Mediterranean Sea Dried Up Five Million Years Ago

ScienceDaily ^ | Thursday, February 12, 2009 | Utrecht University

[SunkenCiv]

Approximately five million years ago, the Mediterranean Sea dried up after it was sealed off from the Atlantic Ocean. According to earth scientist Rob Govers of Utrecht University, a reduction in the weight on the Earth's crust led to the Straits of Gibraltar moving upwards. Govers will publish his conclusions in the February issue of the earth sciences journal Geology.

Much like a mattress springs back into shape after you get off it, the Earth's crust moves upwards when sea levels fall. Known as isostasy, this phenomenon explains how the Mediterranean Sea was sealed off from the Atlantic Ocean five million years ago. This 'dam' would remain in place for 170,000 years. Much like today, the rate of evaporation in the Mediterranean Sea five million years ago greatly exceeded the incoming flow of water. As no more water was introduced via the Straits of Gibraltar, the water evaporated and the Mediterranean Sea dried up completely.

Restoration of the connection with the Atlantic Ocean

After being separated for 170,000 years, the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean were once again connected. Govers believes that the movement of the Earth's crust played a crucial role. The African Plate subducts under the Eurasian Plate beneath Gibraltar and the weight of the subducting edge of the African Plate may have pulled the entire region downwards. Govers submits CT scans of the inner layers of the Earth's crust and measurements of gravitational forces as evidence: both the scans and the measurements indicate the presence of a heavy mass up to 400 kilometres beneath the area.

[SunkenCiv]

Some of the story of that research can be found in the beginning of the book “Noah’s Flood”. Either Ryan or Pitman (or was it both?) was one of the discoverers.

[cogitator]

A brief history of the Messinian on Sicily

Another neat Web site -- I'm going to have to watch this one:

Messinian online

Regarding the discovery, it was Ryan. Read the abstract to this one (main guy was Kenneth Hsu):

STABLE ISOTOPE INVESTIGATIONS OF THE MIOCENE EVAPORITES AND PLIOCENE AND PLEISTOCENE SEDIMENTARY ROCKS AND OOZES (PDF!!)

One more, this is really a great summary.

Profiles in Catastrophism: The Desertification and Deluge of the Mediterranean Basin

[gleeaikin]

If I remember correctly, H.G. Wells in his “Outline of History” has a map at the end of the last Ice Age showing the Mediterranian as two large inland seas with a land bridge at Gibraltar and Sicily. I believe the conjecture was that as the sea rose it flooded over Gibraltar, filled the Med. and may have been one source of some of the early flood myths. I sure hope that underwater archeology will start making serious searches around what would have been early river mouths which are now underwater.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks cogitator for all five of those links.

[SunkenCiv]

• The Mediterranean Was A Desert
• Colossal Flood Created the Mediterranean Sea
• mediterraneanflood keyword