LIFE: Linking lake-level variations, surface deformation, and seismogenesis in the Dead Sea.

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Julius Jara Muñoz
• Subject Area: Palaeontology ; Geophysics
• Term: from 2018 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 397011549

The Dead Sea is the deepest continental basin on Earth, and constitutes a region of protracted subsidence and normal faulting. However, instead of subsidence, this area currently experiences rapid uplift accompanied by accelerated lake-level drop. This observation suggests complex patterns of vertical displacements (e.g., isostatic rebound) through time, but the relative contribution of climatic and tectonic factors in the accumulation of deformation at longer timescales (> 1000-yr) are currently unknown. Observations in other terminal lakes such as Salton Sea and Lake Bonneville, in U.S., suggest that climate-controlled lake level oscillations may exert fundamental influence in patterns of earthquake recurrence and fault- slip rates. Several gaps in knowledge have prevented elucidating the link between lake-level changes, seismogenesis, and vertical deformation in the Dead Sea. Thus, an effort to capture the full spectrum of possible amplitudes in climatic and surface deformation processes will help reducing the gaps between observations on different temporal and spatial scales and aid in understanding the recurrence and spatial distribution of earthquakes. This project aims to unravel the link between climatic and tectonic processes using the outstanding exposure of fossil lacustrine shorelines along the coast of the Dead Sea. The methods to study lake-shorelines are supported by observations during a pilot study and involve a multidisciplinary toolkit: high-resolution drone topography, morphometric analysis, U/Th and 14C dating, and dedicated numerical modeling. Our results will be complemented with data produced in previous projects (DESIRE/DESERT, DSDDP) to expand our analysis and interpretations. This project will provide fundamental information regarding the seismotectonic segmentation of the Dead Sea Basin and the role of climate-induced lake-level changes regarding seismogenesis and the activity of faults through time. Finally, considering recent infrastructure projects and attempts to raise lake level by supplying water from the Red Sea, a rigorous analysis of these relationships is timely as such anthropogenic impacts may alter the activity of seismically active faults in this area. Furthermore, the information provided by this project will be extremely relevant in virtue of potential seismic scenarios associated with global climate change and will help to adequately assess the spatiotemporal characteristics of seismic hazards in the Dead Sea.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: France, Israel
• Cooperation Partners: Professor Dr. Amotz Agnon; Dr. Yannick Garcin; Professor Dr. Adi Torfstein