\u201cSeven of the biggest volcanic explosions to rock the Earth\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
Volcanism is a much less prominent component of the geological history here in Israel. \u00a0But that doesn\u2019t mean that the area is geologically quiescent. \u00a0Earthquakes, for example, have been recurrent events, both prehistorically and, quite significantly, during historical times.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Jordan Rift Valley, which is also called the Syro-African Depression, is a major factor in the area\u2019s geological history. \u00a0It runs between Israel\/Palestine and today\u2019s Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. \u00a0It\u00a0includes the entire length of the Jordan River \u2014\u00a0from its sources around Mount Hermon in the north through the Huleh Valley (where a lake existed until relatively recently), on through the Sea of Galilee\u00a0and the Lower Jordan Valley\u00a0to the\u00a0Dead Sea, the lowest point\u00a0on Earth\u2019s surface,\u00a0continuing\u00a0through Arabah\u00a0depression\u00a0and the Gulf of Aqaba (or, if you\u2019re an Israeli, the Gulf of Eilat),\u00a0until it finally reaches the\u00a0Red Sea\u00a0proper at the Straits of Tiran.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Jordan Rift Valley was formed during\u00a0the\u00a0Miocene epoch (roughly 24 million to 5 million years\u00a0ago) when\u00a0the Arabian Plate\u00a0moved northward and then eastward away from Africa. One million years later, the land between the Mediterranean Sea\u00a0and the Jordan Rift Valley rose \u2014 that\u2019s the land upon which much of biblical history occurred and where the state of Israel now sits \u2014 so that sea water stopped flooding the area. \u00a0Movement hasn\u2019t altogether ceased, though, so significant\u00a0seismic events\u00a0do still occur. \u00a0Many of the region\u2019s ruins (for example, at Beth Shan, or Beit She\u2019an) show distinct signs of earthquake damage.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Posted from Tel Aviv, Israel<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u00a0 \u00a0 Fascinating (if slightly alarming) reading: \u00a0 https:\/\/cosmosmagazine.com\/geoscience\/the-science-of-supervolcanoes \u00a0 And don\u2019t miss this, too: \u00a0 \u201cSeven of the biggest volcanic explosions to rock the Earth\u201d \u00a0 Volcanism is a much less prominent component of the geological history here in Israel. \u00a0But that doesn\u2019t mean that the area is geologically quiescent. \u00a0Earthquakes, for example, have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41873","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
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<\/a>