Spatially-resolved uplift rate of the Mount Sedom (Dead Sea) salt diapir from InSAR observations

Abstract

Pe’eri, S., Zebker, H.A., Ben-Avraham, Z., Frumkin, A., and Hall, J.K. 2004. Spatially-resolved uplift rate of the Mount Sedom (Dead Sea) salt diapir from InSAR observations. Israel J. Earth Sci. 53: 99‐106. Mt. Sedom, a diapiric “salt wall” southwest of the Dead Sea, was formed by extrusion of salt layers through passages in overlying sediments. Here we present the spatiallyresolved uplift rate of the salt body diapir derived from spaceborne Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) observations. Although the average uplift rate has been estimated, spatially resolved uplift was not available due to the paucity of uplift observations. We processed 13 interferograms (InSAR deformation images) spanning time periods ranging from 421 to 1949 days, and calculated the spatial distribution of uplift rate for the two blocks that make up Mt. Sedom. We found average uplift rates of 8.27 ± 0.28 mm/yr and 6.88 ± 0.31 mm/yr for the northern and the southern blocks, respectively. These results represent relatively high values when compared to others measured in salt diapirs around the world (excluding certain domes in Iran). The tectonic processes in the area may influence these relatively high values, and the division of the diapir into two blocks.