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A reconnaissance of the Wadi Beihan, South Yemen

1971; Elsevier BV; Volume: 82; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/s0016-7878(71)80030-5

2773-0743

F. Moseley,

Geology and Paleoclimatology Research

The Wadi Beihan is a relatively little known, isolated region in the north of South Yemen. It is flanked by basement mountains made up of acidic and hornblendic gneisses and schists, with syntectonic granites and with consistent north-northeast strike and near vertical foliation. The superficial deposits, confined to the wadi, consist of various categories of alluvium and areas of dunes. The most interesting feature is the marked rectilinear pattern of gully systems eroded in low terrace alluvium, and the almost exact parallelism between these alignments and trends of basement foliation and master joints. It is suggested that the gully alignment is related to basement structures and a mechanism is discussed. It is also suggested that certain joints of other regions, thought to be posthumously related to fractures in underlying older rocks, may have originated in a similar way.