Abstract
At the northern edge of Sahara-Arabia, dust settles in water-bodies or forms widespread loess. Sr, Pb, and Nd isotopic ratios determine sources of atmospheric dust to the Levant in these vast deserts. Combining results of contemporary storms, Sr-Nd isotopes and Mg/Al of Negev loess, fine-grained deposits in the Red Sea and from the Dead Sea indicate shifts in delivery synoptic systems. The samples Nd-Sr results are in-between the fields of (mostly) Proterozoic Sahara Shields, late Proterozoic Arabian Nubian Shield (ANS) and Nile sediments containing Neogene-Quaternary basaltic derived material. The relative fraction of each of the source end members in the final sinks reflects configurations of atmospheric-synoptic patterns and their delivery efficiencies, which in turn, are related to regional changes in climate. Easttern Mediterranean cold frontal depressions and Sharav cyclones deliver most of the dust from the Sahara; Red Sea trough delivers fine-grain material from the Red Sea region and is responsible for bringing dust from ANS rock sources. During intervals of more frequent occurrences of Red Sea trough, the isotopic composition of the dust shifted accordingly.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Quaternary of the Levant |
| Subtitle of host publication | Environments, climate change, and humans |
| Editors | Y. Enzel, O. Bar-Yosef |
| Place of Publication | Cambridge |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| Pages | 483-492 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781107090460 |
| State | Published - 2017 |
RAMBI Publications
- Rambi Publications
- Dust -- Middle East
- Isotope geology -- Middle East
- Loess -- Middle East