STS-096 Earth Sciences and Image Analysis Photographic Highlights

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STS096-724-53
photo ID STS096-724-53
STS096-724-53         Click the photo number to access all resolutions available and the database record.
Sinai Peninsula, Dead Sea and Eastern Mediterranean Sea: The Sinai Peninsula of Egypt is centered in this southwestward view; the Red Sea, Gulf of Suez, Suez Canal, and Nile River delta lie beyond. Bahrat Hims, Syria, is the pale blue lake near the center on one end. The Gulf of Aqaba, Dead Sea, and the Sea of Galilee define the eastern margin of the Peninsula. The city of Haifa is on the peninsula directly west of the Sea of Galilee; Beirut, Lebanon occupies the next prominent peninsula to the north.

The Dead Sea fault zone marks the boundary between the African and Arabian tectonic plates; Sinai Peninsula is the northeastern tip of the African plate, which is being pulled apart by the Red Sea rift. This is one of the best photos to date of the region where the Dead Sea fault zone splays to the northeast in Syria. Those northeasterly faults and the East Anatolian fault zone define the margin between the Arabian and Eurasian plates.

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