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Turbidites, benthic foraminifera, and earthquakes – evidence for the Dead Sea Transform paleoseismicity from the northern Gulf of Aqaba
A series of sediment cores retrieved from the northern Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea) were analyzed for grain size and foraminifera benthic assemblages. Sediment horizons with anomalous coarse grain size that cannot fit the depth-grain size distribution were interpreted as mass transport deposits – turbidites.
The benthic foraminifera in the turbidites are characterized by higher numerical abundance of very shallow assemblages with poor preservation, which indicates high energy transport from the shelf environments.
Samples for dating were taken above and below the disturbed units. The youngest units coincide in time with historical reports on earthquakes that were generated along the active faults of the Dead Sea Transform, validating the tectonic origin of the sediment reworking events, and enabling the reconstruction of the Late Quaternary paleoseismic record of the region.
