The gravity field and crustal structure of the northwestern Arabian Platform in Jordan

The Bouguer gravity field over the northwestern Arabian Platform in Jordan is dominated by large variations, ranging from -132 to +4 mGal. A study of the Bouguer anomaly map shows that the gravity field maintains a general no rth-northeasterly trend in the Wadi Araba-Dead Sea-Jordan Rift, Northern Hi ghlands and Northeast Jordanian Limestone Area, while the remainder of the area shows north-northwesterly-trending gravity anomalies. Results of 2-D gravity modeling of the Bouguer gravity field indicate that the crustal thickness in Jordan is similar to 38 km, which is similar to cr ustal thicknesses obtained from refraction data in northern Jordan and Saud i Arabia, and from gravity data in Syria. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Limited . All rights reserved.