Subsurface Structure of Saudi Cross-Border City of NEOM Deduced from Magnetic Data

Abstract

AbstractSaudi Arabia government announced the $500 billion mega project “NEOM City.” It is located on the eastern side of the Gulf of Aqaba with the Sinai Peninsula on its western side. The selected site is geographically remarkable; nevertheless, it needs detailed geological and geophysical investigations. The current study aimed to understand the subsurface structure and tectonic setting of the vicinity of the NEOM City to address the potential seismic hazard and indicate geological attractions within and around the city. We used the available magnetic data in the analysis. From these data, the geological information and thermal system can be obtained. Preliminary results indicate that there is geological similarity between the southern part of Sinai Peninsula and northern part of the Arabian Shield. This is because the Gulf of Aqaba separates what was once a continuous Neoproterozoic crust. Results had shown the presence of prominent lineaments on both sides of the Gulf of Aqaba; hence, selecting a site of the NEOM City to be east of the gulf needs to be guided by careful understanding of potential seismic hazard. The Gulf of Aqaba separates the Sinai Peninsula from the northern Arabian Shield, and some of these lineaments might represent faults that can be still active. Future work will use a remote-sensing tool to get more insights into surface kinematics of these lineaments. It is expected that the combination of the magnetic and remote sensing results will produce a clearer picture about the neotectonics of the study area.KeywordsNEOM CitySeismic hazardsMagnetic techniquesRemote-sensing techniques