We geodetically investigate the interseismic deformation along two neighboring sections of the Dead Sea Fault in Israel and present first clear evidence for shallow creep along this fault. We obtain the velocities of near‐fault GPS campaign stations across the northern section of the Jordan Valley Fault (JVF) and the Jordan Gorge Section (JGS) that were surveyed each year between 2009 and 2015. The JVF extends from the northern shore of the Dead Sea to the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, and the JGS extends from the Sea of Galilee to the Hula Basin. We infer a slip rate of ~4.1 mm/yr and a locking depth of ~10 km for both sections. Data analysis indicates that while the JGS is found to be fully locked above the locking depth, the northern section of the JVF is found to be creeping from a depth of 1.5 ± 1.0 km to the surface, with a creep rate of 2.5 ± 0.8 mm/yr. Our observations also suggest that the current slip rate of the fault at the western margin of the Jordan Valley is minor, less than the GPS velocities uncertainties.
Detailed field and geodetic observations of crustal deformation across the Jericho Fault section of the Dead Sea Fault are presented. New field observations reveal several slip episodes that rupture the surface, consist with strike slip and extensional deformation along a fault zone width of about 200 m. Using dense Global Positioning System measurements, we obtain the velocities of new stations across the fault. We find that this section is locked for strike‐slip motion with a locking depth of 16.6 ± 7.8 km and a slip rate of 4.8 ± 0.7 mm/year. The Global Positioning System measurements also indicate asymmetrical extension at shallow depths of the Jericho Fault section, between 0.3 and 3 km. Finally, our results suggest the vast majority of the sinistral slip along the Dead Sea Fault in southern Jorden Valley is accommodated by the Jericho Fault section.
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