Reconstruction and correlation of palaeo-seismic events in the West Makran using physical and biological properties of deep-Sea cores from Oman Sea

Despite the occurrence of the second deadliest Indian Ocean tsunami triggered by the Makran zone fault system, our knowledge of the number of tsunamis throughout the Holocene remains limited. In this study, we reconstructed the sedimentary environments and identified palaeo-tsunami events using deep-sea cores from the Gulf of Oman. We identified sedimentation trends and factors affecting seabed sediment transport by tsunami events based on sedimentological parameters, foraminifera shell identification, magnetic susceptibility changes, and palaeo-ocean current reconstructions. Our results show that evidence of seabed sediment transport due to strong earthquakes in the Gulf of Oman differed over time and location. Palaeoenvironmental studies and historical tsunami events suggest at least 5 significant submarine landslides over the last 2500 calendar years BP. The number of events has dramatically increased during the last thousand years. According to our results and historical data, at least 7 strong earthquakes occurred in the study area, and their traces are evident in our marine cores. Given the expansion of cities on the southeast coast of Iran and the increased number of earthquake events in the Makran zone, it is essential to adopt management plans to mitigate against potential tsunami damage.