The Dead Sea Region The Dead Sea (Hebrew: Yam HaMelach [= sea of salt], Arabic: Bahr Lut [= sea of Lot]) lies some 400 m below sea level at the lowest point on the earth's surface, and is a part of the Syrian - East Africa Rift Valley, flanked by the Judean Mountains to the west and the Moab mountains to the east. The name Mare Mortuum (=Dead Sea) was devised by Jerome (Hieronymus about 347-419) because the 78km long, up to 18km wide sea is one of the most saline lakes in the world. It is mainly fed by the Jordan River in the north and by perennial springs and streams from the east and west. Having no outlet, the Dead Sea is a "terminal lake" which loses more than 180 cm of water by evaporation into the hot dry air every year. These results in high concentrations of salts and minerals in a unique composition that is particularly rich in chloride salts of magnesium, sodium, potassium, calcium, bromine and various others. The Dead Sea brine's chemical composition reflects erosion, as well as the recycling of older deposits. This region enjoys sunny and dry weather through out the year. On average it has 330 full days of sunshine per year. The low altitude also has other benefits as the ultraviolet rays are filtered through three natural layers: an extra atmospheric layer, an evaporation layer that exists above The Dead Sea, and a rather thick ozone layer. Vacationers and health-cure visitors (psoriasis) come to the many resorts on the shore. In the history of the region the Dead Sea goes all the way to remote antiquity. North of the Dead Sea is Jericho, the oldest city in the world. On the south shore of the Dead Sea were the cities Sodom and Gomorra which were destroyed in the times of Abraham. At Ein Gedi David hid from King Saul. To the Greeks the Dead Sea was "Lake Asphaltus" due to the surfacing asphalt. The Egyptians used Judean asphalt, the bituminous substance rising to the surface of the lake, for many industrial and medicinal purposes as well for embalming the mummies. Plants growing in lakeside oases (Ein Gedi), especially the balsam tree, produced valuable and highly sought-after cosmetics, perfumes and medicinal substances. Their value was of such great economic importance that wars were fought for their possession, as when Mark Anthony conquered the Dead Sea area for Cleopatra. On the Dead Sea's northern shore the Essenes settled in a community centre Qumran, who produced the famous DEAD SEA SCROLLS. King Herod had several palaces on the west bank of the Dead Sea. Massada is the most spectacular site. All our information on the history of Massada comes from Josephus Flavius Jewish War. It is there where a small group of rebellious Jewish zealots held out against the might of the Roman Legion. In the early part of the 20th century, the Dead Sea began to attract interests from chemists who deduced that the Sea was a natural deposit of potash and bromine. Dead Sea Works, a manufacturer and worldwide distributor of chemical products including various grades of Potash, KCl, Magnesium Chloride, Sodium Chloride and Bromine extracted from the mineral rich Dead Sea, has been operating since 1931. Dead Sea Works Ltd. (DSW) is one of the world's leading manufacturers of potash and makes a wide range of other products based on the extraction of Dead Sea minerals. These include magnesium chloride, industrial salts, anhydrous aluminum chloride, de-icers, table salt and bath salts. DSW products are exported to over 60 countries. Another plant is Dead Sea Magnesium, a joint venture between the Dead Sea Works and Volkswagen AG of Germany who started magnesium production. In recent years, the Dead Sea area haws become a health, rehabilitation, recreation and beauty spa. The combination of the year-round favorable climate, the thriving health and beauty centers, and the unique natural and historical tourist attractions, attract both vacationers and health-cure visitors from around the world. Modern facilities and hotels line the shore. The Negev and the Arava Valley "Negev" in Hebrew means south. Israel's Negev Desert, where Abraham, Isaac and Jacob tended their flocks, comprises 66%, over 13000km² of Israel. The Negev covers the greater amount of Israel's official Southern District. Triangular in shape, with the resort town of Eilat at its southern apex and Beer Sheva as its northern base; the western border is touching with the desert of the Sinai peninsula, and the eastern border is the Wadi Arava. Following a visit to Palestine in 1867, Mark Twain described the Negev Desert in his book "The Innocents Abroad" as "a desolation that not even imagination can grace with the pomp of life and action". Five different ecological regions fall within the area of the Negev: -The Northern Negev, with 30cm of rain annually, is called the "Mediterranean Zone", with fairly fertile soils. -The Western Negev is characterized by 25cm of rain per year, with light and partially sandy soils. Sand dunes can reach heights of up to 28 feet. -The Central Negev, with the city of Beer Sheva in its midst, has an annual precipitation of 20cm and is characterized by impervious soil, allowing minimum penetration of water with greater soil erosion and water runoff. -The high plateau area of Ramat Hanegev stands 365-550 meter above sea level with extreme temperatures in summer and winter. The area has only 10cm of rain per year, with inferior and partially salty soils. -The Arava Valley along the Jordanian border stretches 180km from Eilat in the south to the tip of the Dead Sea in the north. Defined as very arid with barely 5cm of rain annually, the Arava has inferior soils in which little can grow without irrigation and special soil additives. Because of these poor conditions, the Negev was largely undeveloped and sparsely populated during Israel's first five decades. In spite of this, Israel has succeeded in becoming a world leader in combating the desert and preventing desertification of fertile lands. Through responsible water and soil conservation programs, Israeli techniques have become models in sustainable land management, with worldwide implications. It was Ben Gurion who said: “It is in the Negev that the creativity and pioneer vigor of Israel shall be tested”. He made it is home when he went to live in kibbutz SdeBoker. Today, the hut where he lived is a museum. For centuries, the area has been "home" to Bedouins who have increasingly given up their nomadic lifestyle and settled in permanent homes. The Bedouin tribes in the Negev and the Sinai all trace their origins back to the Arabian Peninsula, somewhere between the 14th and 17th centuries. According to Bedouin traditions and historical evidence, these tribal ancestors came to the Negev for three main reasons. Some, such as the Masa'id, Suwarka, Tyaha and Ugbi, came in search of better pasturelands. Others such as the Tarabin, Muwaytat and Ahaywat came in search of economic gain, conveying and protecting Mecca-bound Muslims pilgrims between the Suez and Aqaba. Many, such as the Ayada, Dhullam and Muzayna tribes came fleeing from blood-revenge, often as a small clan, or even as individuals. Bedouin towns in the Negev include Rahat and Tel Sheva. The Negev has a few interesting cultural and geological attractions. Among these are three machteshim, which are unique in the region. Machtesh is a Hebrew word that does not really have a translation. Machteshim are formed when water seeps into the peek of a large mountain, eroding from the inside, creating a large lake. As the water level increases, the erosion increases, until the top of the mountain collapses inwards, creating a large lake with lots of debris at the bottom. The erosion process continues, until a gap erodes in one of the walls. When this happens, the water flows out leaving something really big that looks a bit like a crater, but with much steeper walls and (depending on the size of the mountain) often much, much, much bigger. Machteshim are spectacularly impressive natural occurrences because of the sheer drop and the sheer size. Three Machteshim are in Israel: HaMachtesh HaGadol (the big machtesh), HaMachtesh HaKatan (the small machtesh) and the largest Machtesh is called Machtesh Ramon, the town built next to it, is called Mitzpe Ramon. The Eastern Negev has two of the area's larger towns. The first is Arad, a development town that serves as a convenient stopover for visitors to the Dead Sea and Masada. The town is also popular because of its clean, dry air, which makes it a haven for people suffering from asthma and allergies. Nearby is Tel Arad, a site of a biblical town that is one of the earliest known urban settlements. Further south, on the way to Eilat is Dimona, a town established in the 1950s to help absorb Jewish immigrants. Originally considered too remote and its climate too unpleasant for large-scale settlement, the town has grown to be a thriving community of more than 20,000. It is best known, perhaps, as the site of Israel's nuclear research program and is believed to be the site where nuclear weapons have been developed. It is also known as the home of the Black Hebrews, a sect that originally came from Chicago and settled in Dimona. Just beyond Dimona is Mamshit, one of the best preserved of the Nabatean towns. It was built in the first century, probably the last of the five cities the Nabateans built along the roads from their capital in Petra to the coast.