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Late Quaternary Earthquake Chronology from Luminescence Dating of Colluvial and Alluvial Deposits of the Arava Valley, Israel

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Naomi Porat ,
Ann G. Wintle ,
Rivka Amit  and
Yehouda Enzel
Naomi Porat
Affiliation:
The Geological Survey of Israel, 30 Malkhe Israel St, Jerusalem, 95501, Israel
Ann G. Wintle
Affiliation:
Institute of Earth Studies, University of Wales, Aberystwyth SY23 3DB, United Kingdom
Rivka Amit
Affiliation:
The Geological Survey of Israel, 30 Malkhe Israel St, Jerusalem, 95501, Israel
Yehouda Enzel
Affiliation:
Institute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 91904, Israel
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Abstract

Luminescence ages help provide a time scale for recurrent surface ruptures on a normal fault in the southern Arava, Israel. The dated samples come from alluvium and colluvium along a fault scarp north of Elat. The ages, obtained mainly by infrared stimulation of sand-size potassium feldspar grains, accord with geomorphic age estimates from soils and degraded scarps. Four large earthquakes occurred between 37,000 and 14,000 yr ago. Five smaller earthquakes occurred thereafter continuing until recent times. The mean recurrence interval for earthquakes of magnitudes greater than 6 is about 4000 yr.

Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 46 , Issue 2 , September 1996 , pp. 107 - 117
Copyright
University of Washington

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