The Dead
Sea is the lowest place on earth. There the earth has gone down to
a depth of 427 m below sea level. In the lowest place there are unique climatic
conditions (micro-climate) that make this the largest natural spa in the world
and this naturally attracts scholars and visitors from around the world year
round.
The Dead Sea is the lowest section of the
Syro-African Depression which is 6500 km long. Its length is about 50
kilometers and its maximum width, between Ein Gedi and Arnon is 17 km. The lake
volume is 140 billion m³ of water, in which about 50 billion tons
ofsalts and minerals are dissolved. The steep hilly shore on the east bank
leaves a very narrow lake edge. On the West Bank
the open areas are more widespread. They are a result of erosion that brings
with it various sediments and clay.
History
In the Jewish sources (the
Bible and the Scrolls) many names were given to the Dead Sea: Yam Ha-Arava (the
Arabah Sea),
the Sea of Lot,
Lake Sodom
and the Ancient Sea. The Roman historian Pompeius
Trogus, who lived at the end of the first century BCE, wrote: "This is a
gigantic lake which from its magnitude and the stillness of its waters is
called the Dead Sea". Since then the name
"Dead Sea" has become the common name of the Salt Sea
in the world.
The Dead Sea's properties fired the imagination of scholars and scientists in
the nineteenth century, including Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism,
who in his book "Altneuland" described a canal that would connect the
Mediterranean Sea to the lowest place on
earth, in order to utilize the height differences to create electricity.
Scholars from around the world came to the area in order to investigate the
phenomenon and contributed to its world renown as an exceptional site on the Earth.
Below Sea Level
Until 1837 nobody imagined that
the Dead Sea was below sea level. This was
discovered almost accidentally. When this fact became clear, to the surprise of
the entire world, the British "Royal Geographical Society" announced
a competition between the scientists, to determine the precise height of the Dead Sea in relation to sea level. The possibility that
the Dead Sea was the lowest place on earth
aroused extensive world interest. The British society's contribution to the
study of the subject was decisive. It created permanent interest both in the
subject of the height of the Sea and in development of advanced measuring
methods, essential for purposes of measuring the height differences.
In 1848 it was determined according to measurements by a device
called Theodolite that the height differences between the level of the
Mediterranean Sea and the level of the Dead Sea are 396 meters, and the height
of the Dead Sea below sea level was a fact. In
the twentieth century, because of the Sea's retreat, another 20 meters were
added to its height below sea level.
Today the main industry is concentrated in the southern part of the Sea, where
the veteran Israeli potassium plant founded in the 1930s works alongside the
Jordanian potassium plant that began production only in 1983.
Geographical Data
The qualities of the Dead Sea have become well-known universally in wake of
the scientific and geographical studies published since the late nineteenth
century. Its waters are the saltiest in the world, the historic and cultural
sites dispersed around it give it an appealing beauty, combining between the
history of the three religions, and the surrounding wild landscape is one of
the most beautiful in the world.
The area of the Dead Sea, which is at the center of the Syro-African
Depression, is distinguished by its macroclimate and unique surface conditions
that make it the best natural healing site in the world for various illnesses.
In recent decades treatment centers have developed here, which utilize the
great medical know-how accrued in relation to the area's natural healing
qualities. In the last decade many studies have been carried out to assess the
effectiveness of the treatment and the action mechanism of the climatotherapy
at the Dead Sea in various fields of healing.
On a parallel, the factors of the environment, the climate and all the natural
resources in the area that create the "spa" have been examined and
analyzed as have the mineral elements serving the cosmetics industry and
medicine.
Sun and Radiation
The uniqueness of solar
radiation in the Dead Sea area is
characterized by an ultraviolet (UV) radiation composition which has relatively
few short rays (UVB) as against long rays (UVA). The difference in the
radiation composition, characterizing the low area, derives from the unique
climatic conditions of the Dead Sea area. The
weak radiation is a result of the longer path that the rays must traverse until
they reach the ground (417 m below sea level) and also the existence of a misty
cloud standing over the Dead Sea on most days
of the year.
Radiation measurements have shown that the UVB (the short rays) radiation
spectrum is weaker. Therefore, at the Dead Sea
it is possible to stay in the sun longer without sunburn damages caused by the
short rays. However, even at the Dead Sea
gradual exposure is recommended and during the safe hours of the day (morning
and afternoon).
The natural screen created at the Dead Sea
leaves the rays with the healing qualities for skin diseases, such as psoriasis.
This attracts to the site thousands of vacationers seeking a natural remedy for
the different skin diseases.
The Air
In this field, as in the field
of radiation, multiyear studies were carried out to monitor the air components
and evaluate the different qualities of the atmosphere. Because of the low
height in relation to sea level, high atmospheric pressure is created in the Dead Sea area, which makes the air rich in oxygen (6%
more than over sea level). In addition the air is rich in mineral particles
including in particular magnesium and bromine.
Additional factors making the air at the Dead Sea
unique are the hot and fixed temperatures most days of the year, dryness in an
area where there is little rainfall, few environmental pollution particles
(there is little vehicular traffic and few polluting industrial areas) and
sparse desert flora that does not release allergens into the air.
The Water
The Dead
Sea is in fact a saltwater lake. Its length is about 50 km and its
maximum width, between Ein Gedi and Arnon, is 17 km. The volume of the lake is
140 billion m³ of water, in which about 50 billion tons of salts and
minerals are diluted. The concentration of salinity in the Dead Sea is 34 parts
to one hundred as against 1.4 parts to one hundred in the water of the Bay of Eilat,
which is part of the saltiest open sea in the world.
The level of the Dead Sea is in constant
retreat. In the last sixty years the sea area was reduced from 1000 km² to 650
km² (approximately 35%). The rate of the level's retreat has stabilized in
recent years at one meter yearly, but even though the level is likely to be
reduced also in the next few years there is no real danger that the lake will
disappear, because of the relative increase in the percentage of the salt and
reduction of the surface area of the water - phenomena that suppress
evaporation.
The Dead Sea's unique composition of natural
minerals derives from dissolving of the salt created in the natural evaporation
process of the lake's water. The compound is refined through the solar
radiation which neutralizes the sodium chloride (that sinks to the bottom) and
leaves the compound rich with a high concentration of cation minerals such
as magnesium, sodium and calcium and anion minerals such as phosphorus and
boron. The high concentration causes high density of the water and consequently
it is possible to float on it.
A large part of the Dead Sea salts and minerals penetrate the skin
and this makes the Dead Sea the only area in the world in which the natural healing
method of climatotherapy is applied for treatment of various diseases.
In addition hot mineral springs flow around the Dead Sea shores, natural hot springs that are rich
in sulfur and minerals. The mineral composition and the high temperature
of the springs make them unique as factors in relief of different types of skin
and joint diseases.
Dead
Sea Mud
The mud produced from
the banks of the Dead Sea has become famous
around the world because of its healing capacities in stress relief, releasing painful
muscles and healing rheumatic pains. The organic mud, black in color (which in
its natural form is characterized by a sharp smell) is made up of layers of the
mountain soil and silt from the waters of the Jordan River
and the springs, and it has sunk deep into the lake. On its way the soil
absorbs a very rich concentration of minerals and enriches the lake's
waters.
Scientific studies carried out on the mineral mud have
proved, beyond any doubt, its benefits in maintaining a healthy skin. The mud has
a strong cleansing capacity which absorbs pollutions, fat and secretions from
the skin (it has been proved clinically that Streptococci do not survive in
mud). In addition, it has capacities for rehabilitation, renewal and
strengthening of the skin layer and is thus ideal for healing rheumatic pains,
relieving symptoms of chronic inflammation and increased dryness of skin,
seborrhea, psoriasis and eczema.
