moment M0 and the magnitude Md, including seismic
moment of the earthquake of 1927 (After Ben-Menahem et al. 1976)
9.4 Seismic Moment and Stress Drop Estimation
We calculate the seismic moment, M0, corner frequency, f0, stress drop, Δσ, and
source radius, r0 based on the dislocation model of Brune (1970, 1971), using the
spectra of S-waves recorded by the short period stations (three-components or
vertical component) or the broadband stations in the case of relatively strong earth-
quakes. Here we describe briefly its application to the Israel Seismic Network fol-
lowing Shapira and Hofstetter (1993).
We manually analyzed more than 4,300 S-wave spectra, with M0 values ranging
from 3.1x1011 N · m to 5.4x1018 N · m. We assume the relationship log M0 = aMd + b
between the mean seismic moment M0 and the coda magnitude Md of a given earth-
quake. The best fit is simultaneously obtained for two parts of the magnitude range
and we get for the first part
log M 0 = (0.9 ± 0.1) M d + (10.7 ± 0.4), 0.8 ≤ M d < 3.5

and for the second part
log M 0 = (1.5 ± 0.1) M d + (8.8 ± 0.3), 3.5 ≤ M d < 6.2

where M0 is in N · m and the magnitude range is 0.8 ≤ Md ≤ 6.2 (see Fig. 9.4). For the
small magnitude earthquakes the magnitude coefficients in the first relation are
Fig. 9.5 The relation between the corner frequency f0 and the seismic moment M0, for the
earthquakes in this study, where for reference the solid lines represent stress drop values of 0.01,
0.1, 1 and 10 MPa, based on f− 3 scaling. The dashed line represent a least-squares fit of the observa-
tions with a slope of about −3.5
slightly lower than those in similar relations, as obtained by Bakun (1984) and
Hanks and Boore (1984) for earthquakes in California, and by van Eck and Hofstetter
(1989), Shapira and Hofstetter (1993), Hofstetter et al. (1996), Hofstetter (2003)
and Hofstetter et al. (2008) for the Dead Sea Transform, the Carmel fault, the
Eastern Mediterranean region, or the Gulf of Aqaba, with relatively similar magni-
tude range. The second relation is similar to the relation of Hofstetter and Shapira
(2000) for earthquakes in the Eastern Mediterranean region.
The corner frequency decreases with increasing seismic moment, as can be seen
in Fig. 9.5, where for reference the solid lines represent stress drop values of 1, 10
and 100 bars, based on f− 3 scaling. We estimate the stress drop of the earthquakes
Δσ, based on the dislocation model of Brune (1970, 1971), using the equation
Δσ = 8.47M0f03/βs where f0 is the corner frequency, and βs is the rupture velocity.
Shapira and Hofstetter (1993) provided details of the application of the method in
the case of seismograms observed by the ISN (short period or broadband). It is simi-
lar to former values obtained for earthquakes occurring in the Dead Sea basin (van
Eck and Hofstetter 1989) or other parts of the Dead Sea Transform, the Carmel fault
and the Gulf of Aqaba (Shapira and Hofstetter 1993; Hofstetter et al. 1996; Hofstetter
2003). In general, the stress drop clearly increases with the increasing seismic
Fig. 9.6 The relation between Brune’s stress drop Δσ and the seismic moment M0, for the earth-
quakes in this study
moment (Fig. 9.6), but there is no simple relationship between the stress drop and
the seismic moment (or magnitude). This has already been noted for earthquakes in
California by Hanks and Thatcher (1972), Thatcher and Hanks (1973), Kanamori
and Anderson (1975), and for the Eastern Mediterranean region by Shapira and
Hofstetter (1993). Using Brune’s model (1970) we estimate the source radius using
the relation r0 = a(βs/f0) where a has the value 0.37 (Fig. 9.7). Typical source radius
values are between 0.2 and 0.6 km for the small magnitude earthquakes.
9.5 Discussion and Conclusions
Figure 9.5 illustrates the relationship between the corner frequency f0 and the seismic
moment M0 , for the Dead Sea Transform. As can be seen our observations suggest a
relationship of ~ f− 3.5. Van Eck and Hofstetter (1989) reported also a steeper fall than
−3. It was interpreted by them as fmax for frequencies just below 10 Hz. In this case
we observe the tendency already at frequencies of 3–4 Hz, which clearly suggests f0.
Mayeda et al. (2007) presented a similar relationship between the seismic moment
and corner frequency for the Hector Mine sequence, California, where the scaling of
seismic moment and corner frequency does not follow f− 3 and is consistent with f− 4.
Fig. 9.7 The relation between the area r and the seismic moment M0, for the earthquakes in this
study, where for reference the solid lines represent stress drop values of 0.01, 0.1, 1 and 10 MPa,
based on f− 3 scaling
They used this evidence to support the idea of non-self-similarity, which means that
a large earthquake is not a simple integer multiplication of a small one.
When studying the seismic efficiency of the Dead Sea Transform one should take
into consideration the total length of the transform (Garfunkel et al. 1981), which is
well beyond the section of the transform from the Gulf of Aqaba to Lebanon, shown
in this study. The DST is essentially depleted from strong earthquakes except the
one in 1927 with the seismic moment of 5.4×1018 N m (Ben-Menahem et al. 1976).
The seismic moment contribution of the aftershocks of the 1995 sequence (Hofstetter
2003), the moderate activity in 2004 in the northern part of the Dead Sea basin
(Hofstetter et al. 2008) and the recent activity in southern Lebanon in 2008–2010
(Meirova and Hofstetter 2012) is relatively minor. Even if we sum up the calculated
seismic moment for all the earthquakes in the catalog, based on the above men-
tioned Mo-Md relationship, including the moderate earthquakes in the Dead Sea
basin in 1956, 1970 and 1979, and 2 earthquakes in the Jordan Valley in 1903 and
1928, we still get a small contribution relative to that of the earthquake in 1927,
where the latter contributes about 5 % to the total seismic moment, in good agree-
ment with Garfunkel et al. (1981). Salamon et al. (2003) showed that the contribution
of the Gulf of Aqaba earthquake in 1995 to the accumulated seismic moment is less
than 40 % of the expected sum. They used a rate of relative motion of 5 mm/year.
Recent studies (Wdowinski et al. 2004; Le Beon et al. 2008; Sadeh et al. 2012)
reported somewhat smaller slip rate values from 3.1 to 5.4 in various parts of the
Dead Sea Transform, and a probable representative average value is 4.3 mm/year. If
we use the latter value of slip rate and taking into account the contribution of the
1927 earthquake then the accumulated seismic moment is about 60 % of the
expected sum, which means that the transformal motion along the Arabian-Sinai
plate border is of major nature. Yet the large difference between the calculated seis-
mic moment and expected moment due to the displacement along the transform is
an open question that should be further explored.
The DESIRE campaign provided very detailed measurements in the southern
Dead Sea basin and adjacent regions (Weber et al. 2009a, b; Braeuer et al. 2012a,
b), which were taken in a period of 18 months. The accumulated seismic moment of
these observations is equivalent to an earthquake of Md 4.2, essentially a small
contribution. Similar campaigns, for longer periods of time using a large set of seis-
mic stations, should be conducted in other parts of the Dead Sea Transform to better
characterize the seismic activity of each part.
Acknowledgements The study was supported by EOST, Univ. of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France,
Chaire Gutenberg Strasbourg, France, and the Earth Sciences and Research Administration,
Ministry of Energy and Water, Israel. Some figures in this report were prepared using the GMT
program (Wessel and Smith 1991).
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Chapter 10
The Evolution of Neogene-Quaternary
Water-Bodies in the Dead Sea Rift Valley
Mordechai Stein
Abstract During the late Neogene-Quaternary times the tectonic depressions

along the Dead Sea transform accomodated several hypersaline to fresh water-
bodies: the late Neogene Sedom lagoon and the Quaternary lakes of Amora,
Samra, Lisan, Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee. The sedimentary sections that
were deposited at these water-bodies store the environmental conditions that pre-
vailed in their watershed. The lakes are located between the Sahara-Arabia desert
belt and the Mediterranean climate zone and their large watershed receives rains
and detritus particles from these climatic regions. Thus, the sedimentary sections
record the climate –hydrological conditions in the desert belt and Mediterranean
climate zone during the late Neogene and the Quaternary Ice Ages. Over the
past two decades extensive efforts were devoted to establish a precise and high-
resolution chronology for the environmental history of the water-bodies. The
chronologies are mainly based on U-series, radiocarbon and oxygen isotope
stratigraphy methods and provide the base for detailed geochemical and sedimen-
tological reconstruction of the limnological-hydrological conditions in the watershed.
The solutions that filled the lakes are mixtures of Ca-chloride brines that were
originally formed in the late Neogene Kinnarot-Sedom lagoon and freshwater
from the watershed. The mixing between these solutions is dictated by regional
hydrological regime that in turn reflects the changes in the global climate patterns.
The water balance in the lakes is reflected in their surface level and salinity. The
precise chronology of the lacustrine sedimentary sequences allows the comparison
with other global climate archives such as the ice cores and ocean temperatures
and opens the way for understanding the global climate connection of hydro-
logical changes in the Levant region. It appears that most of the rains in the
M. Stein (*)
Geological Survey of Israel, 30 Malkhe Israel St., Jerusalem 95501, Israel
280 M. Stein
lakes watershed are derived from the Mediterranean and reflect the climate – oceano-
graphic conditions in the north Atlantic. Glacial periods were colder and wetter and
interglacials were warmer and drier. Episodes of extreme aridity in the Levant
region were accompanied by massive salt deposition at the shrinking lakes, e.g. at
~400 ka (MIS11); 130–120 ka (last interglacial MIS5e) and at 14–13 ka (the post-
glacial BÖlling-Allerod period). Nevertheless, various lines of evidence indicate on
intrusions of wetness from southern sources into the Red Sea region –Arava valley
during interglacials that are possibly related to the African monsoon. These wet
intrusions could facilitate the migration of humans out of Africa along the rift val-
ley. The lacustrine sedimentary sections indicate also on episodes of abrupt aridities
that expanded over the sub-tropical regions from the Sahara to the Mediterranean
(e.g. at ~3.5–3.3 ka, coinciding with the late Bronze cultural crisis). These events
coincide with ice rafting episodes in the north Atlantic that were linked to solar
minima events.
Keywords Dead Sea • Neogene-Quaternary • Paleoclimate • Paleohydrology

• Paleolimnology
10.1 Introduction
The breakup of the African-Arabian continent in the late Cenozoic was expressed
by extensive tectonic and magmatic activity that included the opening of the Red
Sea, the formation of the Suez Rift, the development of Dead Sea Transform (DST)
with deep tectonic basins along its route, as well as production of large fields of
continental alkali basalts (cf. Garfunkel 1981; Stein and Hofmann 1992, and refer-
ences therein). The DST extending from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Taurus Mountains
(Fig. 10.1) accommodated during the past 20 Ma a left lateral movement of
~110 km along the Arava–Jordan valley. This movement affected the development
of the deep tectonic depressions of the Dead Sea, Kinnarot basin, Hula basin,
Bakaa and Gaab Valleys. Since the late Neogene the tectonic depressions were
filled by marine lagoons and lakes that received brines and freshwater from marine
lagoons, the regional aquifers and runoff (Zak 1967; Neev and Emery 1995; Stein
2001). Figure 10.2 illustrates a general stratigraphic section of the Neogene-
Quaternary sedimentary sequences that were deposited in the above-mentioned
water-bodies. The limnological-hydrological evolution of the late Neogene-
Quaternary water-bodies and the relation to the regional and global climate history
is the subject of this review. The chapter is organized in the following structure:
Sect. 10.2 provides a brief overview on the late Neogene history of the region;
10 The Evolution of Neogene-Quaternary Water-Bodies in the Dead Sea Rift Valley 281
Fig. 10.1 Location map of the Dead Sea and sampling sites. The inset shows a regional tectonic
map that outlines the locus of the Dead Sea Transform fault (= DST) extending between the Red
Sea and the Taurus Mt. The African, Sinai and Arabia sub-plates and some other major faults. The
Dead Sea basin accommodated several Neogene-Quaternary water-bodies (lagoons and lakes) that
are the subject of this chapter. The basin is located between the Mediterranean and desert climate
zones and the sediments deposited from the lakes reflect the climate-hydrological conditions in
both regions. Circles in the Dead Sea and its margins mark the major study sites and sedimentary
sections that are described in the chapter: from south to North: Perazim valley –west of the Mount
Sedom salt diapir (exposures of the Lisan Fm.), Massada plain (exposures of the Lisan and Samra
Fms at the foothill of the Massada archeological site); Ze’elim plain (where deep modern erosion
exposed the Holocene section), Ein Gedi spa (where onshore shallow drilling recovered the
Holocene section and offshore drilling recovered ~350 m of late Pleistocene and Holocene sedi-
ments), and the mid-lake ICDP deep drilling site (recovered 460 m of sediments deposited during
the past ~220 ka, between MIS1 and MIS7)
Sect. 10.3 describes the limnological-hydrological history of the Quaternary lakes

filling the basins; Sect. 10.4 deals with temporal changes in the regional climate-
hydrological patterns and their relation to global climate; Sect. 10.5 refers to the
topic of relation between human culture development in the Levant region and
climate and hydrological regimes.
282 M. Stein
Fig. 10.2 General stratigraphic section of the Neogene-Quaternary formations in the Dead Sea-
Jordan Valley and Kinnarot basin. The left panel shows the Dead Sea Group and the formations
that are exposed at the Kinnarot basin. The late Pleistocene – Holocene periods are represented in
the Kinnarot basin by the Kinneret Fm. that are stratigraphically correlated with the Lisan and
Ze’elim Fms in the Jordan Valley and Dead Sea basin. The right panel shows the Samra, Lisan and
Ze’elim Fms that are exposed at the vicinity of the Dead Sea basin and Jordan Valley, and were
deposited during the last interglacial (MIS5) last glacial, (MIS4-2) and Holocene periods, respec-
tively. It should be noted that a longer stratigraphic section that goes back to the mid Pleistocene is
exposed at Mount Sedom salt diapir (Fig. 10.3)
10.2 Late Neogene Marine Transgressions

and the Sedom Lagoon
10.2.1 The Late Neogene Marine Transgressions
During the early and middle Miocene a thick fluvio-lacustrine sequence – the
Hazeva Formation was deposited all over the Negev desert, suggesting a subsid-
ence of this region (Zilberman 1992; Calvo 2002), while in northern Israel, a low
relief terrains prevailed, as suggested by the low-energy fluvial and lacustrine
sediments, which compose the Hordos Fm. (Shaliv 1991). The tectonic activity
along the DST during the Neogene was accompanied by uplift of the N-S ori-
ented “mountain backbone” of Israel (Wdowinsky and Zilberman 1997). The
“mountain backbone” was dissected by two structural lows: The Yizre’el and the
Beer-Sheva Valleys, which were invaded during the Neogene by marine ingres-
sions that intercalated with lacustrine sequences, e.g. the Bira and Gesher
Formations in the lower Galilee and Yizre’el Valley that statigraphically lie
between Lower Basalt (and the Um-Sabune Conglomerate) and the Cover Basalt
(Gvirtzman and Buchbinder 1969; Martinoti et al. 1978; Shaliv 1991; Sandler
et al. 2004; Rozenbaum et al. 2013). K-Ar and Ar-Ar dating of the basalts places
the interval of deposition of the Bira and Gesher Formations between ~10 and
4 Ma (Heimann et al. 1996; Shaliv 1991; Rozenbaum et al. 2013). This interval
includes the Messinian desiccation event at the Mediterranean Sea whose expres-
sion on-land is not entirely clear. The marine ingressions that intruded the
Yizre’el and Jordan Valleys probably reached the Kinnarot and Dead Sea basins
forming the “Sedom lagoon”. In the Kinnarot basin thick sequence of salts was
recovered by the Zemah borehole (Marcus and Slager 1985), and was deposited
between ~9.5 and 5 Ma (Ar-Ar ages, Heimann and Stein in prep), within the
range of ages of the Bira and Gesher marine ingressions. Thus, it is possible to
argue that Kinnarot basin deposited salts from marine origin. The age of the
Sedom lagoon, which possibly carried the evaporated seawater to the Dead Sea
basin is not well constrained and it is not straightforward linking it with the
Yizre’el valley Bira and Gesher ingressions (see below). The Sedom lagoon
comprised Ca-chloride brine that was produced by the interaction of the evapo-
rated marine water with the limestones of the basin wallrocks (Starinsky 1974;
Stein et al. 2000). A thick sequence of salts, mainly halites and some dolomites
was deposited from the Ca-chloride brine comprising the Sedom Formation (Zak
1967). Other salt-bodies that possibly were related to the Sedom lagoon (and the
marine transgression) are salt diapirs that were detected in the central Jordan
Valley (Shaliv 1991; Bilitzki and Mimran 1996; Gardosh and Bruner 1998), and
the deposits of gypsum exposed at the margins of the central Jordan valley
(Schulman 1962; Raab et al. 1997; Raab 1998). The deep canyon of the
Beer-Sheva Valley (Neev 1960) comprised another route for the late Miocene-
early Miocene marine transgressions (Martinoti et al. 1978; Buchbinder and
Zilberman 1997).
284 M. Stein
10.2.2 The Sedom Formation
The Sedom Formation exposed at the Mount Sedom salt diapir (SW side of the
Dead Sea, Figs. 10.1 and 10.3) and recovered from several boreholes drilled at the
southern part of the Dead Sea comprises thick sequence of salts, marls and clastic
units. At Mount Sedom the formation thickness reaches ~2,000 m (Zak 1967). In
more details, the formation consists mainly of halite units cyclically interbedded
with gypsum, anhydrite, dolomite and minor amounts of silt, marl and clay. In bore-
holes, the salt rocks overlie a thick late Neogene sequence of basin-fill sediments.
Water-insoluble materials, which have been left on top of the rising diapir when
their host halite beds dissolved, compose the cap- rock and form the upper part of
the salt-diapir. It were the extensive thickness of halites in the Sedom Fm, and other
geochemical observations that led Zak (1967) to suggest that the evaporites precipi-
tated in a marine lagoon, probably connected to the Mediterranean Sea. Most nota-
ble of these geochemical indicators are the molar Br/Cl ratio in the halites and the
δ34S composition of the Ca-sulfates (19.8 ± 0.8 ‰: Raab et al. 1997; Stein et al.
2000), which attest to a marine origin of salts. It is consistent with the sulfur isotope
composition of Neogene marine water (Stein et al. 2000). The proposed deposi-
tional environment for accumulation of such a thick sequence of halite is a tectoni-
cally subsiding marine lagoon separated from the open ocean by a sill that allows
continuous flow of seawater (Fig. 10.4) (Zak 1967). A long-standing question is the
age of the Sedom lagoon and its relation to the late Neogene marine transgressions
in northern Israel (e.g. the Bira and Gesher Formations in the Yizre’el and Jordan
Valleys) and to the Messinian desiccation event in the Mediterranean (Hsu 1973).
Zak (1967) used general stratigraphic and some faunal considerations to suggest a
late Pliocene-early Pleistocene for the age of the Sedom lagoon. He also estimated
as ~1 Ma the duration of deposition of salts in the lagoon. Based on the chronology
of the Neogene basalts at northern Israel and assuming that the Sedom lagoon is
related to the marine transgressions within the Bira and Gesher Formations, Steinitz
and Bartov (1991) estimated that the age of the Sedom lagoon lies between 6 and
3.4 Ma (see compilation of the various age estimates in Belmaker et al. 2013).
Recently, Belmaker et al. (2013) applied atmospheric 10Be to date directly the salts
of the Sedom Fm. The data indicate that the salts comprising the Me’arat Sedom
and Lot Members were deposited between ~5 and 3 Ma, similar to Steinitz and
Bartov estimate. Interestingly, the lower part of the range of these ages coincides
with 10Be burial ages recovered from the lacustrine Erk-El Ahmer Formation that is
exposed in the Jordan Valley south to the Kinnarot basin. The 10Be burial ages lie in
the range of ~4.3–3.6 Ma (Davis et al. 2011). This may infer that between ~4 and
3 ka freshwater and hypersaline water-bodies already co-existed in the Dead Sea-
Jordan valley, similar to the late Quaternary and present day configuration. The
implication of the atmospheric and burial 10Be ages could be that the time of marine
transgressions and the disconnection of the Sedom lagoon from the open sea
occurred earlier, perhaps in the mid-Pliocene time around the “climax” of the
Messinian salinity crisis (at ~5.7 Ma, Cornée et al. 2006).
Fig. 10.3 (a) The Mount Sedom salt diapir and the Amiaz Plateau with the location of the PZ1
section at the Perazim Valley. The Amora Fm. is exposed along the eastern flanks of the diapir (e.g.
the Arubotaim Cave section described by Torfstein et al. 2009). (b) The salt units (dipping verti-
cally) comprising the Mt. Sedom salt diapir. The “Lot’s Wife” pillar is composed of salt and
insoluble residue that indicates on the activity of ancient dissolution plan
286 M. Stein
Fig. 10.4 The depicted geographical extension of the Sedom lagoon (left hand side), intruding
from the Mediterranean via the Yisre’el Valley into Dead Sea – Kinnarot rift valley. On the right
hand side – the lagoon model (see text) showing the flow of seawater (sw) and lagoon water (lg)
over a sill, sedimentation of salts (sed) in the evaporating lagoon (Elg) and the interaction of evapo-
rated seawater that infiltered (inf) the aquifers in the Judea Cretaceous limestones walls of the rift,
interacted with the limestones to produce epigenetic dolomites (dl) and back spilled (sp) Ca-chloride
brine that mixed with fresh-coming evaporated seawater. 87Sr/86Sr ratios (lower inset) in evaporates
of the Sedom Fm. at Mt. Sedom. In the lower inset: 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in the Sedom Fm salts
(HAL halites, Dol dolomites, An Anhydrite, Gy Gypsum, Lim Limstone). The 87Sr/86Sr ratios are not
consistent with values of late Neogene seawater (upper curves) and were possibly modified by the
lagoon evaporated seawater-limestone interaction (After Stein et al. 2000)
Closer look at the exposed salt sequences at Mount Sedom reveals that the Lot
and Me’arat Sedom Members comprise thick salts units but also laminated sequences
of salt and marls (Fig. 10.5) that indicate seasonal input of runoff material to the
Sedom lagoon. Similar laminated sequences comprise the overlying lacustrine sec-
tions of the Pleistocene – Holocene formations (e.g. sections that were recently
described at the ICDP deep drill at the deepest bottom of the Dead Sea, Stein et al.
2011). The similarity may indicate that significant intervals of the Sedom Fm. were
characterized by lacustrine-type deposition that followed the major phase(s) of
marine transgression(s).
The evolution of the Ca – chloride brines comprising the Dead Sea solution and
saline springs discharging at the Dead Sea margins and Lake Kinneret (e.g. the Ein
Qedem springs) was investigated by Starinsky (1974). He suggested that the evap-
orated seawaters filling the lagoon penetrated the Cretaceous wall rocks of the
basin via the mountain aquifers, dolomitized the limestone and returned back to the
lagoon as Ca-chloride brine. This model was later supported by the strontium iso-
tope composition of the Sedom Formation salts and epigenetic dolomites: Stein
Fig. 10.5 Laminated and folded salt and marly units of the Lot member of the Sedom Formation.
The photo was taken with one of the dissolution chimneys of the Arubotaim Cave. On the left hand
side of the photograph pebbly material marking old exit of the cave
et al. (2000) proposed that Sr in the Sedom evaporites represents a mixture between
the evaporated seawater entering the lagoon and the Ca-chloride brine that was
released to the lagoon from the Cretaceous wall rocks (Fig. 10.4). An independent
assessment of this model was done by Stein et al. (2002) who demonstrated that
epigenetic dolomites from the Judea desert to the west of Mt. Sedom yielded
87
Sr/86Sr ratios that are significantly higher than the stratigraphic correlated lime-
stone but are identical to the ratio of the some of Sedom salts. The Ca-chloride
brines that were produced in the Sedom lagoon played a pivotal rule in the
forthcoming geochemical and limnological evolution of the water-bodies that
occupied the Dead Sea – Jordan basin (Katz et al. 1977; Stein et al. 1997; Gavrieli
and Stein 2006; Katz and Starinsky 2009).
10.3 Quaternary Lakes in the Dead Sea Basin
10.3.1 General
After the disconnection of the Sedom lagoon from the open-sea several lakes
filled the tectonic depressions along the Dead Sea basin-Jordan Valley depositing
sequences of lacustrine sediments that comprise the Amora, Samra, Lisan and
288 M. Stein
Fig. 10.6 The Arubotaim Cave section of the Amora Fm. on the eastern flank of Mt. Sedom. The
chronology of the section was determined by U-Th dating and oxygen isotope stratigraphy (after
Torfstein et al. 2009). A several meters thick massive salt unit (the Amora salt) is marked. The salt
was deposited during MIS11 marking a significant drop in lake level reflecting regional aridity
Ze’elim Formations (Stein 2001; Fig. 2). The late Pleistocene pre-Lisan lacustrine
sedimentary sequence exposed at the dipping flanks Mt. Sedom (Fig. 10.6) was
termed by Zak (1967) as the Amora Formation. The time of origin of Lake Amora
is not known, and it could well go back to the late Pliocene-early Pleistocene
period (Torfstein et al. 2009). The important evolutionary step in the geochemical-
sedimentological evolution of the Dead Sea water-bodies is the appearance of
primary aragonite in Lake Amora that possibly reflects a major change in the
behavior of the regional hydrological system that allowed the transport of bi-car-
bonate to the lakes and its mixing with the Ca-chloride brine. This would require
enhanced dissolution of the limestone in the watershed and push out of the saline
aquifers. Enhanced dissolution of the Jurassic-Cretaceous limestones would
reflect soil accumulation and development of vegetation over the Judea-Galilee
Mountains.
In the following chapter I summarize the sedimentological-limnological histo-
ries of the lakes that filled the Dead Sea rift tectonic depression after the disconnec-
tion of the Sedom lagoon. A significant part of the chapter deals with the description
of the Lisan Formation that comprises the sediments deposited from the last glacial
Lake Lisan. This reflects the comprehensive studies and data that were achieved for
this Formation, e.g. definition of sedimentary facies, U-Th and radiocarbon chro-
nology and limnological – hydrological reconstruction (e.g. Bartov et al. 2002;
Haase-Schramm et al. 2004; Stein and Goldstein 2006; Stein et al. 1997; Torfstein
et al. 2013a, b). The extensive investigation of the Lisan Formation paved the way
to the exploration of the older Formations: the Samra and Amora Formations and
the younger Ze’elim Formation that was deposited in the Holocene Dead Sea.
Thus, I will discuss first the sedimentological- and limnological history of the last
glacial Lake Lisan and then move to the other lakes.
10.3.2 Lake Lisan (70–14 ka BP)
Lake Lisan occupied the tectonic depressions along the Dead Sea basin-Jordan
Valley between ~70 and 14 ka BP (Haase-Schramm et al. 2004). At its highest stand
(160 m bsl) the lake extended from the Sea of Galilee in the north to the Hazeva area
in the south (Fig. 10.7). The lake deposited mainly sequences of primary aragonite
and silty- detritus material that comprise the aad facies (Machlus et al. 2000) and
sequences of laminated silty-detritus that comprise the ld facies (Haliva-Cohen
et al. 2012) (Fig. 10.8). In addition, the sections are interrupted by several sequences
with prominent gypsum layers (Fig. 10.9). The aad facies dominates the Upper and
Lower Members of the Lisan Formation. The silty-detritus material consists of typi-
cally ~8–10 μm size particles that originated from desert dust that was blown to the
Judea and Galilee Mountains from the North Sahara deserts during major dust
storms that are associated with the activity of the Cyprus Cyclone (Haliva-Cohen
et al. 2012 and references there). The aragonite was precipitated directly from the
surface water of the lake that represents a mixture between freshwater loaded with
bi-carbonate and the Ca-chloride brine (Stein et al. 1997). Most of the freshwater
originated in the northern and central parts of the Dead Sea watershed reflecting the
Mediterranean winter rains activated by the Cyprus Cyclone (Bartov et al. 2003;
Kushnir and Stein 2010). The ld facies dominated the formation sequences of low
lake stands (mainly during MIS3 the interval of deposition of the Middle Member
of the Lisan Formation). This facies represents flood material washed to the lake
during times of limited supply of bi-carbonate and comprise surface cover such as
the loess material in the northern Negev desert (Haliva-Cohen et al. 2012). I elabo-
rate on this topic below.
10.3.2.1 U-Series Chronology of the Lisan Formation
The excellent preservation and high U concentrations (~3 ppm) of Lisan aragonite
make it useful for U-Th dating. The pioneering attempts in applying this method to
Lake Lisan sediments were made by Kaufman and colleagues (Kaufman 1971;
290 M. Stein
Fig. 10.7 (a) The Dead Sea drainage area extending from the Gulf of Aqaba to Mt. Hermon,
encompassing the Arabian-Sahara desert and Mediterranean climate zones. Most of the rains in the
watershed occur at wintertime due to the activity of the Mediterranean (Cyprus) Cyclone (b) High-
pressure conditions in the central Atlantic causes the cold westerlies to move towards the relatively
warm east Mediterranean where cyclogenesis occurs. (c) Instrumental rain patterns from a
Jerusalem station during the past 120 years showing decadal changes in precipitations (e.g. higher
than average between 1880–1920 (green bars) and lower than average between 1929–1960 (brown
bars). The black curve shows North Atlantic (NA) annual-mean SST (60N), indicating correlation
between NA colder/warmer SST and higher/lower Jerusalem precipitation (After Kushnir and
Stein 2010)
Kaufman et al. 1992) applying α-counting technique. Using U-Th ‘isochrons’ to cor-
rect for detrital contributions to the 238U, 234U, and 230Th, they showed that U-series
dating can provide reliable ages and that it is possible to correlate sections of the Lisan
Formation located in different sites in the Dead Sea region. Their ages were obtained
on leached samples, which consist of different proportions of detritus and aragonite
(allows for large spread on ‘isochron’ diagrams). Schramm et al. (2000) and Haase-
Schramm et al. (2004) applied “Thermal Ionization Mass spectrometric (TIMS)”
technique to determine precisely the 238U, 234U, and, 230Th, 232Th activities in the Lisan
aragonite and detritus material and constructed a high-resolution 234U-230Th age-height
model of a detailed stratigraphic section of Lisan Formation: the PZ-1 section at
Perazim Valley, to the west of the Mt. Sedom (Fig. 10.1). This section was selected for
geochemical, paleoseismic and paleomagnetic studies because of its location on an
elevated terrace of the ancient lake at 306 m bmsl, 120 m above the present Dead Sea,
Fig. 10.8 The Samra-Lisan transition at ~70 ka. The late interglacial Samra Formation (~140–
70 ka, Waldmann et al. 2009) comprises sequences of laminated detritus material (the ld facies
composed mainly of calcite and quartz) that was washed to the Dead Sea basin by seasonal floods
(Haliva-Cohen et al. 2012). At ~70 ka BP Lake Lisan rose above the landscape of the Samra Fm.
depositing sequences of laminated primary aragonite and silty detritus (the aad facies) at intervals
of positive freshwater supply to the lake and sequences of gypsum during lake retreat and overturn
(Stein et al. 1997)
which makes it sensitive to level changes (Machlus et al. 2000). The section is not
disturbed by recent faults and landslides, but contains many layers that were disturbed
by ancient earthquakes (Marco et al. 1996). Thus, the precise chronology of this sec-
tion provides an absolute time framework for comparing limnological, tectonic and
paleomagnetic events in the region and the response of the lake to global climatic
changes. The ages achieved by U-Th dating of primary aragonites range from ~70 to
14 ka BP. This age interval corresponds to the last glacial interval in the global climate
stratigraphy. Machlus et al. (2000) divided the Lisan Formation at Perazim Valley into
three Members and Schramm et al. (2000) and Haase-Schramm et al. (2004) dated
these members to: ~70–50; ~49–31 and 30–14 ka, corresponding to the marine iso-
tope stages MIS4, 3 and 2, respectively. The Lower and Upper Members consist
mainly of alternating laminae of aragonite and detritus (the aad facies), which
were deposited during high lake stands, and the Middle Member contains abun-
dant clastic layers (the ld facies) deposited during relatively low lake stands. Recent
dating of the Lisan Formation at the M1 section at Massada plain, beneath the
Archeological site of Massada, revealed that the Middle Member evolved via several
short-term intervals of high and low stand conditions (Torfstein et al. 2013a, b). At
~27–24 ka the lake rose to its highest elevation at of ~160 m bsl (Bartov et al. 2002,
292 M. Stein
Fig. 10.9 The Lisan Formation exposure at the M1 section beneath the archeological site of
Massada (After Torfstein et al. 2009). The section comprises sequences of alternating laminae of
primary aragonite (that was deposited from the lake solution) and silty-detritus, and gypsum layers
(that form benches). The gypsum was deposited at episodes of lake level decline and overturn.
U-Th ages are from Torfstein et al. manuscript submitted. The Upper Member of the Lisan Fm.
(termed the “White cliff”) was studied in details by Prasad et al. (2004) who performed laminae
counting (marked in the figure as “counting range”) and time series analyses of the thickness of the
aragonite and detrital laminae
2003). At that time it overflowed the sills separating between the Dead Sea basin and
the Kinnarot basin (where the Sea of Galilee is located) and extended from the north-
ern side of the Sea of Galilee (the Beteicha valley) to Hazeva in the south. Independent
reconstruction of the elevation of the Sea of Galilee levels arrived to the same pattern
of highest stand at ~26–24 ka (Fig. 10.10) (Hazan et al. 2005; Stein 2014). The lake’s
Fig. 10.10 (continued) Torfstein et al. 2013a). (b) Zoom on the past 15 Ka. Note the different lake
level scale in the two panels. During the Holocene the lake fluctuated between 430 and 370 m bmsl
(with unknown drop at ~8.1 Ka) (After Bookman et al. 2004; Migowski et al. 2006; Stein et al.
2010); (c) During the last glacial period the lake fluctuated between 370 and 160 m bmsl. The
panel shows the stratigraphy of the Lisan Fm. divided to three members that corresponds to MIS4,
3 and 2 (After Torfstein et al. 2013b). At ~14–13.5 Ka and possibly at ~120–130 Ka the lakes
dropped below 450 m bmsl depositing thick sequences of salt (Stein et al. 2010; Goldstein et al.
2013). (d) Lake level curves for the hypersaline-terminal Lake Lisan and Dead Sea and the fresh
(flow through) Lake Kinneret. There are several times of lakes convergence when the water level
rose above the Wadi Malih and Yarmouk sills (e.g. at 1–5). At intervals 6–10 the lakes are separated
but appears to fluctuate simultaneously, reflecting the precipitation in their watershed (lake
Kinneret curve after Hazan et al. 2005 and Stein 2014)
Fig. 10.10 Composite-level curve for the lakes filling the Dead Sea basin during: (a) The time
interval present to 150 Ka (After Bartov et al. 2002, 2003, 2007; Waldmann et al. 2007;
294 M. Stein
high stand coincides with the timing of maximum extent of glaciers in the northern
hemisphere and minimum global sea level. Torfstein et al. (2013a) obtained U and Th
isotope data from several sections of the Lisan Formation at the Dead Sea basin and
Jordan valley (Fig. 10.10a) and combined the data with prominent stratigraphical
markers (e.g. the major gypsum units) to produce an integrated multi-site U-Th age
model for the Lisan Formation. The ages of gypsum marker units were correlated with
the Heinrich events that were identified in the North Atlantic deep cores records and
other global archives.
10.3.2.2 Long Term Freshening of Lake Lisan and Deposition of Gypsum
The recently conducted ICDP drill (see below) recovered the sedimentary sections of
the ancient lakes down to the Amora Fm. (Stein et al. 2011). Porewaters that were
extracted from the drilled cores provide unprecedented information on the
composition of brine at deepest environment of the lakes. Analyses of chlorine con-

centration and oxygen isotopes in the porewaters revealed a long term freshening of
the lower brine of the lake (the hypolimnium), possibly by turbulent mixing across the
(fresher) epilimnium and the hypolimnium, which also affected the radiocarbon and
strontium budgets in the lake (Lazar et al. 2014; Stein et al. 2013). This long-term
freshening process arrived to an abrupt end at the very top of the Lisan Formation,
when the lake dropped catastrophically from its high-stand elevation of ~ 200 m bmsl
to below 500 m bmsl when it deposited a thick sequence of salts (see below). The
freshening trend commenced after the previous dramatic lake retreat and deposition of
massive salts that occurred during the last interglacial period (when Lake Samra occu-
pied the basin).
10.3.3 The Post-glacial Retreat of Lake Lisan
At ~17.4 ka BP Lake Lisan commenced its retreat from the ~ 200 m bmsl to the
minimum level of the post-glacial Lake Lisan and Holocene Dead Sea (Fig. 10.10).
The lake retreat coincided with the global warming that generally imposed more
arid conditions in the east Mediterranean – Levant region (Neev and Emery 1995;
Stein 2001; Haase-Schramm et al. 2004). Between 17.4 and 16 ka, the lake deposited
a sequence of gypsum layers intercalated with detritus (the Upper Gypsum
Unit = UGU, Torfstein et al. 2008). In the North Atlantic the time interval between
17.4 and 16 ka BP is known as the Heinrich event H1. At Massada and Beit-Ha’Arava
sections, the UGU is overlain by 1–2 m of aad sequence topped by gypsum. This
sequence is termed the Additional Aragonite Gypsum Unit (AGU). At Beit-
Ha’Arava section the AGU is covered by a 3 m thick silty unit termed the Fazael
Fm. This formation comprises the surface cover in the central Jordan Valley from
Beit-Ha’Arava to the Beit Shean comprising recycled mountain soils. The age of the
AGU is not well established. In Beit-Ha’Arava section it was dated to 11.6 ka BP,
which would place it at the Younger Dryas time interval. Accepting this age, the
UGU and AGU were deposited during the post-glacial time interval of 17.4 to
~11.6 ka BP. This period, accommodated dramatic changes in lake level that pos-
sibly declined between ~14.5 and 13.5 ka BP to below 450 m bmsl and rose back
during the Younger Dryas to ~330 m bmsl before declining again at 11–10 ka BP to
below 430 m bmsl. The information on this period and these abrupt fluctuations in
lake levels is derived mainly from sediment cores that were drilled along the
retreating shores of the modern Dead Sea (Fig. 10.11). The drill-holes penetrated
Holocene and pre–Holocene (Lisan) sections, recovering various sedimentary facies
ranging from deep-water lake sediments to shore and fluvial sediments. A massive
and thick salt unit was penetrated in most boreholes (Fig. 10.11), corresponding in
age (~11–10 ka BP, Stein et al. 2010) to Migowski et al. (2004) who placed it at the
base of the Holocene. The dissolution of this salt unit during the modern man-
related lake retreat triggered the collapse of the Holocene sections above it and
formation of sinkholes along the Dead Sea shores (e.g. Abelson et al. 2006).
Fig. 10.11 (a) Scientific drilling projects at the Dead Sea. The figure illustrates the location of boreholes
drilled in: the 1993 campaign (leaders: J. Negendank and Z. Ben-Avraham, see Heim et al. 1997); 1997
campaign (leaders J. Negendank and M. Stein and A. Agnon, see Migowski et al. 2004, 2006), and the
deep site drilled in 2010/2011 under the ICDP-Dead Sea project, see Stein et al. (2011). (b) Boreholes
recovering the post-glacial to Holocene Dead Sea sections containing the thick salt unit (in yellow)
dated to ~11–10 ka (After Stein et al. 2010). (c) Thick halite units exposed at the Arubotaim Cave sec-
tion (late-Pleistocene Amora Fm.), and recovered in boreholes drilled into the sections of the Holocene
Dead Sea. The Amora salt was deposited during MIS11 (~400 Ka) and the early Holocene salt was
deposited between 11–10 ka (Fig. b). The deposition of the salts indicates significant decline of the
Dead Sea (below 400 bmsl) and aridity in the drainage area
The salt unit was first recovered from the DSIF core drilled at the Ze’elim valley
(Yechieli et al. 1993). The sedimentary sequence of the core consists of fan delta
deposits, marls (ld facies type) and the massive salt unit. The drilling recovered ~7 m
thick salt sequence, which overlies ~4 m of marly material (containing some cubic
secondary halite and disseminated gypsum). These marly sediments unconformably
overlie the laminated glacial Lisan aragonites, dated by U-Th age to 21 ± 2 ka BP
(Yechieli et al. 1993). Wood debris recovered from this marly sequence yielded a
radiocarbon age of 11.3 ± 1.6 ka BP (radiocarbon age), which is calibrated to ~13.2
(13.6–12.9 ka cal BP) within the Younger Dryas time interval. The evidence for an
abrupt lake level drop between ~14.6–13.2 ka cal BP and the requirement for a lake
level rise prior to the deposition of the salt layer at ~11 ka cal BP indicate that between
13.2 and 11 ka cal BP lake level rose from below 465 m bmsl to above 415 m bmsl
(highest elevation of the salt unit at the Ze’elim DSIF site). Recently, Liu et al. (2013)
reported on desert varnish that was deposited on the relief of the recessional shorelines
of Lake Lisan, e.g. on the fan delta surfaces between 280 and 365 m bmsl along the
western margins of the Dead Sea (e.g. Nahal Darga). The varnish comprises thin
(a few micron in thickness) laminae characterized by a low Mn and Ba orange/yellow
surface layer and a high Mn and Ba dark basal layer (e.g. Fig. 10.12). The deposition
of the dark basal layers immediately after the lake recession represents a wet period
coinciding with the Younger Dryas (YD) (12.9–11.6 ka). In contrast, varnish from the
distal base of fan deltas contains only orange/yellow surface layers, diagnostic of the
Holocene relatively dry climate. The absence of the dark basal layers in the varnish
further indicates an YD high-stand at ~365 m msl and a lake level rise of at least
100 m from its Bølling/Ållerød low-stand. Liu et al. suggest that the wetter conditions
during the YD could reflects a southward shift of the Atlantic meridional overturning
298 M. Stein
Fig. 10.12 Rock-varnish comprising thin (a few micron in thickness) laminae characterized by a
low Mn and Ba orange/yellow surface layer and a high Mn and Ba dark basal layer (After Liu
et al., 2013)
circulation, which in turns modulated the mid-latitude westerly winds in the east
Mediterranean-central Levant region and led to enhanced rains.
10.3.4 Lakes Amora and Samra
The Amora and Samra Formations comprise the sedimentary sequences that were
deposited in lakes Amora and Samra, respectively. The name Samra Formation was
designated to the sedimentary sequence that was deposited in the water-body filling
the Dead Sea tectonic depression during the last interglacial (MIS5), while the name
Amora Formation accommodated a long sedimentary sequence that was deposited
and accumulated in the tectonic depression since the time of disconnection of the
Sedom lagoon from the open sea (~ 3 Ma, Torfstein et al. 2009), thus containing
significant part of the mid to late Quaternary history of the basin. The stratigraphy of
the Amora Fm. was first established by Zak (1967) in his canonical study of the
Mount Sedom salt diapir. The rising diapir uplifted and tilted the lacustrine sequences
that were deposited above the Sedom Fm. On the eastern flanks of Mount Sedom the
lacustrine layers lie in dips of ~90° (Fig. 10.6) providing beautiful exposure of
the formation and the possibility to investigate in details the entire mid to late
Pleistocene history of the lacustrine system in the Dead Sea basin. Torfstein et al.
(2009) established the chronology of the Amora Fm at the Arubotaim Cave (AC)
section by combining U-Th dating with oxygen isotope stratigraphy and paleomag-
netic constraints. The idea of applying oxygen isotopes ratios as stratigraphic–
chronologic tool is based on the simple relation and constant difference between the
δ18O in the source of rain water in the east Mediterranean and the primary aragonite
deposited from the lake water (Kolodny et al. 2005). The East Mediterranean (EM)
is considered to be the main source of water to the DSB drainage area. Accordingly,
the Amora δ18O record is tuned to the EM δ18O record published by Almogi-Labin
et al. (2009). The base of the exposed Amora Formation at the Arubotaim Cave (AC)
section is younger than 780 ka, consistent with the normal paleomagnetic epoch. The
uppermost part of the Arubotaim Cave section was dated to the last interglacial
MIS5. In between, the formation comprises several sequences of glacial-interglacial
ages (MIS 18 to 5). A prominent salt unit is constrained by U-Th dating to approxi-
mately 400 ka (corresponding to MIS11). This unit represents the only exposed
occurrence of massive halite in the Quaternary DSB lake deposits. While massive
halite is relatively abundant in the central and southern basins of the Dead Sea (Neev
and Emery 1995) its precipitation or preservation on the shallow margins of the basin
is rare. Massive salt units were recently recovered by the ICDP –Dead Sea deep drill
(Stein et al. 2011). A prominent salt unit in the ICDP core was recently dated to
MIS5e. Pebbles that could mark a proximate shoreline and thus a significant lake
retreat overlie this unit (Goldstein et al. 2013).
10.3.5 The Holocene Dead Sea
The Holocene Dead Sea evolved from the last glacial Lake Lisan. As indicated
above, Lake Lisan reached its highest elevations of ~160–200 m bmsl during Marine
Isotope Stage 2 (MIS2) and at ~17.4 ka commenced its post-glacial retreat arriving
to its minimum level (below 450 m bmsl) between 14 and 13 ka cal BP, rising back
to ~330 m bmsl during the Younger Dryas and then declined again between 11 and
10 ka when a thick salt unit was deposited (Fig. 10.11, and see Stein et al. 2010).
The sedimentary section that was deposited from the Holocene Dead Sea com-
prises the Ze’elim Formation (Bookman et al. 2004). The lithology and chronology
of the upper part of the Ze’elim Formation (past 3 kyear) were described and estab-
lished in wall-exposures of recently formed gullies (e.g. the Ze’elim gully, Fig. 10.13)
that dissect the exposed Dead Sea floor. The formation of these gullies reflects the
anthropogenic retreat of the Dead Sea during the past few decades. The early part of
the Holocene (~4 and 10 ka) is mainly recovered from sediment cores that were
drilled along the retreating shores of the modern Dead Sea (Migowski et al. 2004,
2006). Yet, deep-cut exposures in the Ein Qedem shore and Darga Valley reveal units
of the early Holocene (Kadan 1997; Stern 2010). Lake level reconstruction of the
Holocene Dead Sea (Fig. 10.10) indicates moderate rise above the salt unit between
~10–9 ka followed by significant level declines during the time interval of 9–6 ka.
At ~ 8.1; 5.6; 4.1 and 3.6 ka the lake declined abruptly to ~430 m bmsl and below.
300 M. Stein
Fig. 10.13 The Ze’elim gully exposing the sedimentary sequence of the mid to late Holocene
Dead Sea (the Ze’elim Formation). The Uppermost part of the section (past 2,500 years) comprises
mainly sequences of aad couplets or detritus-aragonite–gypsum triplets. The lower part of the sec-
tion is dominated by laminated detritus of the ld facies. The chronology of the Ze’elim Fm. was
established by 14 C dating of organic debris that are abundant in the exposures (see example of an
age – height model for the time interval of 1,000 BC to 1,000 AD, after Kagan et al. 2011). The
Ze’elim gully exposures were used to establish high-resolution paleo-seismic chronology of the
Dead Sea region (Ken-Tor et al. 2001; Kagan et al. 2011). The upper left hand side inset displays
an example of “seismite” unit dated to 31 BC, which was reported by Flavious. This seismite
comprises fragments of primary aragonite within silty-detritus matrix
These drops coincide with some global climate events (e.g. ice rafting in the North
Atlantic) and were linked to solar activity (Kushnir and Stein 2010, and see below).
The term “Dead Sea” is related to the water-body that filled the Dead Sea basin
after 10 ka. To a certain extent, this terminology is arbitrary since the lake with
geochemical properties that are similar to the modern Dead Sea was formed only
at ~3,000 years BP upon the transition from the late Bronze to the Iron Age. During
the past 3,000 years the lake precipitated primary aragonite and fine detritus, while
in the early and mid-Holocene almost no aragonite was deposited and the lithology
of the lake’s sediments was dominated by detrital calcites. Waldmann et al. (2007)
attributed the change in the composition of the lake sediments and deposition
of primary aragonite to reactivation of the Ca-chloride brines due to enhance pre-
cipitation on the Judea Mountain. The sediments deposited during the time interval
of 10–3 ka BP resemble those of the last interglacial Samra Fm. Thus, from the
viewpoint of the section lithology the conditions of the Holocene interglacial termi-
nated at ~3–4 ka BP and the “neo – glacial” period commenced.
10.4 Paleo-Hydrological and Paleo- Climatic Patterns
10.4.1 General
The reconstruction of the paleo-hydrological conditions during the history of the

lakes is based on the lithology, sedimentological facies and geochemistry (e.g.
oxygen isotope compositions) of the sediments (Stein et al. 1997; Waldmann et al.
2007; Torfstein et al. 2009) as well as the lake level reconstruction (e.g. Bartov
et al. 2002, 2003; Torfstein et al. 2013a, b; Stein 2014). The glacial intervals (e.g.
MIS10, 8, 6, 4, 2) comprise mainly the aad facies indicating positive freshwater
inputs and transport of bi-carbonate to the lake that allows the deposition of the
primary aragonite (Stein et al. 1997). The interglacial and interstadial intervals
(e.g. MIS11, 7, 3 5, 1) are characterized by sequences of the ld, gypsum (or anhy-
drite) and sand facies. The ld facies was attributed to floods carrying fine detritus
from the surface cover (e.g. soils, settled dust, loess) to the lake (Haliva-Cohen
et al. 2012). Delicate information on the paleo-hydrology is provided by the oxy-
gen isotope compositions of the primary aragonites. Overall, the long-term lake
oxygen isotopic composition was dominated by the composition of the coming
freshwaters, evaporation and degree of mixing between the upper (fresher) lake
layer and the lower brine (e.g. Kolodny et al. 2005; Lazar et al. 2014). Yet, short-
term variations in the oxygen isotopic composition of the lake’s upper water layer
were controlled by the regional hydrological regime, relative humidity, water
activity and evaporation conditions in the lakes (Gat 1984; Kolodny et al. 2005).
Variations are reflected by discrete (possibly annual) δ18O excursions towards
lighter values showing shifts of approximately 2–3‰. Such excursions have been
observed in the twentieth century Dead Sea as well as in a ~100 sequence of ara-
gonite laminae in the Lisan Formation from ~35 ka BP (see examples in Kolodny
et al. 2005 and Torfstein et al. 2009).
The following chapter deals with the implications of the lake limnology: com-
position, configuration and mainly lake levels to the understanding of regional
hydrology and relation to global climate patterns. The lakes that have occupied the
Dead Sea basin are considered as terminal lakes, whose levels have been sensitive
to the amount of incoming water and evaporation. They thus provide a record of
hydroclimatic variability in the Dead Sea drainage area and by inference in the
entire Levant region. That said, several factors are combined in the shaping of the
composition and limnological configuration of the lakes: e.g. layered or overturned
lake, salinity and evaporation, hydrological conditions in the drainage area (e.g.
Stein et al. 1997) and it is not expected that the lake response to regional climate
and hydrology to be immediate or linear. The section deals first with a climatic
model that explains the modern patterns of rains in the drainage area of the Dead
Sea – and by inference the Levant region and then discusses the implications for
the older lakes.
302 M. Stein
10.4.2 The Dead Sea as the Levant Rain Gauge
The Dead Sea basin consists of two sub-basins: a deep northern basin (~300 m deep),
occupying about two thirds of the lake and a very shallow southern basin (which is
currently essentially dry). The basins are separated by a sill at a level of ~402–403 m
bmsl. The lake level curve (Fig. 10.10) shows the Holocene Dead Sea fluctuated
between levels of ~430 and 370 m bmsl, and rose or declined beneath the sill.
Flooding the southern basin leads to an abrupt increase in the total lake evapora-
tive flux and which buffers further increases in lake levels. In contrast, when lake
levels drop below the sill, the surface level becomes more sensitive to changes in
fresh water flux as the lake area is confined to the northern basin. Additional com-
plexities in lake level response to freshwater influx are associated with changes in
the surface area as the level changes (Abu Ghazle et al. 2009) and the dependence
of the rate of evaporation to its surface salinity (Stanhill 1994).
Despite these complexities, Enzel et al. (2003) argued for a relatively simple
relationship between lake level and regional precipitation using the instrumental
precipitation record at Jerusalem and the measured lake levels recorded between
1930 and 1964 (before human intervention to the flow of the Jordan River and when
lake levels were above the sill). They found that the Dead Sea level displays a multi-
year rise when the annual precipitation amounts are distributed around a mean of
648 mm, with standard deviation of about 122 mm and a multi-year decline when
the annual precipitation amounts drop to a mean of 445 mm, with a standard devia-
tion of 117 mm. From their data, one could conclude that the rate of decline in lake
level in the time interval of 1930–1960 is 8–10 cm year−1 consistent with the overall
low annual precipitation amount during that period (average of 568 mm compare to
the entire record average of 607 mm). In particular, between 1930 and 1945 the lake
dropped by 2 m, yielding a rate of decline of 14 cm year−1. This rapid decline came
in the wake of the 10-year precipitation minimum of the entire instrumental record,
averaging 390 mm year−1 between 1925 and 1934.
The Levant rainy season occurs during the months of October to April with most
of the rainfall occurring in the winter months. During this season, cold-core upper-
level, low-pressure troughs and ridges migrate from west to east over southern
Europe and the Mediterranean (Ziv et al. 2006; Trigo 2006). These systems drive
cold and often relatively dry air masses from Europe over the mountain ranges that
circle the EM Basin to the north and over the relatively warm sea. The lifting of the
air over topography and the encounter with the warm Mediterranean water lead to
the formation of surface lows (cyclones) that provided with moisture from the water
surface below produce clouds and precipitation. Of particular importance for the
Levant are the cyclones that tend to deepen or form in the EM, known as Cyprus
Lows (cf. Ziv et al. 2006). In the other half of the year (May to September) the
Levant is dry due to the strong regional subsidence induced by the remote influence
of the Indian summer monsoon system (Ziv et al. 2004).
Kushnir and Stein (2010) examined the possible effects of global climate phe-
nomena on Levant precipitation variability. These are: the North Atlantic Oscillation
(NAO), the El Nino southern oscillation (ENSO) and Atlantic multidecadal vari-
ability (AMV). The NAO is associated with coherent latitudinal fluctuations in the
Atlantic, wintertime eddy-driven jet stream. Connected with that are swings in the
location of the Atlantic winter storm track from a northern path to a southern path
and vice versa, depending on the NAO phase (Hurrell et al. 2003; Lee and Kim
2003). The downstream effect of this Atlantic-centric phenomenon “spills” into
southern Europe and the northern Mediterranean countries all the way to the EM.
Thus a negative NAO phase is associates with larger than normal rainfall in Turkey
(particularly in the west) and a positive NAO phase leads to lower than normal
precipitation there. Indeed, NAO influence was clearly identified in precipitation
variability north of the Levant, over the Anatolian Peninsula and the Aegean Sea
(Cullen and deMenocal 2000; Marshall et al. 2001). However, in the Levant
(and along the North African coast of the Mediterranean) the influence of the NAO
on precipitation is weak, and possibly in opposite phase to its effect to the north
(Cullen and deMenocal 2000; Enzel et al. 2003).
Mariotti et al. (2005) found a clear ENSO linkage to Mediterranean and Levant
precipitation but only in the relatively marginal fall season (September-November).
Thus, one cannot rule out an overall weak influence of ENSO on the Levant wet
season (October to April).
Kushnir and Stein (2010) proposed a new mechanism that explains the multi-
decadal to millennial patterns of the Levant precipitation and moreover the observed
antiphase climate-hydrology relation between the Levant and the sub-Sahara Sahel
region. They argued that decadal and longer time-scale variations of Levant-Sahel
hydroclimate are affected by the multi-year variability of North Atlantic SSTs and
sea level pressure (SLP) over the east Atlantic (Fig. 10.7). Rainy winters in the
Levant are associated with higher than normal SLP over the eastern North Atlantic
extending into Western Europe and vice versa. Kushnir (1994) showed that a posi-
tive–negative AMV composite (warm-cold SST in the North Atlantic), exhibits a
negative sea level pressure (SLP) anomaly over the mid-latitude North Atlantic,
between 30 and 60°N. The implication is that SLP is higher than normal in the
middle of the North Atlantic and over Western Europe when the basin is colder than
normal. Higher than normal SLP in the mid-North Atlantic Basin, during the cold
season, deflects the extratropical storms from their normal tracks increasing the
chances of polar air intrusions directly into the Eastern Mediterranean and this, in
turn, leads to higher likelihood for cyclogenesis and consequently higher precipita-
tion in the Levant. Conversely, when Atlantic SSTs are higher than normal, lower
than normal SLP in the mid-North Atlantic Basin brings rather warm air from
subtropical origin to the Eastern Mediterranean reducing the chances of cyclogen-
esis and consequently leads to a dryer than normal winter in the Levant. The cold
North- Atlantic scenario has consequences for the Sahel and North America regions.
The EM winter environment, with the large temperature contrast between the cold
Eurasian continent and the warm sea and the Anatolian topography to the north,
create unique conditions that amplify the Atlantic impact compare to other parts of
the Mediterranean.
304 M. Stein
10.4.3 Implications for the Hydrological-Climate Conditions

During the Holocene and Late Pleistocene Periods
Could the North Atlantic – Levant – Sahel model be extended to the entire Holocene
and late Pleistocene time intervals? Archives of Levant – Sahel paleo-climate
exhibit large centennial to millennial fluctuations. Considering uncertainties in the
chronologies and lake level elevations, particularly of the African lakes, the anti-
phase behavior in lake level variability is apparent in the geological records. For
example, during the Bölling-Allerod (B-A, ~14–13 ka BP) and the YD, when the
Dead Sea level (DSL) dropped precipitously and then rose above the sill level,
respectively, the African hydroclimate indicators (terrigenous dust record included)
swung the other way – up and down. The subsequent millennial swings during the
African humid period (AHP) and during the period of African lake decline also
seem to maintain the anti-phase relationship. The relationship between centennial to
millennial variability in the Levant and Sahel records and North Atlantic SST fluc-
tuations on the same time scale is hard to discern with confidence from ocean sedi-
ment records, as these have a rather coarse and temporally uneven resolution.
However, some support to our hypothesis emerges during the past few millennia.
During the late Holocene, the Northern Hemisphere climate changed from the
Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA; 900–1400 AD), a relatively warm period in
Europe and most likely the North Atlantic to the Little Ice Age (LIA, 1500–1900
AD), a cold period in these areas (see recent discussion by Denton and Broecker
2008). Based on records of the advance and retreat of mountain glaciers in Europe
and North America and historical evidence on the extent of wintertime sea ice cov-
erage in the North Atlantic, Denton and Broecker (2008) argued for associated cen-
tennial time-scale variations in the strength of the AMOC and related SSTs (AMV)
in the Basin. According to their synthesis the North Atlantic was relatively warm
during the MCA and cold during the Little Ice Age. A comparison between the
record of advances and retreat of Swiss Alpine glaciers and the DSL in the last
4,000 years exhibits remarkable agreement between high lake stands and cold inter-
vals in Europe. Consistent with the hypothesis of Denton and Broecker (2008) this
supports the proposition regarding the role of the North Atlantic in Levant precipita-
tion variability.
10.4.4 Catastrophic Lake Drops – The Drying of the

Subtropical Zones
On the orbital time scale (e.g. the precession cycles of ~ 20 kyear) the Dead Sea
lakes exhibit high-stands during north latitudes glacial periods and low stands dur-
ing interglacials. On the millennial and multi-decadal scale they appear to follow
the Kushnir and Stein North Atlantic AMV model. On both time scales it appears
that the anti-phase hydrological correlation between the Levant and Sahel exists.
Recently, Torfstein et al. (2013a, b) re-evaluated the Lake Lisan level fluctuation
during MIS3 (Fig. 10.10c). At: ~42.5, ~40.3, ~37, ~34, ~32.5, ~30.5, and ~28.1 ka
the lake rose to elevations higher than 260 m bmsl and in between these episodes
declined to elevations of ~280 m bmsl and below. These fluctuations appear to
coincide with the millennial fluctuations in the ice cores records and by inference
in the ice-cave-lake records that are referred to Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) stadial-
interstadial cycles. The D-O cycles apparently reflect a global connection between
the temperatures in the ice cores and patterns of monsoon and east Mediterranean
rain fronts that are responsible for the speleothem growth in the Chinese cave or
the rain precipitation in the Levant and Lake Lisan watershed. This topic is elabo-
rated below. The sharp oscillations in lake levels during MIS3 appear to coincide
with the oxygen isotope variations in the Greenland ice core. Within a D-O cycle
the lake rose when Greenland temperature dropped and declined when Greenland
temperature rose. The D-O type lake level fluctuations during MIS3 appear to be
related to cold-warm North Atlantic temperatures and by inference to the multi-
decadal millennial AMV model of Kushnir and Stein (2010). Yet, the D-O related
lake fluctuations are punctuated by abrupt and large (>100 m) drops in lake levels
that are accompanied by massive deposition of primary gypsum. The ages of these
gypsum units are consistent with the timing of Heinrich (H) stadials in the North
Atlantic and coincide with the H-related perturbations in the ice cores. The coinci-
dence between the abrupt Lake Lisan drops and H-events was already noticed and
discussed by Bartov et al. (2003). At a first glance this behavior looks paradoxical
considering the “cold Atlantic SST – high Dead Sea level” Kushnir and Stein
model. The association between the abrupt lake drops and Heinrich-stadials could
be related to the impact of iceberg discharge into the North Atlantic. This process
inhibited the production of North Atlantic Deep Water, resulting in the suppression
of northward transport of heat from the tropics. Thus, lower sea surface tempera-
tures in middle latitudes, including the Mediterranean, in combination with the
cooling of air masses originating in the North Atlantic and bound for the Levant
resulted in an overall weakening of the air-water thermal gradient, which inhibited
vapor uptake from the sea, and in turn limited the delivery of precipitation to the
DSB drainage (Bartov et al. 2003). The shutdown of Mediterranean rains during
the H-events coincided with severe droughts and low lake stands in the sub-Sahara
that were related to the weakening of the Indian monsoon. This could apparently
be related to the spread of cooling into the Indian Ocean (Pausata et al. 2011).
Modeling studies seem to support this hypothesis, showing that intense North
Atlantic cooling, whether during the LGM or the Holocene, lead to cooling and
drying of Europe and a southward shift in the Intertropical Convergence Zone
(ITCZ) over the entire globe (Chiang 2009), thus yielding a more extreme pattern
than the slow and relatively mild millennial cycles and insolation forced variabil-
ity. The cooling of the Indian Ocean due to the sea-ice spread in the North Atlantic
is also reflected in the Chinese speleothem records. There, sharp δ18O excursions
to heavier compositions coincided with the H-events. These δ18O excursions were
recently reinterpreted as reflecting reduction in the precipitation over the Indian
Ocean and weakening of the Indian monsoon (Pausata et al. 2011). The shift in the
306 M. Stein
global atmospheric systems during the H-events was reflected also in the patterns
of atmospheric circulation and transport of desert dust. While the majority of dust
storms that approached the northern Red Sea – east Mediterranean – Dead Sea
originated during the late Quaternary at the Sahara deserts it appears that during
the H-events dust was mainly mobilized from local sources, e.g. Red Sea margins,
Negev desert, northern Sinai (Haliva-Cohen et al. 2012; Palchan et al. 2013; Roskin
et al. 2011).
10.4.5 Wet Phases in the Negev Desert During Past

Interglacials
The overall picture of the Levant paleoclimate on orbital time scale is of relatively
wet and cold glacials and arid and warm interglacials. This pattern is overprinted
by millennial and multi-decadal hydrological variations that reflect the SST in the
north Atlantic and by abrupt catastrophic aridities that coincide with the H-events
in the north Atlantic possibly reflecting cooling of the east Mediterranean and
shut down of the cyclonic rain engine. The Sahara-Sahel deserts that are affected
by the Indian monsoon system exhibit the opposite picture of wetter interglacials
and arid intervals during cold North Atlantic SST. While the effects of the
Mediterranean rains fade out currently towards the northern Negev desert (with
~200 mm rain at Beer Sheva) and the southern Negev desert, Arava valley and
Gulf of Aqaba are considered as one of the most arid areas on earth with less than
20 mm of rain annually, there is a line of evidence for episodes with wetter condi-
tions at the Negev desert during the interglacials that could cause significant
floods in the major rivers that are draining to the Dead Sea from the south, mainly
the Arava, Zin and Paran rivers. Enhanced deposition of travertines occurred at
the Arava valley during MIS7 and 5 (Livnat and Kronfeld 1985; Enmar 1999) as
well as precipitation of cave speleothems in the southern Negev Desert during
MIS9, 7 and 5 (Vaks et al. 2007) might indicate a southern (relative to the DSB)
source of humidity (Waldmann et al. 2010). This scenario is corroborated by the
evidence for enhanced activity of fresh groundwater along the shore of the Gulf of
Aqaba and the Red sea that caused a massive transformation of aragonitic skele-
tons of the coral reefs to calcite (Lazar and Stein 2010). The scenario of a southern
humidity in the desert areas during interglacials stands in line with the evidence
of filling of dry lakes in the Sahara (e.g. Gasse 2000). In this context, we point out
that EM sapropel events, which are generally associated with enhanced summer
monsoon precipitation over subtropical Africa and subsequent heavy Nile floods
in the EM, usually corresponds to interglacial times (Rossignol-Strick 1985;
Rossignol-Strick et al. 1998; Rossignol-Strick and Paterne 1999). Short humid
episodes during MIS7 and other interglacial’s could be related to enhanced activ-
ity of Red Sea Troughs (e.g. Greenbaum et al. 2006) or “Tropical Plumes” which
pertain to the transport of moisture from the Tropics (i.e., West Africa) to
extra-tropical latitudes (e.g. Ziv 2001; Waldmann et al. 2010). Such episodes have
been recorded during the twentieth century and have occasionally triggered
extremely heavy rain over short periods (hours, days) in the Negev Desert. A
beautiful example for enhanced rains from southern Red Sea sources in the Negev
desert occurred in January 2010, when strong floods washed via the major rivers
to the southern Dead Sea carrying large amounts of detritus, mainly detrital cal-
cites and quartz. The abundance of such flooding events and transport of detrital
calcites can explain the sequences of these sediments in the interglacial forma-
tions, e.g. Samra and the early and mid part of the Holocene (10–6 kyear). Haliva
–Cohen et al. (2012) classified the sedimentary facies in the Dead Sea lacustrine
formations (Samra, Lisan, Ze’elim) into two types: the aad facies comprising
sequences of aragonite and silty detritus laminae and the ld facies composed of
laminated detritus. While sediments of the aad facies were deposited mainly dur-
ing glacials when the lake was at high stand conditions and most of the rains were
produced by the east Mediterranean cyclones, the sediments of the ld facies
reflects occasional floods, mainly in the Negev desert that are abundant during
interglacials. The major difference, however, between the aad and ld facies is in
the appearance of aragonite that in turns requires supply of bi-carbonate to the
Ca-chloride brine in the lakes (Stein et al. 1997). The bi-carbonate reflects mas-
sive dissolution of the carbonates surface cover of the northern and central moun-
tain area of Israel. In this relation, I return to the Holocene section at the Dead
Sea. The Ein Gedi core, which recovers the entire Holocene section shows that the
lower the middle parts of the Holocene section (10–4 ka) are composed mainly
the ld facies, while abundant aragonite laminae of the aad facies (here they appear
in triplets with the addition of gypsum laminae) appear in the upper part of the
section covering the past 3,000 years. As mentioned above Waldmann et al. (2007)
explained the appearance of the aragonite by resumption of the activity and con-
tribution of the Ca-chloride brines (similar to the modern saline springs at En
Qedem). Yet, the supply of bi-carbonate is the initial requirement for deposition
of aragonite.
10.5 The Climate – Human Development Connection

in the Levant
The climate-hydrological evolution of the southern and central Levant – the region
between the Red Sea and the Taurus Mt, were accompanied during the Neogene –
Quaternary by the migration of early hominids out of Africa and the development of
the pre-historical and historical cultures. A comprehensive review of this subject is
beyond the scope of this manuscript. Nevertheless, I will outline several main devel-
opments in human culture evolution that are related to the evolution of the water-
bodies and the hydrological conditions in their watershed as described in this
chapter.
308 M. Stein
10.5.1 The Early Prehistoric Cultures
The Erq-el-Ahmer and Ubediya and Gesher B’not Yaakov archeological sites are
located within succession of lacustrine sediments. As mentioned in Sect. 10.2, recent
dating of the EEA formation suggests early age of ~4.5–3.6 Ma (Davis et al. 2011).
10.5.2 The Migration of the Homo-Sapience (the Anatomically

Modern Hominids) Out of Africa
Several lines of evidence indicate on availability of freshwater along the shores of

the currently hyperarid Red Sea, Gulf of Aqaba and the southern Arava Valley dur-
ing past interglacials (Lazar and Stein 2010). The wetter conditions in the Red Sea–
Arava valley is associated with the setting of “wetter” conditions during interglacials
in the Sahel-Sahara regions as described in Sect. 4.5 above.
10.5.3 The Disappearance of the Neanderthal

and the “Out of the Caves Movement”
During the glacial period when Lake Lisan extended over the Dead Sea basin and
Jordan valley (Fig. 10.1), the area was characterized by wet and cold climate con-
ditions that possibly pushed the Neanderthal and Homo-sapience to live in caves
(e.g. the Tabun cave at Mt. Carmel). After the retreat of Lake Lisan and the Sea of
Galilee from its high stand of ~160 m bmsl to ~200 m bmsl at ~24–23 ka BP
(Fig. 10.10d) humans established settlements on the Sea of Galilee shore, e.g. the
Ohalo-II site (Nadel 1995). The age of the Ohalo-II site coincides with the H2
event, which was expressed in the Levant area by expansion of the desert and
enhanced aridity. I speculate that the Ohalo-II “people” were pushed to find a new
source of food for their survival – fish in the Sea of Galilee. The extreme aridities
at the Levant and the lake’s watershed during the Heinrich events had an affect on
the Neanderthal culture that eventually disappeared from the region. I think that the
Neanderthals specified in “cave life” and could not survive the “out of the cave”
development exemplified by the Ohalo-II people.
10.5.4 The Collapse of the Natufian Culture

and the Neolithic Revolution
The Natufian people who lived in the central Levant region during the late glacial
(~16–14 ka BP) when the region recovered from the aridity of the H1 time inter-
val: 17.4–16 ka BP. They, however disappeared during the catastrophic aridity of
~14–13.5 ka (Stein et al. 2010). The emerging PPN cultures saw the recovery of
the hydrological system during the Younger Dryas and the transition to the
Holocene (~12–10 ka BP). The PPN-B people established the first agriculture
settlements in the fertile valley and oasis’s of Jericho, Gilgal and Fazael. Stein
et al. (2010) suggested that the accumulation of the fertile terra rossa soil (the
Fazael Formation) in these valleys combined with the resumption of the activity
of the hydrological system at ~10 ka BP, allowed the “agriculture –Neolithic”
revolution in the Jordan Valley.
10.5.5 The Rise and Fall Off the Bronze Cultures
During the fourth millennium BP the Mediterranean – Levant region saw the
flourishing of the Bronze cultures when numerous cities and settlements were
established across the Mycenaean kingdoms, the Hittite, and the Egyptian
Empires. This prosperity arrived to a sudden termination at ~3,300–3,200 years
cal BP when most of the cities were destroyed and settlements were abandoned.
Several hypotheses were proposed to explain the sudden collapse of the mid-late
Bronze cultures: deteriorating climate conditions, effects of the volcanic erup-
tions and devastating earthquakes. This chapter examines the chronology of
events associated with the mid-Bronze crisis in light of the hydrological–climate
history of the Levant-Nile land that is stored in the sedimentological-geochemical
archives of the Dead Sea and Sahelian lakes. Between ~3,500 and 3,200 year BP
the Dead Sea dropped abruptly by more than 60 m from its mid-Bronze elevation
of ~370 m bmsl, marking catastrophic aridity in the regional watershed (Kushnir
and Stein 2010; Kagan et al. (submitted); Langgut et al. 2014). The lake decline
coincided with abrupt cooling of the North Atlantic, which we surmise led the
shutdown of the regular process of Eastern Mediterranean cyclogenesis as well as
monsoonal rains in the Sahel: the engines of Levant rains and Nile waters. The
catastrophic aridity and the expansion of arid climates across the tropical-subtrop-
ical latitudes disrupted the long–term and multi-decadal antiphase Levant-Sahel
hydrological pattern that possibly allowed the “out of Africa” migration of the
prehistorical hominids and the frequent movements of the historical cultures
along the Red Sea- Rift Jordan Valley corridor.
10.6 The ICDP Dead Sea Drilling Project and Future

Perspectives
The studies of the sedimentary sequences that were deposited at the water-bodies
that filled the Dead Sea basin focused mainly on the marginal terraces where the
Lisan Formation is beautifully exposed and to a limited extent the Samra, Amora
and Ze’elim Formations are exposed as well. Drilling projects at the shores of the
currently retreating Dead Sea recovered the Holocene and segments of post-glacial
310 M. Stein
Fig. 10.14 Pictures from the ICDP Dead Sea drilling project (DSDDP) with DOSECC deep lake
drilling facility. The displayed cores comprise sequences of marls and salt that were deposited dur-
ing the last interglacial
sections (Migowski et al. 2004, 2006; Stein et al. 2010). The information on the
behavior of the lake at time interval of low stands (below 400 m bsl) is stored in the
deepest basin of the Dead Sea and required deep drilling. This was the main moti-
vation behind the Dead Sea Deep Drilling Project (DSDDP) that was performed
under the wings of ICDP. The drilling project took place between November 2010
and March 2011, with participation of scientists from Israel, Germany, USA,
Switzerland, Japan and Norway. Drilling was conducted with the Large Lake
Drilling Facility (Fig. 10.14) of DOSECC (Drilling Observation and Sampling of
Earth’s Continental Crust, Inc.). The project recovered core material reaching ~450
and ~350 m from a deep (~300 m below the lake level) and a shallow site (~3 m
below lake level) respectively, plus additional shallow holes at both sites. The
recovered cores are composed mainly of alternating intervals of marly units and
salts that seem to represent glacial and interglacial cycles spanning an estimated
interval of ~220,000 years (possibly to MIS 7). A pebble interval at a depth of
~235 m below the lake floor, below the deposits of the last ice age, lies atop a thick
sequence of salt (Fig. 10.15), and implies an almost complete dry-out phase of the
Paleo-Dead Sea. Recent, U-Th dating of this interval indicates that the severe dry-
ing occurred during the last interglacial 5e period (~ 130–120 ka BP, Goldstein
Fig. 10.15 A generalized lithology of the DSDDP core showing intervals of salt (blue) and marls
(white sections). At the depth of ~235 m below the lake floor, a pebbly layer was discovered, atop
a thick sequence of salt. This layer indicate the proximity of the shore line implying an significant
dry-down of the Paleo-Dead Sea (during the last interglacial, Goldstein et al. 2013)
et al. 2013). This time of extreme aridity in the east Mediterranean – Levant region
was accompanied by wet intrusions from the south via the Red Sea –Arava Valley
(Waldmann et al. 2010; Lazar and Stein 2010). The next significant salt deposition
event at the Dead Sea was that of the post-glacial BÖlling-Allerod period at ~14–
13 ka BP (Stein et al. 2010), coinciding with the early phase of the African Wet
Period at the Sahara-Sahel. The study of the contemporaneous extreme aridities in
the Levant and the wet episodes in the Sahara-Sahel and they relation to the global
climate patterns: the North Atlantic –Mediterranean “versus” the African monsoon
systems, represents a major research theme that stands in the focus of current and
future Dead Sea research.
The ICDP drill core provides the “Dead Sea research community” with unique
opportunities to investigate in high-resolution both the changing hydrological-
climate conditions and the tectonic history in the Levant region over time periods of
great importance in human evolution and with implications to present and future
environmental changes in this region.
312 M. Stein
Acknowledgments This chapter summarizes several of the many works that were done in the
past two decades on the history of water-bodies in the Dead Sea rift and Jordan Valley. In particu-
lar, it is based on efforts of many colleagues and students: Amotz Agnon, Yuval Bartov, Reuven
Belmaker, Zvi Ben-Avraham, Revital Bookman, Yehouda Enzel, Ittai Gavrieli, Steve Goldstein,
Alexandra Haase-Schramm, Amit Haliva-Cohen, Nissim Hazan, Elisa Kagan, Yehushua Kolodny,
Amitai Katz, Boaz Lazar, Thomas Litt, Malka Machlus, Shmuel Marco, Claudia Migowski, Joerg
Negendank, Frank Neumann, Hagai Ron, Marcus Schwab, Abraham Starinsky, Ofra Stern, Adi
Torfstein, Nicolas Waldmann and Yoseph Yechieli. The study was supported by the Bi-National
US-Israel Scientific Foundation (BSF, grant # 2010.375).
I devote the chapter to memory of my close friend and colleague – the late Prof. Hagai Ron, with
whom I shared early ideas and fieldwork at the Perazim Valley that had a pivotal role in creating
and pushing the extensive study of Dead Sea research during the past two decades.
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paleogeographic implications. Geol Surv Isr Bull 83:54
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Mediterranean. Int J Climatol 24(14):1859–1871
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governing rainfall in the southern Levant. Int J Climatol 26:55–73
Chapter 11
The Story of Saline Water
in the Dead Sea Rift – The Role
of Runoff and Relative Humidity
Abraham Starinsky and Amitai Katz
Abstract Saline waters have been found in the subsurface of the Dead Sea basin
along the area stretching from Lake Kinneret in the north to the Timna area in the
south. The maximum salinity of the waters reaches 340 g L−1, and their chemical
composition is Ca-chloridic, like most subsurface brines in sedimentary basins else-
where. It is now generally accepted that such waters evolved from ancient seawater
via a three-stage mechanism, namely: (1) seawater evaporation in a marine lagoon;
(2) modification of the resulting brine by water-rock interaction; (3) dilution of the
brine by freshwater or mixing with other saline fluids.
The age of the parental seawater from which the salinity of the brines was derived
is Late Miocene to Early Pliocene. All saline waters in the Dead Sea basin display
Na/Cl ratios below that of seawater (0.86), indicating that their evolution should be
tied to formation of rock salt bodies; indeed, such were actually found in the subsur-
face of the two tectonic depressions of the Dead Sea and Lake Kinneret (Sea of
Galilee). It is likely that the ancient lagoon from which the seawater evaporated and
in which the salt deposited was approximately 300 km long and 20 km wide.
The Na/Cl ratios in the brines and in fluid inclusions in halite crystals formed
from these waters cover a wide range below the seawater value (0.86), reaching
values as low as 0.1 eq/eq (All solute ratios in the paper are presented in equivalent
units unless otherwise stated).
The maximum degree of evaporation that an aqueous solution may reach
depends, amongst other things, on the relative humidity. Because evaporation may
proceed only as long as the activity of water in the evaporating solution (aH2O) is
higher than the relative humidity above it, it is possible to estimate the maximum
relative humidity that prevailed in the area during the deposition of the salt from the
Na/Cl ratio in a given brine or in fluid inclusion enclosed in a halite sample.
A. Starinsky (*) • A. Katz

of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra campus, 91904 Jerusalem, Israel
318 A. Starinsky and A. Katz
The Pliocene lagoon waters that, at that stage, had high Mg/Ca ratios, started to
migrate outwards from the basin towards the west, under the local hydraulic head,
through the Judea group limestone layers of upper Cretaceous age which comprise
in that area the margin of the basin. During their passage, the brines interacted with
limestone beds resulting in discordant dolomite bodies. The resulting, brine accu-
mulated at depth in the Northern Negev.
Upon decline of the regional hydraulic head, the waters that infiltrated out to the
west reversed their flow backwards to the basin, now displaying a chemical composi-
tion significantly different than that on their way out. The newly acquired composition
is thus characterized by low Mg/Ca and SO4/Cl ratios, of ~0.5 and ~0.01, respec-
tively, and is defined as R1 water.
At some later time the lagoon was cut off from the sea, and its area was transformed
to a lacustrine environment, allowing for other processes to take place which modi-
fied the composition of the lagoonal brines. As from the lagoon’s cut off from the sea,
the contribution of dissolved marine salts to the basin was substituted by freshwater
solutes carried in by runoff.
The freshwater that started to feed the saline lake(s) was saturated with respect
to CaCO3 minerals (calcite and aragonite), deposited its entire load of dissolved
Ca2+ as CaCO3 and CaSO4 in the lake. Additional Ca2+ to compensate for the excess
SO4 + HCO3 over Ca2+ was borrowed from the saline, Ca-chloridic brine in the lake,
bringing about a marked increase in the Mg/Ca ratio therein. The present paper
presents a model (Katz and Starinsky, Aquat Geochem 15:159–194, 2009) that
describes the relation between the increase in the Mg/Ca ratio of the lake and the
accumulated mass of CaCO3 (calcite or aragonite) that was deposited in it. The
evolving saline waters affected by this process, with Mg/Ca ratios >1, are defined as
group R2 waters.
An additional, significant modification of the brine inflicted by its passage from
a marine lagoon to a lacustrine water body is reflected by the 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratio.
We inspect two cases relevant to this question, the first in the Lake Kinneret area and
the second in the Dead Sea basin.
The R2 lacustrine waters on the eastern side of Lake Kinneret show 87Sr/86Sr
isotope ratios around 0.706, contrasting in this regard with the R1-type waters
on the western side of the lake which are characterized by 87Sr/86Sr isotope
ratios of ~0.708. We propose that the 87Sr/86Sr ratio transition 0.708 → 0.706 is
driven by addition of freshwater with low 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.704–0.707) origi-
nating in the runoff flowing to the lake over the basaltic terrain from the NE
(87Sr/86Sr ~ 0.704).
In the southern, Dead Sea area, the lacustrine R2 waters were fed by runoff with
87
Sr/86Sr ~ 0.708 and, therefore, remained unchanged in this respect.
The Timna water composition is a result of interaction between diluted s ubsurface
Ca chloride brines that originated as group RS1 in the Dead Sea area with basic igne-
ous rocks. The depletion of Mg2+ in the water is due to a reaction of destruction of
Ca- plagioclase and formation of Mg2+ rich mixture of epidote and chlorite. The Sr
isotope signature of ~0.706 was formed by exchange of high 87Sr/86Sr (~0.708)
brines with low 87Sr/86Sr (~0.7045) igneous basic rocks, like olivine norite. The age
11 The Story of Saline Water in the Dead Sea Rift… 319
of the water-rock interaction is estimated to be older than the Rs brine formation,

i.e. <3–4 m.y.
Keywords Dead Sea Transform • Ca chloride brines • Climatic impact • Seawater

evaporation • Water – rock-interaction
11.1 Introduction
Subsurface brines down to a depth of a few kilometers in Earth’s crust, including

sedimentary and basement environments, may reach salinities of more than 300 g/l.
They usually belong to the Ca chloride group, which is defined by the relation
Ca > (SO4 + HCO3). There is a general debate about the origin of such saline water
either from ancient seawater (by evaporation or freezing) or from fresh water by
“internal processes” within basement rock environment (Bucher and Stober 2010).
It was proposed by Starinsky (1974) for subsurface brines in Israel, and by
Carpenter (1978) for similar brines in the Illinois basin, that Ca chloride brines were
formed from evaporated seawater (Table 11.1) with the same major solute chemis-
try of modern seawater. Later on, based on a series of studies conducted by Hardie
(1996) that indicated a secular variation of seawater chemistry, Lowenstein et al.
(2003) suggested that such brines, that are present in most Phanerozoic sedimentary
basins, inherited their chemistries and salinities from evaporated paleoseawaters of
a Ca chloridic composition (CaCl2 seas). For the evolution of brines found in crys-
talline rocks in the northern hemisphere Frape and Fritz (1987) suggested a WRI1
mechanism of fresh water while Herut et al. (1990) and Starinsky and Katz (2003)
suggested a cryogenic marine origin during the Pleistocene glacial period. A cryo-
genic origin of Carboniferous-Permian sea was suggested by Katz et al. (2011) to
saline water in the southern hemisphere in the Kaapvaal Craton (South Africa).
Similarly, Frank et al. (2010) suggested a cryogenic origin to saline water in the
McMurdo bay, Antarctica.
The Dead Sea rift is saturated with saline waters at least in the segment between
Lake Kinneret and southern end of the Dead Sea. The waters appear in two main
modes, either as deep seated brines or as springs. While the first group was found by
drilling anywhere along the rift, the second one is restricted to the tectonic depres-
sions of Kinneret – Beit Shean and the Dead Sea (Fig. 11.1). Hydrological mecha-
nisms responsible for the emergence of the springs were suggested by Goldschmidt
et al. (1967), Mazor and Mero (1969), and Gvirtzman et al. (1997) for the Lake
Kinneret region, and by Matmon (1995) and Shalev and Yechieli (2007) for the
Dead Sea area. The suggested processes are as follows: (1) Flow of meteoric water
in the major regional aquifer; (2) Compaction of the strata due to tectonic move-
ments (still ongoing); (3) Eastward flow of meteoric water which slowly forces deep
Water Rock Interaction.

1
320
Table 11.1 Chemical composition of evaporated seawater in mg/L (Raab 1996). TDS in g/L
DE Sample Na K Mg Ca Sr Cl Br SO4 TDS Density
1.0 MOW 11,050 416 1,326 422 8.5 19,870 68 2,784 35.95 1.023
1.1 W64 12,300 455 1,447 462 9.0 22,130 75 3,025 39.90 1.027
2.8 R1 30,000 1,062 3,606 1,150 21.0 53,580 190 7,600 97.21 1.069
2.8 Y1 29,690 1,001 3,623 1,112 21.0 53,550 190 7,520 96.71 1.069
4.7 R2 49,000 1,800 6,224 1,300 31.0 90,750 310 11,250 160.7 1.113
4.9 Y2 52,000 1,830 6,236 1,263 32.0 94,290 320 10,750 166.7 1.116
6.1 Y3 65,630 2,125 7,800 1,006 38.0 118,100 395 12,970 208.0 1.143
6.2 R3 64,360 2,250 8,169 1,000 38.0 119,000 400 13,530 208.7 1.143
7.9 R4 82,500 3,100 10,220 705 40.0 149,100 495 15,040 261.2 1.176
8.1 Y4 84,670 3,000 10,480 660 40.0 153,500 510 15,300 268.2 1.180
10.3 R5 101,600 4,219 13,570 413 46.0 185,800 630 18,900 325.1 1.217
11.5 R6 96,870 4,250 15,370 400 50.0 181,600 710 21,100 320.3 1.220
12.2 Y5 100,000 4,250 15,410 400 50.5 186,800 750 21,350 329.0 1.219
13.0 Y6 95,310 4,875 17,400 388 53.5 184,100 800 23,900 326.8 1.222
13.0 R7 95,310 4,750 16,780 400 51.5 185,400 800 23,300 326.8 1.221
13.8 R8 95,310 4,875 17,020 387 52.0 186,200 850 23,900 328.6 1.221
14.0 Y7 95,310 5,250 18,670 350 49.0 186,300 860 25,600 332.4 1.223
14.1 Y8 92,480 5,313 19,130 362 47.5 184,400 870 26,000 328.6 1.224
14.9 R9 93,930 5,367 18,480 333 42.8 188,600 917 24,410 332.1 1.224
A. Starinsky and A. Katz
16.6 R10 91,690 5,877 20,670 234 29.0 188,100 1,023 26,300 333.9 1.226
16.9 Y9 90,840 5,812 21,100 327 28.9 188,400 1,040 26,050 333.6 1.225
18.1 Y10 88,100 6,503 22,920 271 28.5 188,000 1,115 30,390 337.3 1.229
18.1 R11 88,170 6,345 22,250 284 28.7 186,200 1,117 30,020 334.4 1.229
19.8 R12 84,140 7,247 26,510 259 25.2 185,800 1,216 34,530 339.7 1.231
20.5 Y11 86,060 7,226 25,320 259 26.9 187,200 1,261 32,150 339.5 1.232
23.0 R13 79,890 8,360 28,840 238 24.4 186,800 1,417 35,910 341.5 1.234
23.2 Y12 80,220 8,447 29,100 227 23.4 187,400 1,425 37,370 344.2 1.237
25.8 R14 76,800 9,533 33,600 210 20.4 187,700 1,579 44,200 353.7 1.243
27.5 Y13 74,780 9,888 34,140 219 20.2 188,400 1,681 48,510 357.6 1.244
32.2 Y14 64,010 11,920 40,930 184 17.4 187,200 1,978 56,500 362.8 1.254
35.2 R15 60,190 12,820 43,740 167 24.0 187,500 2,169 58,110 364.7 1.258
41.3 R16 50,000 15,030 52,320 140 16.1 187,700 2,534 72,420 380.2 1.270
45.0 Y15 41,190 16,770 59,000 119 15.8 190,800 2,766 79,440 390.1 1.282
52.8 Y16 30,750 19,600 66,790 84 12.4 194,100 3,254 88,360 403.0 1.298
55.1 R17* 27,430 20,800 68,330 74 12.1 197,200 3,432 82,090 399.3 1.303
75.7 Y17* 15,980 27,800 81,630 46 9.9 232,300 4,634 67,460 429.8 1.318
11 The Story of Saline Water in the Dead Sea Rift…
138.0 R18* 6,555 8,918 102,400 69 5.9 273,100 8,333 50,600 449.3 1.326
DE Degree of evaporation – Br/Brsw (molal)
MOW Mean Ocean Water (Riley and Chester 1965)
W64 Mediterranean sea water sample
*Br and DE corrected
321
Fig. 11.1 Location map. The

sites of saline waters along
the Dead Sea transform fault
include the tectonic
depressions of Lake Kinneret
(Sea of Galilee) and Dead
Sea basin, as well as the
Timna area (Modified after
Ben Avraham et al. 2008)
brines towards the Dead Sea valley; (4) Forcing of Dead Sea deep brines to the
surface by the pressure of the Dead Sea water body.
The area studied is a part of the active major fracture zone of the Dead Sea
transform (DST), which extends along a distance of about 1,000 km from the north-
ern Red Sea to the Taurus Mountains (Garfunkel 1997). The present study is focused
on the southern part of the DST from Elat (Aqaba) to the north of Lake Kinneret
(Figs. 11.1 and 11.2).
The sedimentary sequence of the study area is divided according to an earlier
study in the Dead Sea basin fill by Zak and Freund (1981). Their division can be
probably extended both northward and southward. Three main units are recognized:
(a) A fluviatile-lacustrine sequence (Hatzeva Fm. in the south and Hordos Fm. in the
north) consisting of conglomerates, sandstones and carbonates. (b) An evaporitic –
lacustrine sequence composed mainly of rocksalt, less clastics, in the south
(Fig. 11.2), and a unit of interlayered rocksalt, clastics and igneous rocks in the north.
According to Horowitz (1987) salt deposition began at Upper Miocene – Lower
Pliocene time. (c) A lacustrine sequence with fine clastics and some evaporites.
Major depressions that are interpreted as pull apart basins and are characterized
by distinct structures and histories developed along this segment. The two major
basins are the Dead Sea and the Kinneret – Beit Shean.
Fig. 11.2 A map showing the distribution of subsurface brines (Rs1 and Rs2), deep boreholes,
saline springs, epigenetic dolomite body (DB) and rock salt bodies in the Dead Sea basin. Standard
universal coordinates are plotted along the top x axis and right ordinate. The abscissa and left hand
ordinate represent the local coordinate system (From Katz and Starinsky 2009)
The Dead Sea basin extends from the center of the Arava valley to Jericho. It is
about 150 km long and 15–17 km wide. A fill of 10 km thickness was discovered
through geophysical exploration. The northern part of the basin consists of the water
body of the Dead Sea, which is the lowest continental point on Earth (420 m below
sea level). The Kinneret Bet – Shean basin includes in its northern part Lake
Fig. 11.3 Conceptual S-N cross section along the Sedom lagoon. Oblique, double-headed arrows
denote the subsurface outward and backward migration areas of the brines
Kinneret, which extends along a distance of about 20 km, a maximum width of

12 km and is about 40 m deep, with a water level at about 200 m bsl.
At the time of deposition of the evaporites the Dead Sea rift was divided to
several tectonic units. It appears that the salt was deposited in deep topographic
depressions (Fig. 11.3). The thickness of rocksalt units varies significantly, being
around 2 km in Mt. Sedom, 3–4 km in the Lisan diapir (Bender 1974) and over
one km, in the north, close to Lake Kinneret (Zemah-1 borehole). The existence
and emplacement of the deep tectonic basins and the evaporitic lithology along
the DST play a most significant role in understanding the evolution, time of for-
mation, appearance and migration of the brines, whether at depth or in spring
discharge.
11.2 The Chemical Composition of the Brines
The geochemistry of saline waters in the Dead Sea rift was studied by many
researchers. The most cited ones are Bentor (1961), Goldschmidt et al. (1967),
Lerman (1967), Lerman and Shatkay (1968), Mazor et al. (1969), Mazor and Mero
(1969), Bentor (1969), Starinsky (1974), Zak (1997) Kolodny et al. (1999), Gavrieli
and Stein (2006), and Katz and Starinsky (2009).
The saline Dead Sea rift waters can be divided into two, genetically distinct,
groups, R1 (Mg/Ca < 1) and R2 (Mg/Ca > 1), which were further divided into the
following, site-related subgroups (Starinsky 1974):
Group R1: Characterized by Mg/Ca ratios ≤1
• The Northern Negev (group Ro), in deep oil boreholes
• Western and northern sides of Lake Kinneret, usually in shallow boreholes (Rn1)
• West and south of the Dead sea in deep oil boreholes (Rs1)
• Timna area, with almost complete removal of Mg
Group R2: Characterized by Mg/Ca ratios ≥1

• Liquid inclusions in the Sedom Salts (Rs2)
• Dead Sea, in springs and adjacent boreholes (Rs2)
• On the eastern side of Lake Kinneret (Rn2)
11.2.1 Lake Kinneret
Freshwater Lake Kinneret is surrounded by a thermal saline water body with d ifferent
salinities ranging up to 30 g L−1. The source of the saline water was attributed by
Goldschmidt et al. (1967), Starinsky (1974), Bergelson et al. (1999) and Gvirtzman
et al. (1997) to the marine-evaporitic Sedom lagoon. An alternative interpretation
was given by Mazor and Mero (1969) who explained the salinity of the waters by
intrusion of Neogene seawater. The chemical composition and ionic ratios of the
waters under regard is given in Tables 11.2a and 11.2b. The variation of salinity with
depth is shown in the Kinneret 10b well (Fig. 11.4) and in the Rosh Pina borehole
(Table 11.2a). The saline waters in the area are divided into an eastern and a western
group, both of which are similar in their maximum salinity, major ion ratios such as
K/Cl, Na/Cl and Sr/Ca, but differ in their Mg/Ca and 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios. The
eastern (Rne) group waters are characterized by Mg/Ca > 1 ratios and 87Sr/86Sr ~ 0.706
and are designated as Rn2 or simply R2 waters. The western group shows Mg/Ca < 1
and 87Sr/86Sr ~ 0.708 ratios and are designated as Rn1 or just R1 waters.
A clear correlation exists between location and the chemical composition of the
saline water (Mazor and Mero 1969). Each group has typical ionic ratios which have
been almost constant during tens of years of measurements. These characteristic values
in the main groups (Table 11.2b) were interpreted by Kolodny et al. (1999) as reflecting
isolated brine pockets. Very saline waters (up to 200 gr L−1) were reported from the
deep Rosh Pina-1 borehole at a depth of ~3,800 m (Table 11.2a). The different ionic
ratios between the deep and shallower waters in Rosh Pina rule out dilution as an expla-
nation. Moreover, it is unclear whether the two waters have the same age.
Hence, it seems that the “shallow” saline water in the Kinneret area represents a
diluted subsurface brine body which is buried at depth. The highest temperature
(61 °C) was measured in the Tiberias hot springs. Starinsky et al. (1979) attributed
the origin of thermal waters in the area to a normal thermal gradient. In such a case
it seems that the Hammei Tiberias hot waters emerge from a depth of about 2 km.
Very similar water in composition was found in Rosh Pina-1 borehole (Tables 11.2a
and 11.2b) at a depth of around 2,500 m.
11.2.2 Dead Sea
Saline waters in the Dead Sea area appear as springs (Fig. 11.5) or were found at depth.
Rs1 waters, which are characterized by Mg/Ca < 1 ratios occur only west and
south of the Dead Sea basin (Fig. 11.2), and are known only from the deep
326
Table 11.2a Chemical composition in selected saline samples from the Lake Kinneret area. Composition in mg/L
Group Sample Source Depth (m) Na K Mg Ca Sr Cl Br SO4 HCO3 TDS
East TR268 Bet Zayda RNE 78–96 36,61 41.0 839.0 725.0 9.50 9,546 36 198 15,056
East t18 Bet Zayda RNE 78–96 3,621 35.6 861.2 734.8 10.4 9,690 123 33 179 15,288
East 275 Ein Gofra RNE 1,466 86.3 254.5 258.4 12.4 3,088 218 5,384
East 1064 RNE 6,922 380 1,576 814.0 16,570 216 395 172 27,045
East 1066 RNE 8,397 384 1,915 1,112 20,030 253 864 122 33,077
East 1071 RNE 9,093 296 2,258 1,285 23,050 4 186 36,172
East 1069 RNE 6,483 337 1,822 1,052 16,680 196 782 219 27,571
East 1075 RNE 7,127 195 1,734 944 17,540 176 5 469 28,190
East CH5 RNE 6,890 332 764 3,446 18,510 237 765 146 31,090
East CH12 RNE 7,129 433 1,196 1,933 17,730 741 43 29,205
East 4855 Ha’On-Chof RNE 2,689 371 544 287 22.1 5,800 61 759 10,533
East 4856 Ha’On-Yam RNE 4,073 178 896 587 53.4 9,883 114 244 16,028
Tiberias 140 Tiberias H. S. main RNW 7,096 335 651 3,498 62.2 18,190 849 149 30,829
Tiberias TR255 Tiberias H. S. roman RNW 7,154 356 692 3,592 69.3 18,630 245 809 31,547
Tiberias TR202 Tiberias H. S. roman RNW 7,029 348 675 3,524 67.7 18,480 247 833 31,204
Tabgha 271 Sartan Iver RNW 1,420 52.3 144 509 11.9 3,075 260 5,472
Tabgha TR134 Sartan Iver RNW 1,293 51.0 134 413 10.9 2,765 233 342 5,242
Fuliya Fuliya 6 RNW 7,718 305 844 1,912 16,260 115 2,140 224 29,518
Fuliya 274 Fuliya new RNW 672 22.6 92 228 2.9 1,323 172 2,511
Fuliya TR271 Kinneret 10 well RNW 600–882 8,364 293 748 2,081 38.4 17,410 126 1,940 226 31,230
Barbutim 1,020/3 RNW 1,314 55.0 156 523 3,070 30 235 341 5,724
D 295 Rosh Pina – 1 RNW 2,486–586 8,000 359 725 4,804 22,790 12 6 36,696
D 23 Rosh Pina – 1 RNW 3,845–64 33,400 1,160 2,920 27,000 105,200 1,740 700 171 172,291
Table 11.2b Ion ratios in the main group of the Kinneret area (eq/eq)
Group Na/Cl Mg/Cl K/Cl 100*Br/Cl
NE of Kinneret 0.59 0.26 0.0039
Eastern shore 0.60–0.64 0.26–0.33 0.017–0.018 0.52–0.58
Tiberias 0.54–0.64 0.17–0.23 0.017–0.018 0.48–0.61
Tiberias hot springs 0.57–0.61 0.10–0.12 0.017–0.020 0.53–0.57
Tabgha 0.69–0.73 0.11–0.15 0.016–0.017 0.52–0.58
Barbutim 0.66–0.68 0.13–0.15 0.015–0.017 0.34–0.37
Fuliya 0.73–0.78 0.12–0.14 0.015–0.016 0.25–0.29
Fig. 11.4 W-E Cross section through the Fuliya spring area NW of Lake Kinneret, and the salinity
profile in the Kinneret 10b borehole (From Moise et al. 2000)
subsurface (Tables 11.3a and 11.3b). The waters were found in different s tratigraphic
units, including Dead Sea graben fill (Arava-1, Sedom-1 and Sedom-2), Ramon
group (Triassic), and Negev group (Paleozoic, in the Heimar-1 and Lot-1 bore
holes). No specific linkage was found between the chemical composition of the
saline waters and their stratigraphic position. The maximum salinity achieved is
about 320 g L−1. The Na/Cl, K/Cl, Br/Cl, and Mg/Ca ratios in the brines are
Fig. 11.5 W-E cross section showing the relation between subsurface brine, saline springs and the
Dead Sea (From Katz and Starinsky 2009)
displayed in Figs. 11.6, 11.7 and 11.8, where the Na/Cl ratio in the Dead Sea brines
is lower than in waters of group Rn in the Lake Kinneret area. Mg/Ca ratios in the
Rs1 waters are similar to the corresponding ratio in the waters on the western side of
this lake.
Group Rs2 waters show Mg/Ca > 1 ratios and includes the modern Dead Sea brine
as well as the saline spring waters and shallow bore hole brines along the western
shores of the Dead Sea. The same waters were also revealed in one deep bore hole
(En Gedi-2) at a depth of about 1,600 m, within a Senonian rock formation
(Table 11.3).
In their K/Cl, Br/Cl and Na/Cl ratios the Rs2 waters are similar to Rs1 waters.
The Rs2 group includes also the Temile springs in Mt. Sedom which differ from
other waters in the same group by their K-rich composition and by a different
Na-Cl-Br relationship. The 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in both groups are similar,
being around 0.708.
11.2.3 Timna
Timna saline waters were studied previously by Kanfi (1972), Starinsky (1974) and
by Beyth et al. (1981). The waters were found during copper exploitation works in
the Timna area in a series of shallow boreholes and tunnels.
The saline waters have a salinity (TDS) of up to 16 g L−1 and were divided into
four groups according to their chemical – geographic relations (Table 11.4).
Table 11.3a Chemical composition of selected brines from the Dead Sea area (in mg/L)
Group Source Sample Depth (m)/Years Na K Mg Ca Sr Cl Br SO4 HCO3 TDS
Rs1 Amiaz − 1 D 527 3737–3793 13,670 8,190 17,800 113,400 1,200 281,200 435,460
Arava − 1 BT 84 1935–45 50,480 1,030 12,040 50,640 1,205 202,200 3,670 122 61 321,450
Heimar – 1 BT 87 1459–73 9,960 1,220 242 24,010 56,730 1,035 655 93,852
Heimar – 1 BT 88 1740–2050 26,920 1,250 4,107 39,780 113,450 1,230 186,740
Heimar – 1 BT 89 2079–94 24,000 1,600 3,630 43,010 137,800 2,750 1,280 214,070
Lot – 1 FG 25 1269–79 15,120 1,680 13,960 34,680 131,000 3,040 1,000 61 200,540
Lot – 1 FG 26 1684–94 9,896 800 9,196 42,930 119,100 2,465 816 24 185,230
Massada – 1 D 750 2388–2404 33,800 1,000 5,034 44,340 144,400 2,760 352 231,690
Massada – 1 D 849 2535–2541 35,000 1,100 4,888 46,700 153,800 2,780 247 244,520
Sedom – 1 D 35 Artesian 20,160 28,580 19,990 83,190 269,960 3,120 90 425,090
Sedom – 2 D 59 Artesian 33,200 999 8,510 17,330 106,600 1,790 905 121 169,460
Zuk Tamrur 3 D 3325 1995 35,570 331 5,003 20,410 937 112,200 2,610 133 177,190
Rs2 Dead Sea D 411 1975 39,250 7,050 39,200 16,000 295 207,800 261 309,860
Dead Sea D 443 1976 37,800 7,530 43,800 17,500 309 221,000 5,100 440 265 333,740
Dead Sea D 442 1976 39,500 7,590 42,600 16,500 241 218,500 4,900 510 265 330,610
Dead Sea D 791 1983 38,890 7,500 43,690 16,250 338 223,500 330,170
Dead Sea D 803 1983 39,050 8,180 44,000 16,500 330 224,400 332,460
Dead Sea D 1369 1992 29,910 6,220 37,040 15,020 285 200,600 2,080 273 291,430
Dead Sea D 3164 1994 39,710 9,060 52,420 19,430 374 226,200 1,320 264 348,780
Dead Sea 1997 35,880 7,780 47,200 17,850 225,000 5,600 494 249 340,050
Dead Sea D 1901 2003 35,600 7,410 43,800 16,700 314 219,700 280 200 324,000
Dead Sea 2004 36,100 8,400 50,200 19,400 360 235,000 349,460
Dead Sea 2005 33,000 7,650 45,500 18,000 330 225,000 5,500 2,000 336,980
329
330
Table 11.3b Average concentrations and standard deviations of RS2 brines (mg/L)
Source n Date Depth (m) Na K Mg Ca Sr Cl Br SO4 HCO3
En Gedi 2 2 1957 1928–71 Average 52,438 4,460 21,726 15897.5 323 176,500 412 283
En Gedi 3 10 1993–96 33 Average 24,602 2,400 12,379 8,468 190 90,687 1,750 1,278 154
stdv. 1,051 187 623 437 62 2,673 155 34
En Kedem N 11 1991–96 Spring Average 26,358 4,082 21,011 11,826 198 125,168 2,840 731 91
stdv. 450 391 734 450 37 3,814 40 215 25
En Kedem S 10 1991–96 Spring Average 25,757 4,005 20,619 11,434 209 123,610 2,820 794 83
stdv. 1,423 411 1,469 707 11 6,788 66 21
En Shalem 2 1997 Spring Average 24,895 3,875 20,575 11,500 119,195 2,465 968 70
Enot Zeruya 11 1992–94 Spring Average 24,951 2,566 13,671 9,006 170 94,334 2,030 134
stdv. 1,208 329 776 633 9 5,297 1,471 24
Hamei Zohar 3 2 1973; 92 43; 556 Average 11,504 1,228 7,243 4,273 76 47,100 1,078 730 154
Mt. Sedom 4 Springs Average 22,419 15,792 42,576 40,427 250,736 3,024 95 127
Fig. 11.6 The Na/Cl ratio (in equivalent units) in the water groups in the Dead Sea rift valley. All
waters display ratios below that of modern seawater, indicating halite precipitation during their
evolution. The Ro waters show higher Na/Cl ratios, attributed to lesser evaporation than do the Rs1
brines. Waters sampled in the Dead Sea region are of lower ratios than those collected in the Lake
Kinneret area. Na/Cl ratios in fluid inclusions in Sedom halite fall within the Rs1 Na/Cl ratio range.
The northern Negev waters show similar ratios to those in the Kinneret area
Fig. 11.7 The linkage between Na/Cl-K/Cl and Na/Cl-Mg/Ca ratios in saline waters in the north-
ern Negev (Ro group) and in the Dead Sea area (Rs1 and Rs2 groups)
They were found in two sites, 3 km apart:

1. Pit N in the open mine east of Mt. Timna at 25–45 m msl (Fig. 11.9) – groups T1,
T2, T2a.
2. Mining tunnels in Mt. Hakhlil at 20–50 m bmsl (below mean sea level).
It is possible that these waters fill the entire area.
Fig. 11.8 Na/Cl-Br/Cl relationships in the Dead Sea rift waters and in Timna. (a) Dead Sea and
Kinneret basins: most data points deviate upwards from the seawater evaporation path. Green
triangles: Kinneret basin; Red circles: Dead Sea basin. (b) Timna area: A few data points fall close
to the seawater evaporation path but most are located below it, which is attributed to albitization of
silicate minerals
The Timna region is comprised of a Precambrian, magmatic-metamorphic core

surrounded by sedimentary rocks of Paleozoic age. The magmatic rock complex is
made up by a few intrusions of granite, monzodiorite and cumulates of olivine norite.
Cambrian sandstones, shale and clastics of the Yam Suf Group, which includes the
Amude Shlomo, Timna, Shkhoret and Netafim Formations, make up the sedimentary
rock column. The Timna Fm. represents a middle Cambrian marine episode.
The magmatic rocks display mineral replacement phenomena, where the olivine
norite rocks are the most affected, as reflected by the following three reactions:
1. Olivine → serpentine
2. Amphibole/pyroxene → chlorite
3. Plagioclase → epidote and chlorite.
10CaAl 2 Si 2 O8 + 4Mg +2 + 10H 2 O → 4Ca +2 + 6H + + Mg 4 Al 2 O10 ( OH )8 + 3Ca 2 Al6 Si 6 O 22 ( OH )2

(11.1)
The high concentrations of chlorite and epidote impart a greenish coloration to
the replaced olivine norite rocks, explaining their local geological field designa-
tion as “lawn gabbro”. On the basis of δ18O analyses Beyth et al. (1997) proposed
that the observed replacements were brought about by WR interaction of the gab-
bro rocks with a marine brine of Neogene age some 13–15 Ma. The maximum
salinity of the Timna waters reaches 16 g L−1. The waters are Ca-chloridic, almost
completely deprived of Mg2+. Each of the groups is characterized by fairly
Table 11.4 Chemical composition of selected samples from Timna area (mg/L)
Source Group Sample (D) Na K Mg Ca Sr Cl Br SO4 HCO3 TDS
Open mine (N) T1 682 2,350 18.0 24.0 2,770 65.0 8,260 85.0 712 12 14,296
T1 735 2,674 27.0 13.8 3,340 67.0 9,919 95.9 815 16,952
T1 767 2,479 25.4 11.8 3,143 60.7 9,323 91.6 763 15,898
T1 768 2,434 25.0 12.0 3,078 60.3 9,379 91.3 763 15,843
T1 772 2,263 27.4 38.2 2,830 57.4 9,127 84.0 824 15,251
T2 683 1,525 14.0 24.0 1,530 33.0 4,540 34.0 1,160 12 8,872
T2 684 1,660 14.0 12.0 1,500 33.0 4,880 34.0 1,260 15 9,408
T2 687 1,137 16.0 102.7 915 22.8 2,781 21.1 1,420 6,416
T2 736 1,670 18.4 20.1 1,661 31.4 4,851 32.8 1,190 9,475
T2 773 1,519 16.1 14.9 1,489 29.9 4,320 32.6 1,210 8,632
T2 774 1,533 16.1 14.8 1,502 29.9 4,338 32.4 1,210 8,676
T2a 740 1,886 28.0 97.0 2,060 53.0 5,900 57.0 830 37 10,948
T2a 740 1,877 29.2 112.9 2,244 47.6 6,518 62.3 920 11,811
T2a 769 1,729 28.6 93.3 2,078 44.8 6,063 58.9 924 11,020
T2a 775 1,811 20.1 29.3 2,029 40.8 6,084 60.9 799 10,874
Underground mine T3 686 1,816 16.1 15.2 1,433 30.9 4,863 44.1 905 9,123
T3 741 1,678 14.8 9.5 1,342 30.0 4,455 41.4 835 8,406
T3 742 1,316 13.0 6.0 960 25.0 3,323 33.0 690 24 6,390
333
Fig. 11.9 E-W cross section through open pit N in Timna, from which saline waters were sampled.
The three water groups T1, T2, and T2a are indicated near their corresponding discharge points
(From Beyth et al. 1981)
constant, yet distinct K/Cl, Na/Cl, and SO4/Cl ratios, and range in temperature
between 16 and 32 °C.
The Sr isotope ratio of the Timna waters (<0.706) is lower than that of the saline
waters in the Dead Sea region (~0.708).
In a comprehensive study, to be published soon, Spiro et al. evaluated the source
of the Timna waters and proposed the mechanisms responsible for their chemical
composition.
11.2.4 Saline Waters in the Northern Negev (Ro)
Saline waters in the Northern Negev were found in six deep bore holes (Boker-1,
Kurnub-1, Makhtesh Katan-2, Keren-1, Sherif-1 and Zavoa-1). The chemical
composition of these waters shows a marked similarity (Tables 11.5a and 11.5b)
and their salinity varies between106-170 g L−1 (TDS). The waters were sampled
from the deeper part of the geological section, of Paleozoic-Jurassic age. Some
reside in limestone (Sherif-1 and Zavoa-1) while others were sampled from sand-
stone layers (Kurnub-1, Makhtesh Katan-2, Keren-1). The composition of the
waters seems to be unrelated to the lithology of their host aquifers. Figure 11.10
details the locations of these Ro waters and their Na/Cl-Br/Cl relationships. The
latter fall along the seawater evaporation line, supporting their proposed ancient
seawater origin. Their relation to the saline waters in the Dead Sea basin is dis-
cussed later in this paper.
Table 11.5a Chemical composition of subsurface brines from the Northern Negev (RO) in mg/L
Source Sample Depth (m) Na K Mg Ca Sr Cl Br SO4 HCO3 TDS
Boqer – 1 D 517 2,730–46 31,080 314 1,660 15,870 427 81,060 1,170 131,581
Kurnub – 1 D 326 2,334–44 31,950 565 1,062 13,950 331 77,660 753 126,268
Kurnub – 1 BT 81 2,501–6 30,000 487 846 16,008 75,720 577 123,638
Makhtesh Qatan – 2 FG 1 2,101–25 25,950 901 2,550 14,800 73,580 725 895 76 119,477
Makhtesh Qatan – 2 FG 2 2,275–82 29,600 581 2,190 22,300 89,190 924 531 39 145,355
Qeren – 1 BT 73 2,708–19 41,260 1,010 1,585 15,407 284 95,760 733 497 158 156,694
Qeren – 1 BT 74 2,919–35 42,680 1,080 2,094 15,570 99,630 816 505 146 162,521
Sherif −1 D 15 2,843–82 35,000 300 2,128 17,900 684 94,150 782 644 110 151,698
Zavoa – 1 D 175 2,680–91 36,800 408 1,960 16,500 585 92,100 730 474 14 149,571
335
Table 11.5b Average ionic ratios of subsurface brines from the Northern Negev (RO) (n = 6, in eq/eq)
Na/Cl K/Cl Br/Cl SO4/Cl Mg/Ca Sr/Ca
Average 0.62 0.0059 0.0036 0.0050 0.18 0.0130
Stdev 0.06 0.0020 0.0004 0.0014 0.01 0.0046
Fig. 11.10 Location and Na/Cl-Br/Cl relationships of saline waters in deep bore holes in the
northern Negev. (a) Na/Cl-Br/Cl relationship. (b) Location map of the waters
11.3 T
he Transformation of Ancient Seawater
to Dead Sea Rift Brines
Although the brines were derived from ancient seawater their major chemical com-
position is completely different from modern seawater. They are characterized by:
1 . Being Ca chloride brines (Fig. 11.11)
2. A wide range of salinities, up to 340 gr/l
3. A wide range of ratios of Na, SO4, K and Mg to Cl
4. High ratios of Ca, Sr, and Br to Cl
5. A wide range of 87Sr/86Sr, from 0.7056 to 0.7082 (Table 11.6)
Based on rocksalt diapirs along the Dead Sea transform it is a consensus that the
saline waters originated from ancient seawater of probably Pliocene age (Zak 1967;
Starinsky 1974; Horowitz 1987).
The chemical transformation of lagoonar seawater into Dead Sea rift subsurface
brines took place through three main stages:
Fig. 11.11 The Ca/(HCO3 + SO4) ratio (in equivalent units) in the various water groups in the
Dead Sea rift valley and in seawater. The freshwaters and seawater ratios are distinctly lower than
those of the saline, Ca-chloridic waters
1 . Evaporation of seawater in a lagoon, connected to the Mediterranean Sea.

2. Water-rock interaction of the evaporated seawater during infiltration and migra-
tion into the surrounding rocks.
3. Mixing either in the lagoon or at depth with waters of various salinities and
compositions.
Evaporation: Evaporation may take place via two different paths- equilibrium
or fractional. In the first case the formed minerals stay in contact with the evapo-
rated solution all along the process and a reaction between the solids and the liquid
continues uninterruptedly. Minerals may redissolve and new ones form instead. In
the second process the precipitating minerals are removed from the solution imme-
diately after their formation. Once a mineral is formed it stays unaltered in the sys-
tem until the end of the process.
Several experiments were carried out in the laboratory to follow the chemical
evolution of seawater induced by evaporation (e.g. Braitsch 1971) while others,
beginning with those of Harvie et al. (1980, 1982, 1984) use Pitzer’s model calcula-
tions to predict the path of evaporation of seawater-like systems.
In the present study we use the data of Raab (1996) who carried out a series of
evaporation experiments by fractional crystallization of Mediterranean seawater at
a temperature of 25 °C. The chemical composition of the changing seawater at the
different degrees of evaporation (DE) tested (up to 138) is shown in Table 11.1.
The first mineral precipitates very early as aragonite (CaCO3), followed by
gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O) at a degree of evaporation of 3. At a degree of 10, halite
(NaCl) starts to crystallize. Thereafter, the new minerals to form consist of a
K-Mg-SO4 composition, starting to crystallize at various degrees of evaporation that
depend on the system’s operational mode, fractional or at equilibrium. The order of
precipitation during seawater evaporation is given in Fig. 11.12 and the behavior of
most used ionic ratios is displayed in Fig. 11.13 (Raab 1996).
Table 11.6 Sr/86Sr ratios in selected water samples from the Dead Sea rift
87
Sample Sampling
Region no. Locality date Sr/86Sr
87
Sea of Galilee Rf ER 147 En Jweiza sp. 0.70758

Rf ER 146 En Dankale sp. 0.70441
Rf ER 145 En Iron sp. 0.70501
Rf ER 165 N. Fara sp. 0.70628
Rf D 604 Jordan river – Arik 1973 0.70693
Bridge
RNE D 654 Bet Habek (well) 0.70566
RNE TR 268 Bet Zayda 1991 0.70574
RNW D 779 Hammam el Malih sp. 1978 0.70771
RNW D 2601 Hammei Tiberias sp. 1990 0.70777
RNW D 2600 Hammei Tiberias sp. 1990 0.70775; 0.70774
RNW TR 271 Kinneret 10 b (well) 1991 0.70787
RNW D 2603 Kinneret 2 (well) 1990 0.70777
RNW TR 183 Sartan Iver sp. 1991 0.70772
RNW D 3092 Sartan Iver sp. 1990 0.70772
Dead Sea ER 59 Jordan river – South 0.70802
RS1 D 527 Amiaz 1 (well) 1972 0.70805
RS1 D 173 Amiaz 1 (well) 1960 0.70791; 0.70804
RS1 NT 43 En Feshcha sp. 0.70803
RS1 NT 47 En Feshcha sp. 0.70799
RS1 En Hogla sp. 0.70797
RS1 D 750 Massada (well) 1976 0.70832
RS1 D 3562 Zerah 1 (well) 2004 0.70797
RS2 NT 34 Dead Sea water 1955 0.70802
RS2 TR 152 En Ashlag sp. 1990 0.70810
RS2 TR 153 En Ashlag sp. 1990 0.70810
RS2 TR 154 En Ashlag sp. 1990 0.70810
RS2 D 1280 En Gedi 3 (well) 1988 0.70793
RS2 D 3166 En Gedi-3 north (well) 1990 0.70795
RS2 D 1283 En Kedem sp. 1988 0.70791
RS2 D 1575 En Zruya sp. 1989 0.70796; 0.70796
RS2 D 1905 Hammei Zohar 1989 0.70794
Timna T1 D 682 open mine pit (N) 1981 0.70598
T1 D 735 open mine pit (N) 1981 0.70599
T1 D 767 open mine pit (N) 0.70603
T2 D 736 open mine pit (N) 1981 0.70583
T2a D 775 open mine pit (N) 0.70591
T3 D 686 underground mine 1981 0.70589
Fig. 11.12 The minerals that form during fractional evaporation of seawater at given degrees of
evaporation: KAI kainite, Kie kieserite, Hex hexahydrite, CAR carnallite, BIS Bischofite (After
Raab 1996)
Fig. 11.13 Evolution of the Na/Cl and Mg/Cl ratios during the evaporation of seawater: (a) the
Na/Cl ratio remains constant until DE ~ 10 where halite starts to crystallize. (b) The Mg/Ca ratio
increases upon evaporation due to crystallization of gypsum and aragonite
Fig. 11.14 Geological evidence for WRI between the Sedom lagoon brine and Upper Cretaceous
(Turonian-Senonian) carbonate rocks west of the Dead Sea basin. (a) W-E cross section showing
the linkage between the Sedom Lagoon and the geological rock sequence. Insert: detailed view of
the discordant dolomite bodies products (After Raz 1983). (b) The spatial relationship between a
discordant, epigenetic dolomite body that formed during the existence of the Sedom lagoon and
the affected rocks of Turonian-Senonian age (After Stein et al. 2002)
Dolomitization: Because in seawater Ca2+ < SO42+, only a small fraction of the

SO42− ions dissolved therein can be tied into gypsum during evaporation in a marine
evaporitic lagoon. Therefore, the concentration of SO42− uninterruptedly increases
until the degree of evaporation reaches at least 50–60, in spite of gypsum precipita-
tion (Raab 1996). At the same time, though, the concentration of Ca2+ decreases
(Table 11.1), and the Mg/Ca ratio increases from about 5 (seawater value) to a few
hundreds or a few thousands at high degrees of evaporation (Fig. 11.13). Brines that
follow such a trail and get in touch with CaCO3 minerals, within the lagoon or in the
surrounding rocks, initiate dolomitization of these minerals, via the following
reaction:
2CaCO3 + Mg 2 + → CaMg ( CO3 )2 + Ca 2 + (11.2)

While Mg2+ is lost from the brine to form dolomite, the concentration of Ca2+
does not increase during the early stage of dolomitization because the brine is
saturated with respect to gypsum, and Ca2+ ions released from CaCO3 minerals via
eq. [11.2] combine with dissolved SO42− ions to form additional gypsum. As a
result, the concentration of Mg2+ and the Mg/Ca ratio in the brine at first decrease,
and the process takes place during the marine lagoon stage. A large number of
papers describe the occurrences of epigenetic dolomite bodies in the carbonate
rock sequence adjacent to the Dead Sea (Fig. 11.14) (e.g. Bentor and Vroman
1960; Starinsky 1974; Raz 1983; Stein et al. 2002).
11.4 The History of the Water
11.4.1 Na-Cl System
Large salt bodies in the DSB (Dead Sea Basin) testify to the existence of an ancient
lagoon within which they were deposited. Such are known from two areas, the Dead
Sea and the Lake Kinneret regions. Zak (1967) attributed the source of the lagoon’s
water to the ancient Mediterranean Sea which invaded the DSB via the Valley of
Jezreel. The overflow point, or sill, over which the Mediterranean seawater invaded
the DSB, was probably located in the western side of the Bet Shean valley. Although
data required for exact delineation of the lagoon’s dimensions are missing, the present
location of the saline waters that originated therein as well as considerations dictated
by the present topography allow the assumption that during its maximum expansion
the lagoon occupied the area between Rosh Pina in the north and Idan – Hatzeva south
of the Dead Sea. An N-S transect of the lagoon is presented in Fig. 11.3. Na/Cl ratios
in the lagoon brine that was extracted from fluid inclusions from a few halite samples
in the Sedom salt (Horita et al. 2002; García-Veigas et al. 2009) (Fig. 11.15) fall
within 0.1–0.3, placing the degree of evaporation of the respective brines between 40
and 70, relative to the parent seawater. Seawater evaporation in the laboratory and
thermodynamic calculations indicate that the major minerals that precipitate within
that concentration range are halite, gypsum and anhydrite. As earlier stated in the
introduction chapter, the Na/Cl seawater ratio (0.86) starts to decrease during evapora-
tive concentration once halite crystallization sets in; indeed, all saline waters found so
far in the DSB display Na/Cl ratios lower than that of seawater.
Mt. Sedom, which is the most thoroughly investigated body of all salt deposits in
the DSB will be used for the explanation of the Sedom lagoon from which it was
deposited. According to Zak (1967) about ¾ of the Mt. Sedom diapir section are
comprised of evaporites, leaving one quarter of the section to clastics. Halite, with
lesser amounts of gypsum and anhydrite, predominates among the evaporite miner-
als. Sand, clay and marl make up the clastic parts of the section. Hiatuses in the salt
column indicate absence of seawater inflow, namely cutoff events of seawater sup-
ply from the Mediterranean Sea somewhere close to the bathymetric sill in the
north, followed by drop in the lagoon’s level.
The deposition rates of the salt and clastics differ by orders of magnitude. Applying
the Lisan Formation as a crude gauge of clastic deposition rate in the Dead Sea area
during late Pleistocene, one arrives at a 20–25 m of clastics per 40–50 kY, equal to
some 0.5 mm year−1. Dividing the integrated thickness of the clastic units in the Sedom
Fm. (about 500 m) by the aforementioned deposition rate yields an accumulation
period of about 1x106 years for these sediments. The accumulation rate of salt in the
Sedom Fm must have been linked to the rate of evaporation of the Sedom lagoon.
Complete evaporation of a 10 m thick layer of seawater would produce around 26.7 g
halite cm2, or a salt layer (ρbulk ~2 g cm−3) of 13.4 cm thickness. Evaporation of brine
from the Dead Sea has been estimated to be around 1.5 m year−1 (1.3–1.75 m year−1,
after Stanhill 1994), corresponding to about 2 cm year−1 salt. Hence, the deposition of
the 1,500 m thick evaporite section of Mt Sedom would have required roughly
Fig. 11.15 (a) The relationship between the Na/Cl and Br/Cl ratios in fluid inclusions in halite
crystals from the Mt. Sedom (From Horita et al. 2002). (b) The relationship between the Na/Cl and
Mg/Cl ratios in Mt. Sedom halite samples. Triangle markers – Data from García-Veigas et al.
2009; diamond markers – Data from Horita et al. 2002)
75,000 years. Obviously, the accumulation periods of both materials are very crude
estimates at best, but their ratio indicates that the accumulation of the clastics required
significantly more time than did the accumulation of salt. In other words, one may
assume that during the long periods of salt-free deposition of clastics, the lagoon area
was completely or partially disconnected from the sea. Moreover, the absence of gyp-
sum in the clastic layers indicates low salinity (i.e. less than 100 g L−1) of the lagoon
during these times (gypsum starts to precipitate from evaporating seawater at a three-
fold concentration). The significance of these observations is their hydrologic conse-
quence, namely, that the lowering of the lakes water stand allows the backward
Fig. 11.16 (a)87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in Dead Sea basin brines, minerals and rocks (From Katz and
Starinsky 2009). (b) 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in the various water groups in the Dead Sea basin, in
Pliocene seawater and in the Sedom Fm. evaporites
(=eastwards) flow to the DSB of saline brines that were formed and wandered out (i.e.
westwards) of the DSB lake during its former high stand periods. This conclusion is
in full agreement with the current state, where numerous saline springs and seepages
discharge into the low-standing Dead Sea. The returning fluid entered the lake where
it mixed with the resident brine, evaporating together and depositing the salt and gyp-
sum that comprise the fossil evaporitic section of the Mt. Sedom diapir.
The brine that returned into the DSB is Ca-chloridic in composition and displays
87
Sr/86Sr ratios lower than that of its parental Pliocene seawater (Fig. 11.16). The
lowering of the isotopic ratio is a result of the dolomitization by this brine of the
surrounding carbonate Cretaceous country rocks during the westward voyage out
and then back into the lagoon.
The conclusion from the forgoing discussion is that the Mt. Sedom diapir evaporites
were deposited at relatively low-stand periods of the lagoon during which only a
partial connection with the sea existed. The degrees of evaporation in the lagoon, of
the seawater that invaded the DSB and precipitated the salt therein, were derived from
analyses of fluid inclusions in the Sedom Fm. halite samples that were collected in the
southern, topographically deepest part of the DSB, representing relatively high con-
centration factors.
It is reasonable to assume that the Sedom lagoon’s volume changed during its
lifetime along with its bottom. If so, in periods of maximum expansion, when the
lagoon reached the northern coastline of Lake Kinneret, its brine must have been
less evaporated than when it was constrained to the Mt. Sedom area only.
11.4.2 Ca-Mg System
Lowering of Mg/Ca ratio, as examlified in R1 fluids, may have been caused by

consumption of Mg2+, addition of Ca2+, or both, to the affected solution. The most
reasonable process is dolomitization (decrease in Mg2+ along with a parallel increase
in Ca2+) which is directly supported by numerous dolomite bodies that discordantly
replace layered carbonate rocks of Upper Cretaceous age (Fig. 11.14). While evapo-
ration must have taken place on the surface, dolomitization could have taken place
either by replacement of contemporaneous aragonite in the lagoon, and/or limestone
in the subsurface, after infiltration of the concentrated seawater into the surrounding
country rocks, on the western side of the lagoon. Dolomite layers do appear in the
Sedom Fm. salt units, confirming dolomite formation also within the lagoon. The
massive, discordant dolomite bodies in the Judea desert indicate that the dolomitiza-
tion potential of the brine was not exhausted in the lagoon, allowing the continuation
of this WR interaction during the brine’s infiltration and migration in the subsurface.
Elevation of Mg/Ca ratios, reflected by the R2 brines can be caused by consump-
tion of Ca2+ without affecting the Mg2+ concentration in the water, such as precipita-
tion of gypsum in a marine evaporitic lagoon, or by influx of freshwater with
(Ca + Mg)/HCO3 > 1 into a lacustrine, CaCO3-precipitating, water body. Removal of
Ca2+ in gypsum upon evaporation of seawater occurs at a DE of 3, well before the
onset of halite crystallization (DE = 10), and must have increased the Mg/Ca ratio to
values well above that of seawater (5.2), as actually observed in modern lagoons
(Fig. 11.13.). The alternative process (supply of Mg2+ by freshwater) requires a
lacustrine environment, which could have formed only after disconnection of the
basin from the ancient Mediterranean Sea.
It is mandatory that removal of Ca2+ into gypsum did take place in the Sedom
lagoon, like in any other marine evaporitic system, shifting the Mg/Ca ratio well
above 5. Yet, the highest Mg/Ca ratio found in R2 waters is around 5. Hence, rather
than resorting to gypsum precipitation as responsible for the Mg/Ca ratios in R2
waters (1–5) the elevation of this ratio should be attributed to addition of Mg2+ from
freshwater to a low (<1) Mg/Ca brine, in a lacustrine environment. The obvious
candidate brine for that purpose is R1 water which evolved earlier, during the lagoon
stage, migrated westwards while dolomitizing limestone en route. Eastward back-
flow of R1 brine from the northern Negev to the DST was made possible as a result
of the intermittent uplift of the shoulders of the depression in which the brine has
migrated and was stored. When that happened, the R1 brine found its way either to
the DSB in the south or to shallower parts of the DST north of the Sedom lagoon.
Before the disconnection of the lagoon from the Mediterranean Sea, the returning
brine admixed into the lagoon waters, significantly affecting its Sr isotope ratio and
somewhat changing its chemical composition.2 Once the lagoon became discon-
nected from its Mediterranean feeder, the returning R1 brine started to fill the DSB
depression, forming a (terminal) saline lake nourished by freshwater flowing in
from its drainage basin.
The above scenario, which was initiated by the lagoon’s cutoff from the seawater
source, persisted until recent time and is manifested by the current situation in the
Dead Sea. The freshwater is characterized by the ratio Ca2+ < (HCO3− + SO42−).
Assuming that the lakes maintain an approximately constant volume, the annual
input of H2O by the fresh water sources is lost by evaporation and the dissolved salts
therein accumulate or precipitate. Crystallization of aragonite (or calcite3) and gyp-
sum rapidly removes the Ca2+, HCO3− and SO42− imported by the freshwater plus
some ambient Ca2+ from the resident brine to make up the charge balance. The Mg2+
remains in solution, gradually increasing the Mg/Ca ratio to its present value (~5).
Hence, for lakes in which no other processes but freshwater influx took place one
may regard the Mg/Ca in the water roughly as a qualitative time monitor. The young-
est saline lake in the area is the modern Dead Sea in which Mg/Ca ~5, the highest
amongst the saline waters that discharge into it, which show Mg/Ca ratios between
2 and 3, and were themselves saline lake waters in the past.
The R1 brines appear in all areas mentioned above (Fig. 11.17). In the north they
are found in the Tiberias spa, on the western shore of Lake Kinneret as well as east
of the lake (in Hamat Gader). West of the Dead Sea the waters were sampled in deep
oil drillings, quite far from the lake. The saline waters in Timna belong exclusively
to this group. All these waters were originally more saline and were subsequently
diluted. On the other hand, R2 waters occur in shallow bore holes along the entire
eastern shore of Lake Kinneret between Ha’On in the south and Bet Zaida in the
north. The same is true for all the saline seepages along the western side of the Dead
Sea, and for a few points near the eastern shores of that lake. Thus, the spatial dis-
tribution of the two water groups is in agreement with the geochemical evolution
path proposed above namely, that the transformation of R1 waters to R2 waters took
place on the surface and was arrested once these waters were trapped in the
subsurface.
2
Dolomitization of upper Cretaceous limestone by the brine resulted in a decrease of the 87Sr/86Sr
ratio and the Mg/Ca ratio of the brine relative to the corresponding ratios in the fresh, Pliocene
seawater that flowed through the lagoon (to be discussed later in this paper).
3
Depending on the Mg/Ca ratio in the lake.
Fig. 11.17 A map showing

the relationship between
87
Sr/86Sr and the Mg/Ca
ratios in the saline waters in
the Dead Sea rift. The low
87
Sr/86Sr ratio (0.706) in R1
brines was determined by
water-rock interaction while
in waters of group R2 it was
set by the freshwaters that
discharge into the saline lake
during the lacustrine period
Table 11.7 Stages of evolution of saline water in the Dead Sea rift
Na/Cl Mg/Ca Location Event
0.86 5.2 Sedom lagoon SW evaporation
0.86 ↑↑↑ Sedom lagoon Gypsum crystallization
5.2
0.86 No effect Sedom lagoon Halite crystallization
↓↓↓
No effect ↓ Sedom lagoon Aragonite dolomitization
↓
No effect No effect Judea carbonate rocks Brine infiltration & migration
No effect ↓↓↓ Judea carbonate rocks Limestone dolomitization
<1
No effect ↓↓↓ Judea carbonate rocks Partial brine backflow to lagoon
<1
R1 brine formation & storage completed
<0.86 <1 ~ Bet Shean watershed Disconnection from Mediterranean Sea
<0.86 <1 Dead Sea basin Formation of an inland saline lake
<0.86 1–5 Dead Sea basin Freshwater inflow and evaporation
↑↑↑
<1
R2 brine formation completed
The orderly, relative time frame of events detailed above is schematically summa-
rized in Table 11.7.
A quantitative model for the Ro → R2 brine transformation was worked out by
Katz and Starinsky (2009), and applied to explain the large difference in the Mg/Ca
ratio between the Sedom (Ro-group) brines (average Mg/Ca = 0.16) and modern
Dead Sea water (Mg/Ca = 4.2–4.6). The model calculates the increase in the Mg/Ca
ratio in the DSB lake, resulting from addition of freshwater and Ro brine into a saline
lake. The chemical compositions of the fresh and saline waters are detailed in the
paper, and it is assumed that the total H2O input from the fresh and saline sources is
balanced by evaporation.
The volumes of freshwater and R1 solutions discharging into the lake are
calculated by mass balancing Ca2+, HCO3− and SO42− contained in the primary ara-
gonite and gypsum enclosed within the lacustrine sediments of the DSB lake with
the same masses contained in the fresh and saline water inputs. The total mass of
H2O imported by the lake (normalized per unit time and unit area) is gleaned from
modern evaporation rates prevailing in the area (1.5–2 m year−1).
The model is summarized by Eq. 11.2 below (Eq. #13 in Katz and Starinsky’s
2009):
 Mg 
  =
Ca  L
([ Mg] d
i A ⋅ 0.1 + Vb [ Mg ]b + V f [ Mg ] f ) ,

([Ca] ⋅ d ⋅ 0.1 + V ([Ca] − [ HCO ] − [SO ] ) + V ([Ca] − [ HCO ] − [SO ] ))
i A b b 3 b 4 b f f 3 f 4 f
(11.3)
Where the solutes are designated by their chemical symbols, dA is the average
depth of the lake (in m), Vb and Vf are the respective volumes (in liters) per unit area
of brine and freshwater that make up the water column of the lake, and 0.1 is a con-
version factor translating depth (in m) to volume (in liters). The subscript i stands
for the starting concentrations of the subscripted ions (Ca2+ and Mg2+) in the lake,
from which the Mg/Ca ratio evolved.
Figure 11.18 is an example of the application of Eq. 11.3 to simulate the evolu-
tion of the Mg/Ca ratio in a lake similar to the DSB Lake. The shape of the resulting
curve is very sensitive to the ratio between gypsum and aragonite in the geological
section, and to the chemical composition of the brine and freshwater.
The model emphasizes the significant role played by the removal of Ca2+ into evap-
oritic CaCO3 and CaSO4 minerals on the Mg/Ca ratio in the DSB Lake, and quantifies
the contribution of the freshwater and brine that must have been imported into the lake
to maintain its level and to balance the masses of the precipitating minerals.
The change in the Mg/Ca ratio in the lake’s water displays a non linear relation
to the accumulated masses of evaporitic minerals (aragonite and gypsum). The
major factors that affect the shape of the Mg/Ca-elevation curve displayed in the
Fig. 11.18 are the ratio between masses of aragonite and gypsum and their total
concentration in the sediment as well as the chemical composition of the freshwater
and brine that are selected as basic inputs to the model.
During the last 50 years or so, the Mg/Ca (equivalent) ratio in the Dead fl
uctuated
between 4.2 and 4.6. This can be explained by the negligible deposition of aragonite
and gypsum from the lake.
Fig. 11.18 Dependency of 4

the Mg/Ca ratio in brine on
the accumulated thickness of
CaCO3 and CaSO4 minerals RS2 Springs
Mg/Ca (equivalent ratios)

that precipitated in a saline 3
lake in the Dead Sea basin.
Under the specific inputs
selected for this example the 2
Rs2 group waters could Basic inputs:
evolve from Ro brine after qA=0.3
the deposition of a ~90–200 qo=0.1
m thick sediment column 1
Brine = Ro water
(From Katz and Starinsky Freshwater = Judea springs
2009)
Average RO
0
0 50 100 150 200 250
Elevation in section (m)
11.4.3 87
Sr/86Sr Ratio in the Dead Sea Brines
The two saline, high Mg/Ca ratio subgroups are distinguished from each other by
their isotopic, 87Sr/86Sr ratios. Around the Dead Sea the waters display 87Sr/86Sr
ratios around 0.708, as opposed to the Lake Kinneret region, which is characterized,
in the eastern side by ratios around 0.706 (Fig. 11.17). As shown earlier, the chemi-
cal composition of waters with high Mg/Ca ratios is dictated by freshwater, hence
their 87Sr/86Sr ratios must differ between the two areas, reflecting the different lithol-
ogy of their drainage systems. In the north, the incoming freshwater drain a basaltic
terrain while the waters from the south drain a carbonate rock environment.
Freshwater flowing nowadays into Lake Kinneret displays low 87Sr/86Sr ratios,
around 0.704 (Table 11.6), in contrast to freshwater discharging into the Dead Sea
with 87Sr/86Sr ratios of about 0.708.
11.4.4 The Evolution of Timna Saline Water
Three main features pertaining to the geological environment of the Timna waters,
differ from those characterizing the saline waters in the Dead sea and in the Lake
Kinneret basins:
1. The Dead Sea and Kinneret tectonic depressions contain salt bodies that very
likely reflect ancient evaporitic activity responsible for the formation of the
observed salt deposits. In contrast, the Timna area is not located in a tectonic
basin, neither does it include any salt body that could have pointed to the origin
of the local saline waters.
2. The saline spring waters in the Dead Sea and Kinneret areas are propelled to the
surface under their own hydraulic heads, while the exposure of the Timna waters
was achieved by drilling and by artificial removal of the gangue overburden

above the copper ores.
3. The waters in Timna reside within a sandy silicate aquifer, as opposed to the
waters in the northern areas which are hosted within carbonate rock aquifers.
The Timna waters must have originated as saline Ca-chloridic waters that were
imported to Timna, probably by southward migration from the Sedom lagoon in the
Dead Sea region. Later, the waters interacted with the resident silicate rocks, mainly
with the magmatic minerals plagioclase, olivine, pyroxene and amphibole, giving
rise to the secondary minerals chlorite and epidote. The present low salinity of these
waters is probably the result of (ongoing?) dilution.
The original 87Sr/86Sr and Sr/Ca ratios in the gabbro before interaction with the
brine were 0.7045 and 0.013, respectively. The brine came in from the north with a
87
Sr/86Sr ratio of ~0.708, such that the 87Sr/86Sr = 0.706 ratio characterizing the
Timna saline waters under regard reflects an intermediate value between the afore-
mentioned solid and aqueous reactants in the WRI.
A question relevant to this explanation is which water type (from the north) par-
ticipated in the interaction with the Timna gabbro. Were these R1 brines that formed
within the Sedom lagoon or R2 waters that represent the later, lacustrine stage?
A crude Ca-Mg mass balance may provide the answer. Chloritization of the gabbro
minerals must have ended upon consumption of all available Mg2+ from the solution.
The Mg2+ concentration in the Timna waters is almost zero, which allowed Spiro
et al. (in preparation) to show that the original brine imported from the north must
have had a Mg/Ca ratio between 0.3 and 0.5, attributing it to the R1 group of brines.
If so, it is possible that these waters arrived at Timna already during the lagoon stage.
11.5 The Climatic Impact on Brine Evolution
The possible maximum evaporation of a surface water body (lake or lagoon) is deter-
mined by the relative humidity above it. The control of relative humidity on evapo-
ritic mineral facies formation was discussed earlier by Kinsman (1976) for normal
evaporated seawater. Krumgalz et al. (2000), in their discussion of the Dead Sea
future have shown the possible variation of the Dead Sea surface level and volume as
a function of the relative humidity in the range of 10–70 %.
The relationship between the activity of water (aH2O) and the Na/Cl ratio in the
Dead Sea water and in evaporated seawater is displayed in Fig. 11.19.
A given mineral may crystallize from different brines under different relative
humidity conditions, depending on the composition of the evaporating brine.
Crystallization of halite from evaporating seawater, for example, may take place when
RH falls below 76 %, while an RH as low as 67 % is required to start the same process
in a Ca-chloridic brine such as the modern Dead Sea. The mineral bischofite may
precipitate from seawater under an RH of 50–60 % as opposed to a RH of 30 %
required for the same to happen in the Dead Sea (Fig. 11.19).
Fig. 11.19 (a) The relationship between the Na/Cl ratio and the activity of H2O (aH2O) in evaporating
seawater and Dead Sea water. The plot allows determination of the maximum relative humidity that
could exist during evaporation in an ancient saline lake. (b) The relationship between the crystalliza-
tion points of minerals and the H2O activity in evaporating seawater and Dead Sea water
It follows, that the Na/Cl ratio in brines can be used as a monitor of the ancient
RH under which these brines formed, provided that it represents the unaltered, orig-
inal Na/Cl ratio that prevailed in the brine during the last crystallization event of
halite therein.4
4
A common alteration of the original Na/Cl ratio in brine is dissolution of halite upon its dilution.
Such would result in increase of the original (<1) ratio that is achieved by any marine-evaporitic
brine once halite starts to crystallize from it.
Although the activity of water at crystallization onset points of a given mineral

during the evaporation of seawater or Dead sea water (Fig. 11.19b) may differ, the
same points fall on the same position on the corresponding aH2O – Na/Cl plot
(Fig. 11.19a).
Turning on to the Dead Sea rift saline waters, one may check whether or not the
Na/Cl ratio in these brines indeed represents its original value that existed during
halite deposition. The relevant Na/Cl ratio data is given in Fig. 11.6. The Lake
Kinneret and Northern Negev waters possess Na/Cl ratios within the 0.5–0.7
range, corresponding to a maximum RH of 65–70 % during their formation. Fluid
inclusions in the Sedom Fm. rock salt crystals have Na/Cl ratios between 0.1 and
0.3, indicating a maximum RH of 57–65 % in the atmosphere above the brine.
An alternative account for the wide scatter of the RH values calculated for the north-
ern area brines is that the RH during the salt deposition period in Zemakh was rather
high, disabling further evaporation. It should be noted that such waters (Ro group) were
formed also in the southern area of the Dead Sea rift at the same time. Once the RH
decreased, evaporation resumed, accompanied by the lagoon shrinkage. Such a sce-
nario may be reflected by the lower Na/Cl ratios in the Sedom salt fluid inclusions (Na/
Cl = 0.1–0.3) and in the Rs1 waters (Na/Cl = 0.1–0.5), which probably represent the
shrinkage of the lagoon and salt deposition in the south. During that period the RH in
the overhanging atmosphere must have been between 57 and 65 %.
Unfortunately, no fluid inclusion data is available for the northern salt
(Zemah-1).
Acknowledgements The authors are thankful to Zvi Garfunkel, Michael Beyth and Baruch Spiro
for fruitful discussions. Olga Polin and Carmel Gorni were very helpful in the preparation of the
manuscript. The paper greatly benefitted from thorough reviewing by Joris Gieskes and Abraham
Lerman.
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Index
A Ateret, 192
Accumulated seismic moment, 275 Atlantic meridional, 297
Active faults, 188 Atmospheric 10Be, 284
Activity, 349, 350 Azraq-Sirhan Graben, 97, 102
Afar, 96
Afar plume, 103
African plates, 41, 48 B
Afrine fault, 133 Basanites, 99
“Agriculture–Neolithic” revolution, 309 Basement, 33
Al Ghab, 94, 98, 101, 103, 104 Basin formation, 22–24
Alkali basalts, 99, 104 Bekaa valley, 130, 131
Almagor fault, 126 Bet Shean saddle, 126, 127
Alpine nappes, 135 Bi-carbonate, 289
Alpine orogenic belt, 140 Bira, 283
Al-Quweira, 119 Bitlis suture, 135
Amanos block, 134–136, 140 Bølling/Ållerød, 297
Amanus fault zone, 134, 136 Boqeq and Amazyahu faults, 22
Amatzyahu fault, 122 Bouguer anomaly, 37, 117, 119, 121, 122
Amik basin, 133, 134 Brittle layer, 269
Amora formation, 288 Broad band stations, 265
Analog modeling, 24 Buwirida fault, 120
Anisotropy, 41, 48 b-value, 270
Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility
(AMS), 163
Arabia, 91–105 C
Arabian plate, 41, 48, 264 Ca-chloride brine, 288
Ar–Ar dating, 283 Calcite-filled veins, 169, 171
Arava/Araba, 266 California, 54, 64, 81
conglomerate, 120 Carmel fault, 272
fault, 120, 121 Catalog, 264
saddle, 127 Catalog completeness, 270
valley, 37, 48, 120–121 Cenozoic, 43
Archaeoseismic, 212, 213, 234, 239, 243 Central Negev-Sinai shear belt, 112, 114
Archeological sites, 308 Chloritization, 349
Arubotaim Cave (AC), 299 Cinder cones, 97, 98
Asperities, 81 Clastic dikes, 169, 171
Modern Approaches in Solid Earth Sciences 6, DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-8872-4,
356 Index
Climatic impact, 349–351 Epicentral location, 266

Clustering of earthquakes, 236, 247 Epilimnium, 295
Coda magnitude, 265 Erq-el-Ahmer, 308
Convergent strike slip, 152 Euler pole, 113, 115, 120, 121, 126
Corner frequency, 271 Evaporation, 319, 337, 340, 341, 349
α-Counting, 290 Evaporites, 287
Cover Basalt, 125, 126 Evrona fault, 120
Crust, 41, 44, 269
Crustal structure, 1, 10–18, 31, 47
Crustal thickness, 36, 37 F
Cryogenic, 319 Faults, 197
Cyclogenesis, 303 Fault zone, 188–190
Cyprus Cyclone, 289 Fazael (formation), 309
Focal depth, 57, 60, 76, 81, 82
D
Dansgaard-Oeschger (D-O) cycles, 305 G
DE. See Degree of evaporation (DE) Galilee, 125–127, 131, 138
Dead Sea basin (DSB), 5, 31, 48, 113, 121, Geodynamic, 43
128, 129, 264, 266, 322, 323, 325 Geometry of deep basins, 19–20
Dead Sea lake, 266, 343, 347 Geometry of southern Dead Sea basin, 20
Dead Sea rift (DSR), 208, 209, 213, 216, Gesher, 283
228–231, 238, 250 Gesher B’not Yaakov, 308
Dead Sea Transform (DST), 31, 45, 91–105, Ghab basin, 132–134
153, 264, 265, 280 Gilgal, 309
Degree of evaporation (DE), 337, 344 Glacial-interglacial ages, 299
Density, 37 Golan, 98, 104
Depth of basins, 20–22 Golan heights, 112, 127, 131
DESERT, 31, 33, 35, 42, 43 Gölbasi fault, 136
DESERT2000, 266 GPS, 115, 127
Desert dust, 289 Gravity, 13–17, 20, 31, 37, 47
DESIRE, 31, 33, 35, 42, 56, 82, 266, 270 Groups, 324, 325, 328
Detrital calcites, 300 Gulf of Aqaba, 272
Directivity, 67 Gulf of Eilat (Aqaba), 5, 118–120, 128
D-O cycles. See Dansgaard-Oeschger
(D-O) cycles
Dolomitization, 340, 343, 344 H
Double-difference, 55 Harrat Ash Shaam, 98, 99, 104
Drop down basin, 22 Harrats, 96–98
DSB. See Dead Sea basin (DSB) Hatay graben, 134, 136, 140
DSB lake. See Dead Sea lake Hatay triple junction, 136
DSR. See Dead Sea rift (DSR) Hazbani Basalt, 155, 160, 166
DST. See Dead Sea Transform (DST) Hazeva formation, 120, 122, 283
Dust storms, 289 Heat flow, 17–18, 22, 43–45, 47, 48, 54, 77,
80, 269
Heinrich event H1, 295
E Helwan, 265
Earthquake clustering, 209, 249, 250 Hermon-Anti Lebanon, 130, 131
Earthquakes, 31, 45, 47, 48, 191, 192, 264, 266 Historical records, 190, 192
East Anatolian fault zone, 135, 136, 140 Historic earthquakes, 208–212, 215, 216, 218,
Eastern Mediterranean region, 272 219, 221, 222, 225, 231, 234, 236, 237,
East Mediterranean (EM), 299 239, 241, 242, 251, 252
Edom river, 121 Holocene, 295
En Gadi 2 well, 122 Homs, 97, 101, 104
Index 357
Hordos formation, 125 Kriging, 54, 71

Hula basin, 126, 130, 131, 153, 155, 266 Ksara, 65, 265
Hula valley, 99, 102
Hume Deep, 117
Humidity, 349 L
Hydroclimatic, 301 LAB. See Lithosphere-asthenosphere
Hypersaline water-bodies, 284 boundary (LAB)
Hypocenters, 269 Lacustrine, 286
Hypolimnium, 295 Lake Amora, 288
Lake drops, 304–306
Lake Kinneret, 113, 125–127, 324, 325, 348
I Lake Lisan, 289
ICDP, 309–311 Lake Samra, 295
ICDP deep drill, 286 Latakiya fault zone, 135, 136
Igneous activity, 110, 123, 129 Late Neogene, 280
Igneous rocks, 129 Lebanon, 112, 130–132, 138
Incompatible elements, 96, 99, 104 Left-lateral motion, 37
Instantaneous strain, 152 Left lateral offset, 112
Institut de Physique du Globe (IPG), 66, 81 Levant basin, 110, 135, 138, 140
Instrumental data, 264 Limnological-hydrological history, 281
Instrumental records, 264 Lisan diapir, 122, 123
Intensity, 210, 212, 219, 222, 237, 238, 242, Lisan peninsula, 36
245, 249 Lithology, 300
Interdisciplinary efforts, 31 Lithosphere, 42–45, 47, 48, 95, 102–104
Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), 305 Lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB),
IPG. See Institut de Physique du Globe (IPG) 41, 42
ISC-GEM, 54, 69 Lithospheric compositional anomaly, 41
Isoseismal, 210, 245 Lithospheric thickness, 45, 47
Isotherm, 78, 80 Local earthquake tomography, 56, 64
Israel seismic network (ISN), 266 Lower Basalt, 125
Ithnayn, 97 Lower crust, 33, 45
Lower-crustal microearthquakes, 79
Lower-crustal seismicity, 55
J Lower Galilee, 104
Jebel Ansarieh, 134
JER, 265
Jericho, 309 M
Jericho and Arava faults, 22 Macroseismic data, 212, 250, 252
Jericho fault, 121, 123 Macroseismic depth, 75, 81
Jordan Gorge fault, 125, 126 Macroseismic intensity(ies), 69, 210
Jordan Seismological Observatory (JSO), 266 Macroseismic magnitudes, 214, 245
Jordan valley, 123–127, 266, 284 Magma ascent, 123, 125, 130, 139
Magnetic anomaly, 123
Magnetics, 13–17
K Magnitudes, 264
K–Ar, 283 MannekenPix (MPX), 56
Karasu graben, 134, 135 Maras triple junction, 134, 137
Kefar Giladi Formation, 126, 157 Marine Isotope Stage 2 (MIS2), 299
Khaybar, 97 Marine lagoons, 280
Kinnarot basin, 280 Massada plain, 291
Kinnarot-LK basins, 125, 126, 128 Maximum likelihood method, 270
Kinneret–Bet Shean basin, 5 Mediterranean basin, 110, 135
Korazim, 99, 104 Medvedev, S., 54, 70, 72
Korazim saddle, 125, 126 Melting, 95, 99, 102–104
358 Index
Messinian salinity crisis, 284 Potency, 67, 82

Metulla Saddle, 157 PPN cultures, 309
Mg/Ca ratio, 324, 327, 340, 345, 347 Prehistorical hominids, 309
Micro-earthquakes, 45 Pre-historic earthquakes, 209, 231
Midyan, 117–119 Primary aragonite, 300
Moho, 33, 35–37, 47, 128 Pull-apart basin, 18, 31, 44, 45, 96, 98,
Moment centroid, 75 116, 155
MPX. See MannekenPix (MPX) Pull-apart model, 47, 48
Mt. Sedom, 290, 324, 341, 344 P-velocity, 33
P-wave, 41
N
Nahr el-Kebir, 114, 134, 136, 140 Q
NAO. See North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) Quiescence periods, 198
Natufian, 308
Negev desert, 283
Neo-glacial, 300 R
North African-Arabian platform, 110 Rachaya fault, 130
North Anatolian fault, 96, 103 Radiocarbon chronology, 289
North Atlantic, 295 Rahat, 97
North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), 302–303 Rayleigh waves, 41
North Sahara, 289 Receiver function, 33, 45
Notera 3, 126 Recurrence, 208, 209, 219, 223, 228, 231, 233,
N-S extension, 173 246–252
Nuweiba earthquake, 198 Red Sea, 78, 79, 99, 102, 103, 113, 114, 117,
139
Red Sea dikes, 113, 119
O Reflection/refraction, 33
Ohalo-II, 308 Rheology(ies), 47, 77–79
Ophiolite nappes, 112, 114, 134 Rift Jordan valley corridor, 309
δ18O record, 299 Rosh Pinna 1, 126
Overturning circulation, 297 Roum fault, 131
P S
Palaeoseismic, 188, 190, 191, 197 Salt, 295
Paleo-earthquakes, 220, 221, 230, 232, 246 San Andreas fault, 31
Paleomagnetic data, 125, 127, 131, 132, 134, Sea of Galilee, 98, 99, 266, 308
137 Secondary structures, 116
Paleomagnetic studies, 290 Sedimentary fill, 5–10
Paleoseismic research, 209, 220, 243, Sediments, 47
249–251, 290 Sedom and Ghor Safi faults, 22
Paleoseismic sites, 236, 240 Sedom diapir, 122
Paleoseismic trench, 214, 215, 231, 249 Sedom formation, 122, 283
Paleoseismological records, 246 Sedom lagoon, 283, 325, 341, 344, 349
Paleoseismology, 208, 212, 219, 223 Seismic, 31, 37, 47
Palmyrides, 137, 139 activity, 264, 269
Perazim valley, 290 efficiency, 274
Physiography, 2–5 moment, 64, 67, 82, 271
Plastic, 82 networks, 266
Plate boundary(ies), 31, 39, 41 refraction, 10–13
Plume, 95, 98, 102, 104 refraction and reflection profiles, 20
Portable network, 266 Seismicity, 18, 22, 31, 45, 47
Positive flower structures, 161, 169 Seismites, 232
Index 359
Seismogenic thickness, 54, 64, 80 Transform valley, 117, 127

Seismogenic zone, 54, 81 Transpression, 116, 117, 120, 125, 126,
Seismological, 31, 37 136–139, 152, 174–176
Seismology, 47 Transtension, 116, 120, 121, 127, 136,
Serghaya fault, 130, 131 139, 152
Shear-wave splitting, 39 Travertines, 306
Shebalin, N.V., 54, 71, 72 Tropical plumes, 306
Shezaf fault, 122
Short period, 265
SIMULPS, 270 U
Sinai-Arabia plate motion, 115 Ubeidiya, 125, 308
Sinai subplate, 264 Unilateral propagation, 75
Sinai triple junction, 114, 117–118 Upper crust, 33, 37, 47
Sinkholes, 295 Upper Galilee, 104
Sirhan depression, 112 Upper mantle, 31, 41, 47
SKS, 39 U-Th, 289
Slip rate, 190, 193, 275
Source radius, 271
Spectra of S-waves, 271 V
Speleoseismic, 231–234, 246, 252 Varnish, 297
Speleoseismites, 230, 232, 234, 246, 248 Velest, 57, 58
87
Sr/86Sr, 325, 328, 336, 343, 348 Viscosities, 47
SSTs, 303 Volcanics, 112, 125, 128, 130–132,
Stadials, 305 134, 138
Strength profile, 77 Volcanism, 91–105
Stress drop, 271
Strike-slip motion, 37
Strike-slip partitioning, 152 W
Strontium isotope, 286 Water groups, 331, 345
Sub-Sahara Sahel, 303 WRI, 319, 340, 349
Subsidence, 47 WWSSN, 265
Suez rift, 113, 117
Surface waves, 41
S-velocities, 41, 48 X
S-wave, 36 Xenolith, 43, 48
Syntectonic, 172
Syrian arc, 112
Y
Yaalon basin, 120, 121
T Yammouneh fault, 126, 130, 131, 137,
Temperature, 41 139, 153
Thermal regime, 129 Yizre’el Valley, 96, 97, 112, 127
Thermo-mechanical modelling, 31, 44, 48 Younger Dryas (YD), 297
Tiberias, 325
spa, 345
sub-basin, 113, 125, 127 Z
Timna, 324, 328, 331–334, 345 Zahrat el-Qurein, 123, 129
Tiran Island, 117 Ze’elim, 297
TomoDD, 264 Zemah 1 well, 113, 125, 129
Tomographic inversion of body waves, 41 Zofar fault, 120

Dead Sea Transform Fault System

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Dead Sea Transform Fault System

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Modern Approaches in Solid Earth Sciences

Yildirim Dilek, Department of Geology and Environmental Earth Science, Miami

For further volumes:

Dead Sea Transform Fault

Responsible Series Editor: Y. Dilek

ISSN 1876-1682 ISSN 1876-1690 (electronic)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014943516

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Credit Cover Figure: buabone/stockphoto.com

Printed on acid-free paper

Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)

The ca. 1,000 km long Dead Sea Transform is a prominent geologic-physiographic

Givat Ram, Jerusalem, Israel Zvi Garfunkel

1 Geophysical Studies of the Crustal Structure

8 Pre-Instrumental Earthquakes Along the Dead Sea Rift .................... 207

Index ................................................................................................................. 355

Khalil Abu-Ayyash Natural Resources Authority, Amman, Jordan

Z. Garfunkel et al. (eds.), Dead Sea Transform Fault System: Reviews, 1

Keywords Dead Sea Fault • Crustal structure • Geophysics • Basin structure •

1.3 Architecture of Sedimentary Fill

1.3.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)

1.3.2 Dead Sea

1.3.3 Sea of Galilee

1.4 Crustal Structure

1.4.1 Seismic Refraction

1.4.1.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)

1.4.1.2 Dead Sea

A seismic refraction experiment was conducted along a north–south profile in

1.4.1.3 Sea of Galilee

1.4.2 Gravity and Magnetics

1.4.2.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)

1.4.2.2 Dead Sea

1.4.2.3 Sea of Galilee

1.4.3 Heat Flow

1.5.1 Geometry of Deep Basins

An en-echelon arrangement of the main faults with a full graben configuration of

1.5.2 Depth of Basins

1.5.3 Processes of Basin Formation

of step offsets in the examined fault traces decreases as a function of cumulative

Michael Weber, Khalil Abu-Ayyash, Zvi Ben-Avraham, Sungchan Choi, Jaser

M. Weber (*) • J. Mechie • A. Mohsen • A. Petrunin • T. Ryberg • S.V. Sobolev

Z. Garfunkel et al. (eds.), Dead Sea Transform Fault System: Reviews, 29

Keywords Geophysics • Modelling • Moho • Arava/Araba fault • Lithosphere

2.2 Deep Crustal Structure

2.3 Upper Mantle Structure

Delineating plate boundary deformation in the sub-crustal lithosphere is difficult,

2.4 Modeling and Interpretation

2.4.1 Apparently Contradicting Observations

2.4.2 Model Reconciling Contradictory Observations

We have designed a 3D thermo-mechanical model addressing the apparently

Based on a multi-disciplinary study, involving seismics, seismology and gravity, we

Mechie J, Abu-Ayyash K, Ben-Avraham Z, El-Kelani R, Mohsen A, Rümpker G, Saul S, Weber M

Freddy Aldersons and Zvi Ben-Avraham

Z. Garfunkel et al. (eds.), Dead Sea Transform Fault System: Reviews, 53

Keywords Seismogenic thickness • Dead Sea • Seismicity • Depth • Rheology

The purpose of this chapter is to determine the seismogenic thickness or maximum

3.2 From Microearthquakes to Seismogenic Thickness

3.2.1 Instrumental Seismicity

a first selection resulted in 653 earthquakes with at least 8 bulletin P-readings

1.3 Architecture of Sedimentary Fill

1.3.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)

1.3.2 Dead Sea

1.3.3 Sea of Galilee

1.4 Crustal Structure

1.4.1 Seismic Refraction

1.4.1.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)

1.4.1.2 Dead Sea

1.4.1.3 Sea of Galilee

1.4.2 Gravity and Magnetics

1.4.2.1 Gulf of Elat (Aqaba)

1.4.2.2 Dead Sea

1.4.2.3 Sea of Galilee

1.4.3 Heat Flow

1.5.1 Geometry of Deep Basins

1.5.2 Depth of Basins

1.5.3 Processes of Basin Formation

3.2 From Microearthquakes to Seismogenic Thickness

3.2.1 Instrumental Seismicity

3.2.2 The Earthquake of 11 July 1927

3.3 Heat Flow and Rheology

3.4 Discussion and Concluding Remarks