How did the Messinian Salinity Crisis end?

  1. Nicolas Loget,
  2. Jean Van Den Driessche,
  3. Philippe Davy

Article first published online: 23 MAY 2005

DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3121.2005.00627.x

Issue

Terra Nova

Terra Nova

Volume 17, Issue 5, pages 414–419, October 2005

Additional Information

How to Cite

Loget, N., Driessche, J. V. D. and Davy, P. (2005), How did the Messinian Salinity Crisis end?. Terra Nova, 17: 414–419. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3121.2005.00627.x

Author Information

  1. Géosciences Rennes, Université de Rennes 1, UMR 6118, Campus de Beaulieu, 35042 Rennes cedex, France

*Nicolas Loget, Géosciences Rennes, Université de Rennes 1, UMR 6118, Campus de Beaulieu, 35042 Rennes cedex, France. Tel.: 00 33 2 23 23 66 30; fax: 00 33 2 23 23 67 80; e-mail: nicolas.loget@univ-rennes1.fr

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 27 JUL 2005
  2. Article first published online: 23 MAY 2005
  3. Received 30 October 2004; revised version accepted 18 March 2005

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Abstract

The cause of the desiccation of the Mediterranean Sea during the Messinian Salinity Crisis has been widely debated, but its re-flooding remains poorly investigated. Interpretations generally involve tectonic collapse of the Strait of Gibraltar or global sea-level rise, or even a combination of both. The dramatic sea-level fall in the Mediterranean has induced deep fluvial incision all around the desiccated basin. We investigate erosion dynamics related to this base level drop by using the numerical simulator EROS. We show that intense regressive erosion develops inevitably in the Gibraltar area eventually inducing the piracy of the Atlantic waters by an eastward-flowing stream and the subsequent re-flooding of the Mediterranean.

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