Sedimentary Traces of Tsunamis in the Aegean Sea During the Last 1500 Years

Abstract

As high energy tsunami waves reach shallow near-shore environments, the height of the waves increases and sea water propagates towards the land. During this movement, significant amounts of sediment are transported inland from the nearshore, foreshore and beach. While a lagoon that is separated from the sea by a low, thin sand barrier has a relatively calm depositional environment under normal conditions, during a tsunami the sea water climbs over the sand barrier and deposits material from the nearshore, foreshore and sand barrier onto inner parts of the lagoon. This phenomenon is the reason why investigation of sedimentary sequences in lagoons reveals the sedimentary traces of past tsunamis. In this study, the physical and geochemical properties of sediments in two ca. 3.2 m-long cores collected from Karine Lagoon on the coast of Aydın-Söke (western Turkey) were investigated in order to determine the traces of past tsunamis in the Aegean Sea. An ITRAX micro-XRF scanner was used to obtain 0.2 mm-resolution radiographic images and 1mm-resolution XRF data from the cores. High-resolution analysis detected three heterogeneous and high-density intercalations within the relatively homogenous and occasionally laminated background sediments. XRF data revealed that these intercalations had significantly higher Ca/Ti values compared to the background sediments, i.e. they were rich in carbonates. Observation under a stereo-microscope determined that while the background sediments contained fresh bivalve shells smaller than 1 cm in diameter, the intercalations contained weathered/broken bivalve shells approximately 4 cm in diameter. Considering the physical and geochemical observations together, it was concluded that the intercalations containing relatively coarser and intensely-weathered bivalve shells are deposits that were transported from the sand barrier of the lagoon during tsunamis. Radiocarbon dating shows that three intercalations in the sequence of Karine Lagoon were deposited during the tsunamis, from AD 1956, 1650 and 1303.

Keywords

• Karine Lagoon
• core radiography
• ITRAX micro-XRF scanner
• radiocarbon
• paleotsunami

Son 1500 Yıl Boyunca Ege Denizi’ndeki Tsunamilerin Sedimanter İzleri

Abstract

Yüksek enerjili tsunami dalgaları kıyıya yakın sığ bölgelere yaklaştıkça dalga yüksekliği artarak, deniz suyu karasal alanlara doğru tırmanır/ilerler, ve bu ilerleme sırasında yakın kıyı, kıyı önü ve kumsaldan ciddi miktarda sediman karaya doğru taşınır. Normal koşullar altında, alçak ve ince bir kum bariyeri ile denizden ayrılan bir lagün görece sakin bir çökelim ortamına sahipken, tsunami sırasında deniz suyu kum bariyerini aşarak lagünün iç kısımlarına yakın kıyı, kıyı önü ve kum bariyere ait sedimanları taşır. Bu nedenle, lagünlerdeki sedimanter istiflerin araştırılması, geçmişte meydana gelmiş tsunamilerin sedimanter izlerinin bulunmasında önemli rol oynar. Bu çalışmada, Karine Lagünü’nden alınan yaklaşık 3,2 m uzunluktaki iki adet karot boyunca sedimanların fiziksel ve jeokimyasal özellikleri incelenmiş, ve Ege Denizi’nde geçmişte meydana gelmiş tsunamilerin izleri araştırılmıştır. ITRAX mikro-XRF karot tarayıcısı kullanılarak, karotlar boyunca 0,2 mm çözünürlükte radyografik görüntüleme ve 1 mm çözünürlükte XRF taraması yapılmıştır. Yapılan bu yüksek çözünürlüklü analizler ışığında, görece homojen ve bazen ince tabakalanmalı istifin içinde, iki karotta da belirgin bir şekilde gözlenen, yüksek yoğunluğa sahip ve heterojen yapıda üç adet ara katman tespit edilmiştir. XRF verileri incelendiğinde, bu ara katmanlardaki Ca/Ti değerlerinin belirgin bir şekilde istifin geri kalanından daha yüksek olduğu, yani ara katmanların karbonatça zengin olduğu görülmüştür. Stereo mikroskop ile yapılan incelemelerde, istifin genelini temsil eden seviyelerde çökellerin genellikle 1 cm’den küçük bozuşmamış bivalv kavkıları içerdiği, buna karşın ara katmaların ise çapları yaklaşık 4 cm’yi bulan ve yüzeylerinde belirgin bozuşma izleri olan bivalv kavkıları içerdiği görülmüştür. Fiziksel ve jeokimyasal gözlemler birlikte değerlendirildiğinde, görece iri taneli ve bozuşmaya uğramış bivalv kavkıları içeren bu ara katmanların, tsunamiler sırasında lagünün kum bariyerinden taşınan tsunami çökelleri olduğu sonucuna varılmıştır. Radyokarbon tarihlendirmeleri, Karine Lagünü’ndeki üç adet ara katmanın M.S. 1956, 1650 ve 1303 yıllarındaki tsunamilerden kaynaklandığını göstermektedir.

Keywords

• Karine Lagünü
• karot radyografisi
• ITRAX mikro-XRF tarayıcı
• radyokarbon
• tsunami
• paleotsunami

Thanks

Bu çalışma, Avrupa Komisyonu “Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions – Individual Fellowships” programı tarafından desteklenen ve Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi Jeoloji Mühendisliği Bölümü’nde yürütülmüş olan “Towards a paleotsunami chronology in the southern Aegean and Levantine seas, Eastern Mediterranean (EASTMED-PALEOTSUNAMI)” başlıklı proje kapsamında yapılmıştır. Yazar; Özgür Avşar (Muğla Sıtkı Koçman Üniversitesi), Bülent Tokay (Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi), Emre Çetinkaya (Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi), Emrah Ürün ve Sinan Altıok’a karot alma çalışmalarına yaptıkları katkılardan dolayı ve Zeynep Bektaş’a (Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi) u-kanal çıkarma işlemleri sırasındaki yardımlarından dolayı teşekkür eder.

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