Abstract
This paper presents and analyzes paleo-liquefaction features found in the State of Kuwait. The features are cemented sand and gravel-filled dikes of Pleisto–Holocene age with appearance and composition similar to typical “sandstone pipes.” The significant age difference between the cemented dikes and the surrounding loose sand, the size and spatial distribution of the dikes, and the local geologic and hydrologic setting all suggest that the feature probably results from a single large event of seismic origin. Likely hypotheses include shaking during large earthquakes or seiching of tsunami-like waves. Additional research is needed to identify the exact cause of these dike formations, which is important for the purpose of improving seismic risk and vulnerability assessment of the Arabian Gulf countries. The search may also help explain the disappearance of an ancient civilization that lived in the same region approximately seven thousand years ago.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 799-813 |
| Number of pages | 15 |
| Journal | Natural Hazards |
| Volume | 103 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Aug 1 2020 |
Funding
The authors gratefully acknowledge funding by the National Science Foundation through the George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation, and Civil Mechanical and Fracturing Innovation Programs (Grants Nos. 0530759 and 0649155). We are grateful to Professor Erik Vanmarcke for collaboration in the early stages of this research. We thank Dr. Sayed Behbehani for permission to adapt the photograph in Fig. 5 b. The paper was improved through the constructive comments of two anonymous reviewers. The authors gratefully acknowledge funding by the National Science Foundation through the George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation, and Civil Mechanical and Fracturing Innovation Programs (Grants Nos. 0530759 and 0649155). We are grateful to Professor Erik Vanmarcke for collaboration in the early stages of this research. We thank Dr. Sayed Behbehani for permission to adapt the photograph in Fig. b. The paper was improved through the constructive comments of two anonymous reviewers.
Keywords
- Kuwait
- Liquefaction
- Seismic risk
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Water Science and Technology
- Atmospheric Science
- Earth and Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous)
