Dead Sea

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For the Brian Keene book of the same name, see Dead Sea (novel).

Dead Sea

A view from the Israeli side looking across
to Jordan

Coordinates

31°20′N 35°30′E
/ 31.333°N
35.5°E / 31.333;
35.5Coordinates:
31°20′N 35°30′E
/ 31.333°N
35.5°E / 31.333;
35.5

Lake type

endorheic
hypersaline

Primary
inflows

Jordan River

Primary
outflows

none

Catchment area

41,650 km2 (16,080 sq mi)

Basin countries

Jordan
Israel
West
Bank

Max. length

67.4 km (41.9 mi)

Max. width

18 km (11 mi)

Surface area

810 km2 (310 sq mi)
North Basin

Average depth

118 m (387 ft)[1]

Max. depth

377 m (1,237 ft)

Water volume

147 km3 (35 cu mi)

Shore length1

135 km (84 mi)

Surface elevation

−423 m (−1,388 ft)[2]

References

[1][2]

1 Shore length is not a well-defined
measure.

The Dead Sea (Arabic: البحر الميت‎  al-Bahr
al-Mayyit (help·info),[3]
Hebrew: יָם הַ‏‏מֶּ‏‏לַ‏ח‎‎, Yām Ha-Melaḥ, "Sea of Salt", also Hebrew: יָם הַ‏‏מָּוֶת‎‎, Yām Ha-Mavet, "The Sea of Death"),
also called the Salt Sea, is a salt lake bordering Jordan to the east
and Israel and
the West
Bank to the west. Its surface and shores are 423 metres (1,388 ft)
below sea
level,[2]
the lowest elevation on the Earth's surface. The Dead Sea is
377 m (1,237 ft) deep, the deepest hypersaline lake in the
world. With 33.7% salinity, it is also one of the
world's
saltiest bodies of water, though Lake Assal
(Djibouti), Garabogazköl and some
hypersaline lakes of the McMurdo Dry Valleys
in Antarctica (such as Don Juan
Pond) have reported higher salinities. It is 8.6 times saltier than the
ocean.[4]
This salinity makes for a harsh environment in which animals cannot flourish,
hence its name. The Dead Sea is 67 kilometres (42 mi) long and 18
kilometres (11 mi) wide at its widest point. It lies in the Jordan Rift Valley,
and its main tributary is the Jordan
River.

The Dead Sea has attracted visitors from around the Mediterranean basin
for thousands of years. Biblically, it was a place of refuge for King David. It was one of the
world's first health resorts (for Herod the Great), and it
has been the supplier of a wide variety of products, from balms for Egyptian mummification to potash for fertilizers. People also use
the salt and the minerals from the Dead Sea to create cosmetics and herbal sachets. In 2009,
1.2 million foreign tourists visited on the Israeli side.[citation
needed]

The sea has a density of 1.24 kg/L,[citation
needed] which makes swimming similar to floating.[5]

Contents

1 Etymology and
toponymy

2 Geography

3 Natural
history

4 Climate

5 Chemistry

6 Health effects and
therapies

6.1 Treatment for
Psoriasis

6.2 Treatment for
Rhinosinusitis

6.3 Treatment for
Osteoarthritis

7 Fauna and
flora

8 Human
settlement

9 In religious
accounts

9.1 Hebrew
Bible

10 History

10.1 Second Temple
period

10.2 Ancient Greek
period

10.3 Herodian
period

10.4 Modern
times

11 Industry

12 Recession and
environmental concerns

13 Gallery

14 See also

15 References

16 Further
reading

17 External
links

[edit]
Etymology and
toponymy

In Hebrew, the Dead Sea is  Yām
ha-Melaḥ (help·info), meaning "sea of salt" (Genesis 14:3). In prose
sometimes the term Yām ha-Māvet (ים המוות, "sea of death") is used, due to the
scarcity of aquatic life there.[6]
In Arabic the Dead Sea is
called  al-Bahr
al-Mayyit (help·info)[3]
("the Dead Sea"), or less commonly baḥrᵘ lūṭᵃ (بحر لوط, "the Sea of Lot").
Another historic name in Arabic was the "Sea of Zoʼar", after a nearby town
in biblical times. The Greeks called it Lake Asphaltites (Attic
Greek ἡ Θάλαττα ἀσφαλτῖτης, hē Thálatta asphaltĩtēs, "the
Asphaltite[7]
sea"). The Bible also refers to it as Yām ha-Mizraḥî (ים המזרחי, "the Eastern sea") and Yām ha-‘Ărāvâ (ים הערבה, "Sea of the Arabah").

[edit]
Geography

Satellite photograph showing the location of the
Dead Sea

The Dead Sea is an endorheic lake located
in the Jordan Rift Valley, a
geographic feature formed by the Dead Sea Transform
(DST). This left lateral-moving transform fault lies
along the tectonic plate boundary between
the African Plate and the Arabian
Plate. It runs between the East Anatolian
Fault zone in Turkey and the northern end of
the Red
Sea Rift offshore of the southern tip of Sinai.

The Jordan River is the only
major water source flowing into the Dead Sea, although there are small perennial
springs under and around the Dead Sea, creating pools and quicksand pits along the
edges.[8]
There are no outlet streams.

Rainfall is scarcely 100 mm (4 in) per year in the northern part of
the Dead Sea and barely 50 mm (2 in) in the southern part. The Dead
Sea zone's aridity is due to the rainshadow effect of the Judean Hills. The
highlands east of the Dead Sea receive more rainfall than the Dead Sea
itself.

To the west of the Dead Sea, the Judean Hills rise less steeply and are much
lower than the mountains to the east. Along the southwestern side of the lake is
a 210 m (700 ft) tall halite formation called "Mount
Sodom".

[edit]
Natural history

There are two contending hypotheses about the origin of the low elevation of
the Dead Sea. The older hypothesis is that it lies in a true rift zone, an
extension of the Red Sea Rift, or even of
the Great Rift Valley of
eastern
Africa. A more recent hypothesis is that the Dead Sea basin is a consequence
of a "step-over" discontinuity along the Dead Sea Transform, creating an
extension of the crust with consequent subsidence.

Around three million years ago,[citation
needed] what is now the valley of the Jordan River, Dead
Sea, and Wadi
Arabah was repeatedly inundated by waters from the Mediterranean Sea. The
waters formed in a narrow, crooked bay which was connected to the sea through
what is now the Jezreel Valley. The
floods of the valley came and went depending on long scale climate change. The lake
that occupied the Dead Sea Rift, named "Lake Sedom"[9],
deposited beds of salt that eventually became 3 km (2 mi) thick.

Near Ein Gedi, salt builds up along the shores of
the Dead Sea.

Pebbles cemented with halite on the western shore of
the Dead Sea near Ein Gedi.

Approximately two million years ago,[citation
needed] the land between the Rift Valley and the
Mediterranean Sea rose to such an extent that the ocean could no longer flood
the area. Thus, the long bay became a lake.

The first such prehistoric lake is named "Lake Amora"[9]
Lake Amora was a freshwater or brackish lake that extended at
least 80 km (50 mi) south of the current southern end of the Dead Sea
and 100 km (60 mi) north, well above the present Hula
Depression. As the climate became more arid, Lake Amora shrank and became
saltier. The large, saltwater predecessor of the Dead Sea is called "Lake
Lisan."[9]

In prehistoric times, great
amounts of sediment collected on the floor of Lake Amora. The sediment was
heavier than the salt deposits and squeezed the salt deposits upwards into what
are now the Lisan Peninsula and Mount
Sodom (on the southwest side of the lake). Geologists explain the effect in
terms of a bucket of mud into which a large flat stone is placed, forcing the
mud to creep up the sides of the pail. When the floor of the Dead Sea dropped
further due to tectonic forces, the salt mounts of Lisan and Mount Sodom stayed
in place as high cliffs. (see salt domes)

From 70,000 to 12,000 years ago, the lake level was 100 m (330 ft)
to 250 m (820 ft) higher than its current level. This lake, called "Lake
Lisan", fluctuated dramatically, rising to its highest level around 26,000
years ago, indicating a very wet climate in the Near East.[10]
Around 10,000 years ago, the lake level dropped dramatically, probably to levels
even lower than today. During the last several thousand years, the lake has
fluctuated approximately 400 m (1,300 ft), with some significant drops
and rises. Current theories as to the cause of this dramatic drop in levels rule
out volcanic
activity; therefore, it may have been a seismic event.

[edit]
Climate

The Dead Sea's climate offers year-round sunny skies and dry air. It has less
than 50 millimetres (2 in) mean annual rainfall and a summer average
temperature between 32 and 39 °C (90 and 102 °F). Winter average
temperatures range between 20 and 23 °C (68 and 73 °F). The region has
weakened ultraviolet radiation,
particularly the UVB (erythrogenic rays), and an atmosphere characterized by a
high oxygen
content due to the high barometric
pressure.[11]
The sea affects temperatures nearby because of the moderating effect a large
body of water has on climate. During the winter, sea temperatures tend to be
higher than land temperatures, and vice versa during the summer months. This is
the result of the water's mass and specific heat capacity. On average, there are
192 days above 30C (86F) annually.[12]

Climate data for Dead Sea

Month

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Year

Record high °C (°F)

26.4
(79.5)

30.4
(86.7)

33.8
(92.8)

42.5
(108.5)

45.0
(113.0)

46.4
(115.5)

47.0
(116.6)

44.5
(112.1)

43.6
(110.5)

40.0
(104.0)

35.0
(95.0)

28.5
(83.3)

47.0
(116.6)

Average high °C (°F)

20.5
(68.9)

21.7
(71.1)

24.8
(76.6)

29.9
(85.8)

34.1
(93.4)

37.6
(99.7)

39.7
(103.5)

39.0
(102.2)

36.5
(97.7)

32.4
(90.3)

26.9
(80.4)

21.7
(71.1)

30.4

Average low °C (°F)

12.7
(54.9)

13.7
(56.7)

16.7
(62.1)

20.9
(69.6)

24.7
(76.5)

27.6
(81.7)

29.6
(85.3)

29.9
(85.8)

28.3
(82.9)

24.7
(76.5)

19.3
(66.7)

14.1
(57.4)

21.9

Record low °C (°F)

5.4
(41.7)

6.0
(42.8)

8.0
(46.4)

11.5
(52.7)

19.0
(66.2)

23.0
(73.4)

26.0
(78.8)

26.8
(80.2)

24.2
(75.6)

17.0
(62.6)

9.8
(49.6)

6.0
(42.8)

5.4
(41.7)

Precipitation
mm (inches)

7.8
(0.307)

9.0
(0.354)

7.6
(0.299)

4.3
(0.169)

0.2
(0.008)

0.0
(0)

0.0
(0)

0.0
(0)

0.0
(0)

1.2
(0.047)

3.5
(0.138)

8.3
(0.327)

41.9
(1.65)

% humidity

41

38

33

27

24

23

24

27

31

33

36

41

31.5

Avg. precipitation days

3.3

3.5

2.5

1.3

0.2

0.0

0.0

0.0

0.0

0.4

1.6

2.8

15.6

Source:
Israel Meteorological Service[13]

[edit]
Chemistry

Until the winter of 1978-79, when a major mixing event took place,[14]
the Dead Sea was composed of two stratified layers of water that differed in
temperature, density, age, and salinity. The topmost 35 metres (115 ft) or
so of the Dead Sea had a salinity that ranged between 300 and 400 parts per
thousand and a temperature that swung between 19 °C (66 °F) and 37 °C (99 °F). Underneath a zone of
transition, the lowest level of the Dead Sea had waters of a consistent 22 °C (72 °F) temperature and complete
saturation of sodium chloride
(NaCl).[citation
needed] Since the water near the bottom is saturated, the
salt precipitates out of solution onto the sea floor.

Beginning in the 1960s, water inflow to the Dead Sea from the Jordan River
was reduced as a result of large-scale irrigation and generally low rainfall. By
1975, the upper water layer of the Dead Sea was saltier than the lower layer.
Nevertheless, the upper layer remained suspended above the lower layer because
its waters were warmer and thus less dense. When the upper layer finally cooled
down so its density was greater than the lower layer, the waters of the Dead Sea
mixed (1978–79). For the first time in centuries, the lake was a homogeneous
body of water. Since then, stratification
has begun to redevelop.[14]

The mineral content of the Dead Sea is very different from that of ocean
water. The exact composition of the Dead Sea water varies mainly with season,
depth and temperature. In the early 1980s, the concentration of ionic species
(in g/kg) of Dead Sea surface water was Cl− (181.4), Br−
(4.2), SO42− (0.4), HCO3− (0.2),
Ca2+ (14.1), Na+ (32.5), K+ (6.2) and
Mg2+ (35.2). The total salinity was 276 g/kg.[15]
These results show that the composition of the salt, as anhydrous chlorides on a
weight percentage basis, was calcium chloride
(CaCl2) 14.4%, potassium chloride
(KCl) 4.4%, magnesium chloride
(MgCl2) 50.8% and sodium chloride (common
salt, NaCl) 30.4%. In comparison, the salt in the water of most oceans and seas is approximately 97% sodium chloride. The
concentration of sulfate ions
(SO42−) is very low, and the concentration of bromide ions
(Br−) is the highest of all waters on Earth. The sea itself is
abundant in minerals acclaimed to have therapeutic value.[citation
needed]

The salt concentration of the Dead Sea fluctuates around 31.5%. This is
unusually high and results in a nominal density of 1.24 kg/l. Anyone can
easily float in the Dead Sea because of natural buoyancy. In this respect the
Dead Sea is similar to the Great Salt Lake in Utah in the United
States.

An unusual feature of the Dead Sea is its discharge of asphalt. From deep seeps, the
Dead Sea constantly spits up small pebbles and blocks of the black
substance.[16]
Asphalt coated figurines and bitumen coated Neolithic skulls from archaeological sites have
been found. Egyptian mummification processes
used asphalt imported from the Dead Sea region.[17][18]

[edit]
Health effects and
therapies

The Dead Sea area has become a major center for health research and treatment for
several reasons. The mineral content of the water, the very low content of pollens and other allergens in the
atmosphere, the
reduced ultraviolet component of solar radiation,
and the higher atmospheric pressure at this great depth each have specific health
effects. For example, persons suffering reduced respiratory
function from diseases such as cystic fibrosis seem to
benefit from the increased atmospheric pressure.[19]

The region's climate and low elevation have made it a popular center for
several types of therapies:

Climatotherapy:
Treatment which exploits local climatic features such as temperature, humidity, sunshine, barometric
pressure and special atmospheric constituents

Heliotherapy: Treatment
that exploits the biological effects of the sun's radiation

Thalassotherapy:
Treatment that exploits bathing in Dead Sea water

[edit]
Treatment for
Psoriasis

Climatotherapy at the Dead Sea is an effective therapy for patients with the
skin disorder psoriasis,[20]
which also benefit from the ability to sunbathe for long periods in the area due
to its position below sea level and subsequent result that many of the sun's
harmful UV rays are reduced.[21]

[edit]
Treatment for
Rhinosinusitis

Rhinosinusitis patients
receiving Dead Sea saline nasal irrigation
exhibited significantly better symptom relief compared to standard hypertonic saline spray.[22]

[edit]
Treatment for
Osteoarthritis

Dead Sea Mud pack therapy has been suggested to temporarily relieve pain in
patients with osteoarthritis of the
knees. According to researchers of the Ben
Gurion University of the Negev, treatment with mineral-rich mud compresses
can be used to augment conventional medical therapy in these patients.[23]

Panorama of the Dead Sea from the Mövenpick
Resort, Jordan.

Panorama of the Dead Sea from the Israeli
side

Panorama of the Dead sea from Mount
Sodom.

[edit]
Fauna and flora

Dead Sea in the morning, seen from Masada

The sea is called "dead" because its high salinity prevents macroscopic
aquatic organisms, such as fish and aquatic plants, from
living in it, though minuscule quantities of bacteria and microbial fungi are
present.

In times of flood, the salt content of the Dead Sea can drop from its usual
35% salinity to 30% or lower. The Dead Sea temporarily comes to life in the wake
of rainy winters. In 1980, after one such rainy winter, the normally dark blue
Dead Sea turned red. Researchers from Hebrew
University found the Dead Sea to be teeming with a type of algae called Dunaliella. The
Dunaliella in turn nourished carotenoid-containing (red-pigmented) halobacteria, whose
presence caused the color change. Since 1980, the Dead Sea basin has been dry
and the algae and the bacteria have not returned in measurable numbers.

Many animal species live in the mountains surrounding the Dead Sea. Hikers
can see camels, ibex,
hares, hyraxes, jackals, foxes, and even leopards. Hundreds of bird species inhabit the
zone as well. Both Jordan and Israel have established nature reserves around
the Dead Sea.

The delta of the Jordan River was formerly a veritable jungle of papyrus and palm trees. Flavius Josephus
described Jericho as "the most fertile
spot in Judea". In
Roman and Byzantine times, sugarcane, henna, and sycamore fig all made
the lower Jordan valley quite wealthy. One of the most valuable products
produced by Jericho was the sap of the balsam tree,
which could be made into perfume. However, by the 19th
century, Jericho's fertility had disappeared.

[edit]
Human settlement

There are several small communities near the Dead Sea. These include Ein Gedi, Neve Zohar
and the Israeli settlements
in the Megilot Regional
Council: Kalya,
Mitzpe Shalem and Avnat. There is a
nature preserve at Ein Gedi, and several Dead Sea hotels are located on the
southwest end at Ein Bokek near Neve Zohar. Highway 90 runs
north-south on the Israeli side for a total distance of 565 km from Metula on the
Lebanese border in the north to its southern terminus at the Egyptian border
near the Red
Sea port of Eilat.

Potash
City is a small community on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea. Highway 65 runs
north-south on the Jordanian side.

[edit]
In religious
accounts

[edit]
Hebrew Bible

Just north of the Dead Sea is Jericho. Somewhere, perhaps on
the southeast shore, would be the cities mentioned in the Book
of Genesis which were said to have been destroyed in the time of Abraham: Sodom and Gomorra
(Genesis 18) and the three other "Cities of the Plain" - Admah, Zeboim and Zoar (Deuteronomy
29:23). Zoar escaped destruction when Abraham's nephew Lot
escaped to Zoar from Sodom (Genesis 19:21-22). Before the destruction, the Dead
Sea was a valley full of natural tar pits, which was called the
vale of Siddim. King David was said to have hidden from Saul at Ein Gedi nearby.

In Ezekiel 47:8-9 there is a specific prophecy that the sea will ".. be
healed and made fresh", becoming a normal lake capable of supporting marine
life. A similar prophecy is stated in Zechariah 14:8, which says that "Living waters will go out from
Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea (likely the Dead Sea) and half to the
western sea (the Mediterranean)..."

[edit]
History

World's lowest (dry) point, Jordan, 1971

[edit]
Second Temple period

Dwelling in caves near the Dead Sea is recorded in the Hebrew
Bible as having taken place before the Israelites came to Canaan, and
extensively at the time of King David. Various sects of Jews settled in caves
overlooking the Dead Sea. The best known of these are the Essenes of Qumran, who left an extensive
library known as the Dead Sea Scrolls.[24]
The town of Ein
Gedi, mentioned many times in the Mishna, produced persimmon for
the temple's fragrance and for export, using a secret recipe. "Sodomite salt"
was an essential mineral for the temple's holy incense, but was said to be
dangerous for home use and could cause blindness.[25]
The Roman camps surrounding Masada were built by Jewish
slaves receiving water from the towns around the lake. These towns had drinking
water from the Ein Feshcha springs and other sweetwater springs in the
vicinity.[26]

[edit]
Ancient Greek period

The Greeks knew the Dead Sea
as "Lake Asphaltites", due to the naturally surfacing asphalt. Aristotle wrote about the
remarkable waters. Later, the Nabateans discovered the
value of bitumen extracted from the Dead
Sea needed by the Egyptians for embalming their mummies.

[edit]
Herodian period

King Herod the Great built or
rebuilt several fortresses and palaces on the western bank of the Dead Sea. The
most famous was Masada, where, in 70-73 CE, a
small group of Jewish zealots held out against the
might of the Roman legion, and Machaerus
where, according to Josephus, John the Baptist was
imprisoned by Herod Antipas and
died.[27]

Also in Roman times, some Essenes settled on the Dead
Sea's western shore; Pliny the Elder
identifies their location with the words, "on the west side of the Dead Sea,
away from the coast ... [above] the town of Engeda" (Natural History, Bk
5.73); and it is therefore a hugely popular but contested hypothesis today, that
same Essenes are identical with the settlers at Qumran and that "the Dead Sea Scrolls"
discovered during the 20th century in the nearby caves had been their own
library.

Mount Sodom, Israel, showing
the so-called "Lot's Wife" pillar made of
halite like the
rest of the mountain.

Turkish trenches at the shores of the Dead Sea, World War
I, 1917.

In the Bible, the Dead Sea is called the Salt Sea, the Sea of the Arabah, and
the Eastern Sea. The designation “Dead Sea” is a modern name which never appears
in the Bible. The Dead Sea basin is another part of the Great Rift Valley. It is
here that the Upper Jordan River/Sea of Galilee/Lower Jordan River water system
comes to an end. Intimately connected with the Judean wilderness to its
northwest and west, the Dead Sea was a place of escape and refuge. The
remoteness of the region attracted Greek Orthodox monks since the Byzantine era. Their monasteries,
such as Saint George in Wadi Kelt
and Mar
Saba in the Judean
Desert, are places of pilgrimage.

[edit]
Modern times

Explorers and scientists arrived in the area to analyze the minerals and
research the unique climate. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, hundreds of
religious documents dated between 150 BCE and 70 CE were found in caves near the
ancient settlement of Qumran, about a mile inland from
the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea (presently in the West Bank). They became
known and famous as the Dead Sea Scrolls. A golf
course named for Sodom and Gomorrah
was built by the British at Kalia on the northern shore.

The world's lowest road, Highway 90, runs
along the Israeli and West Bank shores of the Dead Sea at 393 m
(1,289 ft) below sea level.

The first major hotels were built in nearby Arad, and since the 1960s
at the Neve
Zohar resort complex. On Jordanian side, three
international franchises have opened seaside resort hotels near the King
Hussein Bin Talal Convention Center along the eastern coast of the Dead
Sea.[28]

[edit]
Industry

View of salt evaporation pans on the Dead Sea,
taken in 1989 from the Space Shuttle
Columbia (STS-28). The southern half is
separated from the northern half at what used to be the Lisan Peninsula because
of the fall in level of the Dead Sea.

View of the mineral evaporation ponds almost 12
years later (STS-102). A northern and small
southeastern extension were added and the large polygonal ponds
subdivided.

The dwindling water level of the dead
sea

In the early part of the 20th century, the Dead Sea began to attract interest
from chemists who deduced the Sea was a natural deposit of potash and bromine. The Palestine Potash
Company was chartered in 1929, after its founder, Siberian Jewish engineer and
pioneer of Lake Baikal exploitation Moses Novomeysky,
worked for the charter ex for over ten years. The first plant was on the north
shore of the Dead Sea at Kalia and produced potash, or
potassium chloride, by solar evaporation of the brine. Employing Arabs and Jews,
it was an island of peace in turbulent times.[29]
The company quickly grew into the largest industrial site in the Middle
East,[citation
needed] and in 1934 built a second plant on the southwest
shore, in the Mount Sodom area, south of
the 'Lashon' region of the
Dead Sea. Palestine Potash Company supplied half of Britain's potash during World War
II, but ultimately became a casualty of the 1948
Arab-Israeli War. Its remnants were nationalised and Dead
Sea Works Ltd. was established in 1952 in its stead as a state-owned
company to extract potash and other minerals from the Dead Sea.

From the Dead Sea brine, Israel produces (2001) 1.77 million tons potash, 206,000 tons elemental
bromine, 44,900 tons caustic soda, 25,000
tons magnesium metal, and sodium
chloride. On the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea, Arab Potash (APC), formed in
1956, produces 2.0 million tons of potash annually, as well as sodium chloride
and bromine. Both companies use extensive salt evaporation pans that
have essentially diked the entire southern end of the Dead Sea for the purpose
of producing carnallite, potassium
magnesium chloride, which is then processed further to produce potassium
chloride. The ponds are
separated by a central dike that runs—roughly north-south—along the
international border. The power plant on the Israeli
side allows production of magnesium metal (by a subsidiary, Dead Sea Magnesium
Ltd.).

Due to the popularity of the sea's therapeutic and healing properties,
several companies have also shown interest in the manufacturing and supplying of
Dead Sea salts as raw materials for body and skin care products.

[edit]
Recession and
environmental concerns

In recent decades, the Dead Sea has been rapidly shrinking because of
diversion of incoming water from the Jordan River to the north. The southern end
is fed by a canal maintained by the Dead Sea Works, a company that converts the
sea's raw materials. From a depression of 395 m (1,296 ft) below sea
level in 1970[30]
it fell 22 m (72 ft) to 418 m (1,371 ft) below sea level in
2006, reaching a drop rate of 1 m (3 ft) per year. As the water level
decreases, the characteristics of the Sea and surrounding region may
substantially change.

The Dead Sea level drop has been followed by a groundwater level drop,
causing brines that used to occupy underground layers near the shoreline to be
flushed out by freshwater. This is believed to be the cause of the recent
appearance of large sinkholes along the western
shore — incoming freshwater dissolves salt layers, rapidly creating subsurface
cavities that subsequently collapse to form these sinkholes.[31]

In May 2009 at the World Economic Forum, Jordan announced its plans to
construct the "Jordan National Red Sea Development Project" (JRSP). This is a
plan to convey seawater from the Red Sea near Aqaba to the Dead
Sea. Water would be desalinated along the route to provide fresh water to
Jordan, with the brine discharge sent to the Dead Sea for replenishment. As of
2009, the project is in its early phases of planning, with developer and
financier selection to be completed by year's end. The project is anticipated to
begin detailed design in early 2010, with water delivery by 2017. Israel has
expressed its support and will likely benefit from some of the water delivery to
its Negev region. Some hydro-power will be collected near the Dead Sea from the
dramatic change in elevation on the downhill side of the project.[citation
needed] In October 2009, the Jordanians announced
accelerated plans to extract around 300 million cubic meters of water per year
from the Red Sea, desalinate it for use as fresh water and send the waste water
to the Dead Sea by tunnel, despite concerns about inadequate time to assess the
potential environmental impact.[32]

At a regional conference in July 2009, officials expressed increased concerns
that water levels are dropping. Some suggested various industrial activities
around the Dead Sea might need to be reduced. Others advised a range of possible
environmental measures to restore conditions. This might include increasing the
volume of flow from the Jordan River to replenish the Dead Sea. Currently, only
sewage and effluent from fish ponds run in the river's channel. Experts also
asserted a need for strict conservation efforts. They also said agriculture
should not be expanded, sustainable support capabilities should be incorporated
into the area and pollution sources should be reduced.[33]

[edit]
Gallery

Israeli
highway beside the Dead Sea

Jordanian
highway along the Dead Sea coast

Twisty coastline

Coastline (from Israel)

A rough Dead Sea, with salt deposits on cliffs

Dead Sea northern coast (Jordan)

Located in Jordan, this sign diagrams the topography of Jordan, the West
Bank, Israel, and the Mediterranean Sea.

Dead Sea at dawn (from Sodom mountain, Israel)

Dead Sea at dusk (from Suwayma, Jordan)

Dead Sea at dusk (from Mövenpick Resort Dead
Sea, Jordan)

A tourist demonstrates the unusual buoyancy caused by high
salinity

Many people believe that the mud of the Dead Sea has special healing and
cosmetic uses.

Sinkholes at Mineral Beach

Cobble encrusted with halite evaporated from the Dead
Sea near Ein Gedi

Dead Sea from Masada

Line painted in 1900 (at top of image) by Robert A.S. Macalister of the Palestine
Exploration Fund showing the level of the Dead Sea

The Dead Sea region

Dead Sea seen from Jordan

Panorama of the Dead Sea from Masada, facing northeast. The area between
the two is visible, as well as Jordan in the
background.

[edit]
See also

Dead Sea Canal

Dead Sea Works

Great Salt Lake

List
of places on land with elevations below sea level

Two Seas Canal

Benjamin Elazari
Volcani

World
Discoveries III: Dead Sea

[edit]
References

^ a
b
Dead Sea Data Summary. International Lake Environment
Committee Foundation.

^ a
b
c
Monitoring of the Dead Sea. Israel Marine Data Center
(ISRAMAR).

^ a
b
The first article al- is unnecessary and usually not used.

^ Goetz, P.W.
(ed.) The New Encyclopaedia Britannica (15th ed.). Vol. 3, p. 937.
Chicago, 1986

^ R W McColl, ed (2005). Encyclopedia of world geography. Facts on File.
p. 237. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=DJgnebGbAB8C&pg=PA237&dq=Dead+sea+has+a+density++++swimming#v=onepage&q&f=false.

^ David Bridger; Samuel Wolk (September 1976). The New Jewish Encyclopedia. Behrman House, Inc.
p. 109. ISBN 9780874411201. http://books.google.com/books?id=hZqpCrG3qw0C&pg=PA109. Retrieved 25 July 2011. "It was named the
“Dead Sea” because of the fact that no living thing can exist there, since the
water is extremely salty and bitter."

^ See bitumen and asphalt for more about
asphaltite.

^ Springs and quicksand at the Dead Sea Retrieved on
2008-08-27

^ a
b
c
[1]

^
Geochemical Society; Meteoritical Society (1971).
Geochimica et cosmochimica acta. Pergamon Press.. http://books.google.com/books?id=3LccAQAAIAAJ. Retrieved 12 April 2011.

^ "Lowest
Elevation: Dead Sea". Extreme Science. http://www.extremescience.com/DeadSea.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-22.

^ "Climatological Averages
for Dead Sea". IMS. http://www.ims.gov.il/IMS/CLIMATE.

^ "Averages and
Records for several places in Israel". Israel Meteorological Service. June
2011. http://ims.gov.il/IMS/CLIMATE/LongTermInfo.

^ a
b
"Dead Sea
Canal". American.edu. 1996-12-09. http://www1.american.edu/TED/deadsea.htm. Retrieved 2009-05-05.

^ I.
Steinhorn, In Situ Salt Precipitation at the Dead Sea, Limnol.
Oceanogr. 28(3),1983, 580-583

^ Bein, A. and O. Amit (2007). The evolution of the Dead Sea floating asphalt blocks:
simulations by pyrolisis. Journal of Petroleum Geology. p. 439 -
447. http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/119589883/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0.

^ Niemi, Tina
M., Zvi Ben-Avraham and Joel Gat, eds., The Dead Sea: the lake and its
setting, 1997, Oxford University Press, p. 251 ISBN
978-0195087031

^ J. Rullkötter and A. Nissenbaum (December, 1988). "Dead sea asphalt in egyptian mummies: Molecular evidence".
Naturwissenschaften. http://www.springerlink.com/content/q227110151k37061/.

^ "Asthma, Cystic Fibrosis, Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease".
Dead Sea Research Center. http://www.deadsea-health.org/new_html/diseases_respiratory.html. Retrieved 2007-05-22.

^
Effectiveness of climatotherapy at the Dead Sea for psoriasis vulgaris: A
community‐oriented study introducing the ‘Beer Sheva Psoriasis Severity
Score’, Journal of Dermatological Treatment, 2005, Vol. 16, No. 5-6 , Pages
308-313 (doi:10.1080/09546630500375841).

^ S. Halevy
et al. Dead sea bath salt for the treatment of psoriasis vulgaris: a
double-blind controlled study. Journal of the European Academy of
Dermatology and Venereology, Volume 9, Issue 3: 237-242.

^ A
Randomized, Prospective, Double-Blind Study on the Efficacy of Dead Sea Salt
Nasal Irrigations. Michael Friedman, Ramakrishnan Vidyasagar, Ninos Joseph.
DOI: 10.1097/01.mlg.0000216798.10007. The Laryngoscope Volume 116, Issue 6,
pages 878–882, June 2006.

^ Therapy With Mud Compresses for Knee Osteoarthritis: Comparison
of Natural Mud Preparations With Mineral-Depleted Mud. Flusser, Daniel;
Abu-Shakra, Mahmoud; Friger, Michael; Codish, Shlomi; Sukenik, Shaul. Journal
of Clinical Rheumatology. August 2002 - Volume 8 - Issue 4 - pp 197-203

^ Found today
in the Shrine of the Book
at the Israel Museum of Jerusalem

^ Sodomite salt could cause blindness

^ A synagogue
mosaic floor (circa 100 BCE) at Ein Gedi repeats the Mishna, portraying a
curse on whoever reveals the town's secret persimmon recipe. Papyrus
parchments found in caves near the Dead Sea document the vast amount of
cultivated land in the area, especially persimmon trees, but also olive and
date trees

^ Josephus,
Antiquities of the
Jews 18.119.

^
staff writer, ArabianBusiness.com (2007-05-22). "Jordan's Dead Sea Comes to Life". Arabian Business. http://www.arabianbusiness.com/property/article/12982-jordanian-secret. Retrieved 2008-11-02.

^ "Wealth From The Dead Sea" Popular Mechanics ,November
1930

^ C. Klein,
A. Flohn, Contribution to the Knowledge in the Fluctuations of the Dead Sea
Level. Theoretical and Applied Climatology, vol. 38, p. 151–156, 1987

^ M. Abelson,
Y. Yechieli, O. Crouvi, G. Baer, D. Wachs, A. Bein, V. Shtivelman. "Evolution
of the Dead Sea Sinkholes", in New Frontiers in Dead Sea Paleoenvironmental
Research, Geological
Society of America, special paper 401, p. 241–253, 2006

^ Jordan to refill shrinking Dead Sea Daily Telegraph 13
October 2009

^ Back from the Dead?, Ehud Zion Waldoks, The Jerusalem Post,
July 8, 2009.

[edit]
Further reading

Yehouda Enzel, et al., eds (2006) New Frontiers in Dead Sea
Paleoenvironmental Research, Geological Society of America, ISBN
0-8137-2401-5

Niemi, Tina M., Ben-Avraham, Z., and Gat, J., eds., 1997, The Dead Sea:
The Lake and Its Setting: N.Y., Oxford University
Press, 286 p.

[edit]
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