MITZPE RAMON, ISRAEL — Yoav Avni and I have a tradition on Shabbat. We drive somewhere to explore interesting geology and history unconnected to current projects. It’s not really work — it’s geotourism. We are, though, always talking about new ideas. Today we traveled south of Mitzpe Ramon into the “deep desert” of the Arava below the Negev Highlands.
The morning view south across Makhtesh Ramon was spectacular. It isn’t conveyed very well through an image only 585 pixels wide, but it is a perspective of unusual clarity. The purple streak at the top represents mountains in western Jordan. The haze just below them is in the Arava Valley. We are looking across most of the Negev.
Our mission today was to visit Be’er Ada (Bir Abu ‘Auda), an historic well, and the geology around it. (N30.32229°, E34.90701°, if you’re following at home.) The top image on this post is a view from the road to the well. Just above is a grove of acacia trees near the well. The abundance of these trees, and their good health, is an indication of accessible water.
Here is Yoav peering down into Be’er Ada. (“Be’er” means well.) It is at least twenty meters deep. The base is filled with silt, so it will have to be dug out to supply water again. This well is thousands of years old and has been a critical watering spot in the Negev for traveling groups. The next nearest well is to the east about 40 km away. Another 40 km or so to the west is another well. Be’er Ada was active as late as the 1950s, and likely had sporadic use afterwards. The water here accumulates on the impermeable clays of the Taqiya Formation (Paleocene).
This is a view from near Be’er Ada to the main geological interest for me: the the orangish Hazeva Formation (Miocene) topped unconformably by the gray Pleistocene Arava Formation. We will spend much more intimate time with these units in the next post. Note the graceful acacia trees.
This area is next to a complex fault system. On the left is a down-dropped block of Hazeva and Arava, with Cretaceous rocks on the right. The fault is also part of the reason for the subterranean water resources at Be’er Ada.
In the middle of the image is an example of the pareidolia so common in stark landscapes. Some people see a face in profile. Apparently tour guides like to call this the head of “Ada” for whom the well was named. However, there never was such a woman!
Note the excellent weather in these images. A perfect Negev day! Thank you to Yoav for being such a generous host.
