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The Egyptian Nile, its floodplains and delta. Pre-Eonile (<6 Ma). West flowing river systems (e.g. Subeira - Kobbania) originating from the uplifted Red Sea Hills. Eonile (6 – 5.4 Ma). Grand Canyon of Egypt forms in response to the desiccation of the Mediterranean Sea.
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Pre-Eonile (<6 Ma) West flowing river systems (e.g. Subeira - Kobbania) originating from the uplifted Red Sea Hills
Eonile (6 – 5.4 Ma) Grand Canyon of Egypt forms in response to the desiccation of the Mediterranean Sea
Gulf Phase (5.4 – 3.3 Ma) Mediterranean Sea filled with seawater flooding the Eonile Canyon and converting it into a Gulf
Paleo-Nile (3.3 – 1.8 Ma Restricted drainage. The Nile Gulf is filled with sediments from the Red Sea Hills to form Egypt’s Nile Valley
Desert Phase (1.8 – 0.8 Ma) North Africa is a desert for the first time. Nile stopped flowing for more than a million years
Pre-Nile & Neo-Nile (0.8 Ma – 12,000 years) Pre-Nile: Vigorous river connected for the first time to sources in in Equatorial Africa and Ethiopia. Neo-Nile: Less competent seasonal (Mansoonal) river erratically connected with Ethiopia
Modern Nile (12,000 years – Present) Overflow of Equatorial lakes provides year- round flow of white Nile
Building the Egyptian Nile Floodplains and Delta • The floodplains and delta of the Egyptian Nile covers ~4000 km2 • About ~4000 km3 of sediments are needed to be deposited within the Eonile canyon to build the floodplains and delta of the Egyptian Nile assuming an average depth of ~100 meters • This requires a depositional rate of ~125 m3/km2/year since ~800,000 years