TY  - JOUR
A1  - Mohsen, Ayman
A1  - Kind, Rainer
A1  - Sobolev, Stephan Vladimir
A1  - Weber, Michael
T1  - Thickness of the lithosphere east of the Dead Sea Transform
JF  - Geophysical journal international
N2  - We use the S receiver function method to study the lithosphere at the Dead Sea Transform (DST). A temporary network of 22 seismic broad-band stations was operated on both sides of the DST from 2000 to 2001 as part of the DESERT project. We also used data from six additional permanent broad-band seismic stations at the DST and in the surrounding area, that is, in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Cyprus. Clear S-to-P converted phases from the crust-mantle boundary (Moho) and a deeper discontinuity, which we interpret as lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB) have been observed. The Moho depth (30-38 km) obtained from S receiver functions agrees well with the results from P receiver functions and other geophysical data. We observe thinning of the lithosphere on the eastern side of the DST from 80 km in the north of the Dead Sea to about 65 km at the Gulf of Aqaba. On the western side of the DST, the few data indicate a thin LAB of about 65 km. For comparison, we found a 90-km-thick lithosphere in eastern Turkey and a 160-km-thick lithosphere under the Arabian shield, respectively. These observations support previous suggestions, based on xenolith data, heat flow observations, regional uplift history and geodynamic modelling, that the lithosphere around DST has been significantly thinned in the Late Cenozoic, likely following rifting and spreading of the Red Sea.
KW  - Dead Sea Transform
KW  - S receiver functions
KW  - thickness of the lithosphere
Y1  - 2006
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03185.x
SN  - 0956-540X
SN  - 1365-246X
VL  - 167
IS  - 2
SP  - 845
EP  - 852
PB  - Blackwell
CY  - Oxford
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Koulakov, Ivan
A1  - Sobolev, Stephan Vladimir
A1  - Weber, Bernd
A1  - Oreshin, Sergey
A1  - Wylegalla, Kurt
A1  - Hofstetter, Rami
T1  - Teleseismic tomography reveals no signature of the Dead Sea Transform in the upper mantle structure
JF  - Earth and planetary science letters
N2  - We present results of a tomographic inversion of teleseismic data recorded at 48 stations of a temporary network which was installed in the area of the Dead Sea Transform (DST) and operated for 1 yr in the framework of the multidisciplinary DESERT Project. The 3366 teleseismic P and PKP phases from 135 events were hand picked and corrected for surface topography and crustal thickness. The inversion shows pronounced low-velocity anomalies in the crust, beneath the DST, which are consistent with recent results from local-source tomography. These anomalies are likely related to the young sediments and fractured rocks in the fault zone. The deeper the retrieved anomalies are quite weak. Most prominent is the high-velocity strip-like anomaly striking SE-NW. We attribute this anomaly to the inherited heterogeneity of lithospheric structure, with a possible contribution by the shallow Precambrian basement east of the DST and to lower crustal heterogeneity reported in this region by other seismic studies. We do not observe reliable signature of the DST in the upper mantle structure. Some weak indications of low-velocity anomalies in the upper mantle beneath the DST may well result from the down-smearing of the strong upper crustal anomalies. We also see very little topography of the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary beneath the DST, which would generate significant horizontal velocity variations. These results are consistent with predictions from a recent thereto-mechanical model of the DST. Our tomographic model provides some indication of hot mantle flow from the deeper upper mantle rooted in the region of the Red Sea. However, resolution tests show that this anomaly may well be beyond resolution of the model. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
KW  - teleseismic tomography
KW  - Dead Sea Transform
KW  - lithosphere
KW  - asthenosphere
KW  - tectonophysics
Y1  - 2006
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2006.09.039
SN  - 0012-821X
VL  - 252
IS  - 1-2
SP  - 189
EP  - 200
PB  - Elsevier
CY  - Amsterdam
ER  -