2 research outputs found
retracted sediment deposit dynamics along and across the lebanese continental shelf and slope
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Geothermal flow and water-load seafloor depth of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea
We used bathymetry, sediment thickness and terrestrial heat-flow data to investigate the nature of the Eastern
Mediterranean Sea lithosphere. We processed bathymetric data by removing the subsidence caused by sediment deposition to
obtain the water-loaded seafloor depth. Terrestrial heat flow measurements were corrected for sedimentation and climatic
changes to infer the purely conductive steady-state geothermal flow. Water-load seafloor depths and thermal data were then
compared to reference models of continental lithosphere stretching and ocean plate cooling. The results argue that the
Levantine Basin is floored by a continental stretched crust that thinned by a factor of 1.6-2.7, whereas the Herodotus Basin
crust is of oceanic type. The water-loaded seafloor depths in all the Eastern Mediterranean are consistent with geological
ages of > 250 Ma. The mantle heat flow in the Herodotus Basin (33 mW m-2) is consistent with that of the oceanic Ionian
lithosphere, whereas in the Levantine Basin (26 mW m-2) is comparable to that of the Sinai continental microplate