Research Article| November 01, 2012 36Cl exposure dating of paleoearthquakes in the Eastern Mediterranean: First results from the western Anatolian Extensional Province, Manisa fault zone, Turkey Naki Akçar; Naki Akçar † 1Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 1-3, 3012 Bern, Switzerland †E-mail: akcar@geo.unibe.ch Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Dmitry Tikhomirov; Dmitry Tikhomirov 1Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 1-3, 3012 Bern, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Çağlar Özkaymak; Çağlar Özkaymak 1Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 1-3, 3012 Bern, Switzerland2Engineering Geological Department, Dokuz Eylül University, 35160 İzmir, Turkey Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Susan Ivy-Ochs; Susan Ivy-Ochs 3Institute of Particle Physics, ETH Hönggerberg, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Vasily Alfimov; Vasily Alfimov 3Institute of Particle Physics, ETH Hönggerberg, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Hasan Sözbilir; Hasan Sözbilir 2Engineering Geological Department, Dokuz Eylül University, 35160 İzmir, Turkey Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Bora Uzel; Bora Uzel 2Engineering Geological Department, Dokuz Eylül University, 35160 İzmir, Turkey Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Christian Schlüchter Christian Schlüchter 1Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 1-3, 3012 Bern, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar GSA Bulletin (2012) 124 (11-12): 1724–1735. https://doi.org/10.1130/B30614.1 Article history received: 03 Oct 2011 rev-recd: 14 Apr 2012 accepted: 19 Apr 2012 first online: 08 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Naki Akçar, Dmitry Tikhomirov, Çağlar Özkaymak, Susan Ivy-Ochs, Vasily Alfimov, Hasan Sözbilir, Bora Uzel, Christian Schlüchter; 36Cl exposure dating of paleoearthquakes in the Eastern Mediterranean: First results from the western Anatolian Extensional Province, Manisa fault zone, Turkey. GSA Bulletin 2012;; 124 (11-12): 1724–1735. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/B30614.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract Based on historical and instrumental data, societies in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East have survived at least 150 large earthquakes (generally M > 6) during the past 2500 yr. Beyond this time span, an earthquake chronology is mostly unknown, which hampers the production of reliable long-term earthquake models. Since the only remaining evidence of seismic activity is a bedrock scarp, cosmogenic 36Cl is the only suitable nuclide to be applied in the determination of the seismic history and slip rate of an active limestone fault plane. In this study, we focus on the 4-m-high Mugırtepe fault scarp within the active Manisa fault zone in western Anatolia, one of the most seismically active and rapidly extending regions in the world. We analyzed 44 samples in two slightly overlapping strips, which in total covered 2.65 m of the fault scarp. In order to determine the timing and the amount of slip of the paleoseismic events, we analyzed the measured 36Cl concentrations using the Schlagenhauf Matlab® code. We used two different scenarios based on two different inherited 36Cl concentrations as constrained by our data and modeling. The best fit for the first scenario yields two seismic events, one at 13.7 ± 0.8 ka with a displacement of 0.5 ± 0.2 m and one at 7.8 ± 0.5 ka with 2.15 ± 0.35 m offset. For the second scenario, we obtained a single seismic event at 8.6 ± 0.6 ka with 2.65 ± 0.35 m of slip. These results indicate that the visible part of the Mugırtepe exposed fault scarp had achieved most of its displacement already by 8 ka. Initial surface faulting at Mugırtepe occurred not later than around 14 ka, and marked seismic activity continued until around 8 ka. Our first results from the western Anatolian Extensional Province show the ability to reveal periods of enhanced seismic activity beyond historical data using cosmogenic 36Cl. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.