Évolution géomorphologique de la façade maritime d'Alexandrie (Égypte) au cours des six derniers millénaires (original) (raw)

"In 1998 and 1999, two borehole projects were organized in the region of Alexandria, Egypt. Stratigraphical, sedimentological and biological studies have allowed us to distinguish several different marine environments during the recent Holocene. The C I core records the infilling of a harbour operational from the Augustean period to late antiquity. The C II core shows stages of accretion of the tombolo which has linked the island of Pharos to the continent for the last 8000 years. The development of the tombolo, at first in the infralittoral zone, and followed by its emersion, has brought about two différents morpho-sedimentary evolutions. The eastern bay is characterized by the deposition of fine sediments whereas the western bay is exposed to the dominant swell from the north-west bringing much coarser material. Since the late Antiquity period, the tombolo appears to no longer protect the eastern port, which is exposed to marine influences. Certain hypotheses are proposed."