O Dead Sea is a sea of extremely salty water located in the Middle East, more precisely on the border of the territories of Israel, Palestine and Jordan. It receives this name because it does not present conditions for the maintenance of life, due to the high level of salinity. It is the largest absolute depression in the world, at about 400m below ocean level.
The level of salt in the waters of the Dead Sea is close to 35%, being much higher than the average of other seas and oceans, which usually have a degree of salinity around 5%. This is because it is a closed sea, that is, surrounded by land on all sides, so that its only source of supply is the River Jordan. As the region is very hot, water evaporates very quickly, but minerals do not, which contributes to the high amount of salt.
The Dead Sea is known to be a river where it is not possible to sink. Also due to its amount of salt, its water body is very dense, much more than the body of any living being. The large amount of minerals also contributes to its medicinal benefits, which increases the number of tourists who bathe in the sea looking to improve their skin aesthetically or even to cure themselves of diseases dermatological.
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Despite being a closed sea, with no contact with the ocean, the Dead Sea has been suffering a decrease in its water levels. Previously, the amount of water deposited by the River Jordan was practically the same amount of water that evaporated. However, with the exploration of the Jordan – the main river in a region that is characterized by the lack of of water -, the amount of water deposited became considerably less than the amount that evaporates. As a result, the sea has been gradually suffering with the decrease in its volume.
There is still no consensus on the future of the Dead Sea. Some scholars claim that if exploration over the Jordan does not decrease, the Dead Sea will dry up. Others claim that the trend is for its volume to stabilize over time. In any case, there are projects that intend to connect it to the Red Sea, which is also generating repercussions, as this could radically transform the environment of both seas.
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¹ Image credits: Chameleons Eye and Shutterstock
By Rodolfo Alves Pena
Graduated in Geography
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
PENA, Rodolfo F. Alves. "Dead Sea"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/geografia/mar-morto.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
