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97-825: The Iranian plateau or Persian plateau is a geological feature spanning parts of the Caucasus , Central Asia , South Asia , and West Asia . It makes up part of the Eurasian plate , and is wedged between the Arabian plate and the Indian plate . The plateau is situated between the Zagros Mountains to the west, the Caspian Sea and the Köpet Dag to the north, the Armenian Highlands and

194-413: A Cyprinid fish related to chub and dace , which is caught during the spring floods. In May and June, these fish migrate from the lake to less alkaline water, spawning either near the mouths of the rivers feeding the lake or in the rivers themselves. After spawning season it returns to the lake. In 2018, a new species of fish, which is deemed as Oxynoemacheilus ercisianus , has been discovered inside

291-535: A characteristic fabric . All three types may melt again, and when this happens, new magma is formed, from which an igneous rock may once again solidify. Organic matter, such as coal, bitumen, oil, and natural gas, is linked mainly to organic-rich sedimentary rocks. To study all three types of rock, geologists evaluate the minerals of which they are composed and their other physical properties, such as texture and fabric . Geologists also study unlithified materials (referred to as superficial deposits ) that lie above

388-420: A microbialite . 103 species of phytoplankton have been recorded in the lake including cyanobacteria , flagellates , diatoms , green algae , and brown algae . 36 species of zooplankton have also been recorded including Rotatoria , Cladocera , and Copepoda in the lake. In 1991, researchers reported the discovery of 40 m (130 ft) tall microbialites in the lake. These are solid towers on

485-485: A petrographic microscope , where the minerals can be identified through their different properties in plane-polarized and cross-polarized light, including their birefringence , pleochroism , twinning , and interference properties with a conoscopic lens . In the electron microprobe, individual locations are analyzed for their exact chemical compositions and variation in composition within individual crystals. Stable and radioactive isotope studies provide insight into

582-553: A plateau , it is far from flat, and contains several mountain ranges; its highest point is Noshaq in the Hindu Kush at 7,492 metres (24,580 ft), and its lowest point is the Lut Desert to the east of Kerman , Iran, at below 300 metres (980 ft). In geology, the plateau region of Iran primarily formed from the accretionary Gondwanan terranes between the Turan platform to

679-561: A brief period of stability and then retreat) seems to be rising again. The level rose approximately 2 m (6.6 ft) in the 10 years immediately prior to 2004. But in the early 2020s it fell. Lake Van is in the highest and largest region of Turkey, which has a Mediterranean-influenced humid continental climate . Average temperatures in July are between 22 and 25 °C, and in January between −3 °C to −12 °C. On some cold winter nights

776-623: A length of less than a meter. Rocks at the depth to be ductilely stretched are often also metamorphosed. These stretched rocks can also pinch into lenses, known as boudins , after the French word for "sausage" because of their visual similarity. Where rock units slide past one another, strike-slip faults develop in shallow regions, and become shear zones at deeper depths where the rocks deform ductilely. The addition of new rock units, both depositionally and intrusively, often occurs during deformation. Faulting and other deformational processes result in

873-441: A maximum depth of about 250 m (820 ft) on its northwest side where it joins the rest of the lake. The Erciş arm is much shallower, mostly less than 50 m (160 ft), with a maximum depth of about 150 m (490 ft). The lake water is strongly alkaline ( pH 9.7–9.8) and rich in sodium carbonate and other salts. Some is extracted in salt evaporation ponds alongside, used in or as detergents . Lake Van

970-448: A means to provide information about geological history and the timing of geological events. The principle of uniformitarianism states that the geological processes observed in operation that modify the Earth's crust at present have worked in much the same way over geological time. A fundamental principle of geology advanced by the 18th-century Scottish physician and geologist James Hutton

1067-608: A number of fields, laboratory, and numerical modeling methods to decipher Earth history and to understand the processes that occur on and inside the Earth. In typical geological investigations, geologists use primary information related to petrology (the study of rocks), stratigraphy (the study of sedimentary layers), and structural geology (the study of positions of rock units and their deformation). In many cases, geologists also study modern soils, rivers , landscapes , and glaciers ; investigate past and current life and biogeochemical pathways, and use geophysical methods to investigate

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1164-493: A single environment and do not necessarily occur in a single order. The Hawaiian Islands , for example, consist almost entirely of layered basaltic lava flows. The sedimentary sequences of the mid-continental United States and the Grand Canyon in the southwestern United States contain almost-undeformed stacks of sedimentary rocks that have remained in place since Cambrian time. Other areas are much more geologically complex. In

1261-605: A team including Degens in the early 1980s determined that the highest lake levels (72 metres (236 ft) above the current height) had been during the last ice age, about 18,000 years ago. Approximately 9,500 years ago there was a dramatic drop to more than 300 metres (980 ft) below the present level. This was followed by an equally-dramatic rise around 6,500 years ago. As a deep lake with no outlet, Lake Van has accumulated great amounts of sediment washed in from surrounding plains and valleys, and occasionally deposited as ash from eruptions of nearby volcanoes. This layer of sediment

1358-400: A variety of applications. Dating of lava and volcanic ash layers found within a stratigraphic sequence can provide absolute age data for sedimentary rock units that do not contain radioactive isotopes and calibrate relative dating techniques. These methods can also be used to determine ages of pluton emplacement. Thermochemical techniques can be used to determine temperature profiles within

1455-460: Is a saline soda lake, receiving water from many small streams that descend from the surrounding mountains. It is one of the world's few endorheic lakes (a lake having no outlet) of size greater than 3,000 square kilometres (1,200 sq mi) and has 38% of the country's surface water (including rivers). A volcanic eruption blocked its original outlet in prehistoric times. It is situated at 1,640 m (5,380 ft) above sea level. Despite

1552-655: Is a major academic discipline , and it is central to geological engineering and plays an important role in geotechnical engineering . The majority of geological data comes from research on solid Earth materials. Meteorites and other extraterrestrial natural materials are also studied by geological methods. Minerals are naturally occurring elements and compounds with a definite homogeneous chemical composition and an ordered atomic arrangement. Each mineral has distinct physical properties, and there are many tests to determine each of them. Minerals are often identified through these tests. The specimens can be tested for: A rock

1649-422: Is accomplished in two primary ways: through faulting and folding . In the shallow crust, where brittle deformation can occur, thrust faults form, which causes the deeper rock to move on top of the shallower rock. Because deeper rock is often older, as noted by the principle of superposition , this can result in older rocks moving on top of younger ones. Movement along faults can result in folding, either because

1746-556: Is an igneous rock . This rock can be weathered and eroded , then redeposited and lithified into a sedimentary rock. Sedimentary rocks are mainly divided into four categories: sandstone, shale, carbonate, and evaporite. This group of classifications focuses partly on the size of sedimentary particles (sandstone and shale), and partly on mineralogy and formation processes (carbonation and evaporation). Igneous and sedimentary rocks can then be turned into metamorphic rocks by heat and pressure that change its mineral content, resulting in

1843-460: Is an intimate coupling between the movement of the plates on the surface and the convection of the mantle (that is, the heat transfer caused by the slow movement of ductile mantle rock). Thus, oceanic parts of plates and the adjoining mantle convection currents always move in the same direction – because the oceanic lithosphere is actually the rigid upper thermal boundary layer of the convecting mantle. This coupling between rigid plates moving on

1940-469: Is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloids . Most research in geology is associated with the study of rocks, as they provide the primary record of the majority of the geological history of the Earth. There are three major types of rock: igneous , sedimentary , and metamorphic . The rock cycle illustrates the relationships among them (see diagram). When a rock solidifies or crystallizes from melt ( magma or lava ), it

2037-575: Is close to the western tip of the lake. There is hydrothermal activity throughout the region. For much of its history, until the Pleistocene , Lake Van has had an outlet towards the southwest (into the Murat River and eventually into the Euphrates river ). However, the level of this threshold has varied over time, as the lake has been blocked by successive lava flows from Nemrut volcano westward towards

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2134-457: Is estimated to be up to 400 metres (1,300 ft) thick in places, and has attracted climatologists and vulcanologists interested in drilling cores to examine the layered sediments. In 1989 and 1990, an international team of geologists led by Stephan Kempe from the University of Hamburg retrieved ten sediment cores from depths up to 446 m (1,463 ft). Although these cores only penetrated

2231-524: Is fed mainly to horses . Sesame is grown and made into sesame oil . Mushrooms and manna were also seen in the plateau area as of 1920. Caraway is grown in the Kerman Province . Geology Geology describes the structure of the Earth on and beneath its surface and the processes that have shaped that structure. Geologists study the mineralogical composition of rocks in order to get insight into their history of formation. Geology determines

2328-433: Is horizontal). The principle of superposition states that a sedimentary rock layer in a tectonically undisturbed sequence is younger than the one beneath it and older than the one above it. Logically a younger layer cannot slip beneath a layer previously deposited. This principle allows sedimentary layers to be viewed as a form of the vertical timeline, a partial or complete record of the time elapsed from deposition of

2425-551: Is primarily a tectonic lake , formed more than 600,000 years ago by the gradual subsidence of a large block of the Earth's crust due to movement on several major faults that run through this portion of Eastern Anatolia. The lake's southern margin demarcates: a metamorphic rock zone of the Bitlis Massif and volcanic strata of the Neogene and Quaternary periods. The deep, western portion of

2522-478: Is primarily accomplished through normal faulting and through the ductile stretching and thinning. Normal faults drop rock units that are higher below those that are lower. This typically results in younger units ending up below older units. Stretching of units can result in their thinning. In fact, at one location within the Maria Fold and Thrust Belt , the entire sedimentary sequence of the Grand Canyon appears over

2619-642: Is situated in the mountains at an elevation of 1,546 meters (5,072 ft). The headwaters of major rivers arise in the Anti-Taurus: the east-flowing Aras River flows into the Caspian Sea , and the south-flowing Euphrates and Tigris join in Iraq before flowing into the Persian Gulf . Several small streams that flow into the Black Sea or landlocked Lake Van also originate in these mountains. The Indus River begins in

2716-568: Is that "the present is the key to the past." In Hutton's words: "the past history of our globe must be explained by what can be seen to be happening now." The principle of intrusive relationships concerns crosscutting intrusions. In geology, when an igneous intrusion cuts across a formation of sedimentary rock , it can be determined that the igneous intrusion is younger than the sedimentary rock. Different types of intrusions include stocks, laccoliths , batholiths , sills and dikes . The principle of cross-cutting relationships pertains to

2813-523: Is used for geologically young materials containing organic carbon . The geology of an area changes through time as rock units are deposited and inserted, and deformational processes alter their shapes and locations. Rock units are first emplaced either by deposition onto the surface or intrusion into the overlying rock . Deposition can occur when sediments settle onto the surface of the Earth and later lithify into sedimentary rock, or when as volcanic material such as volcanic ash or lava flows blanket

2910-800: The Ayyubid dynasty . Following the disintegration of the Seljuq-ruled Sultanate of Rum , Lake Van and its surroundings were conquered by the Ilkhanate Mongols, and later switched hands between the Ottoman Empire and Safavid Iran until Sultan Selim I took control for good. Reports of the Lake Van Monster surfaced in the late 1800's and gained popularity. A news article was published by Saadet Gazetesi issue number 1323, dated 28 Shaban 1306 Hijri year , corresponding to 29 April 1889 during

3007-657: The Baluchistan region and along the slopes of the Elburz and Zagros mountains. 200 varieties of fish live in the Persian Gulf. Thirty species of the most important commercial fish Sturgeon is found in the Caspian Sea. The Iranian plateau harvests trees for making doors, ploughs, and baskets. Fruit is grown also. Pears , apples , apricots , quince , plums , nectarines , cherries , mulberries , and peaches were commonly seen in

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3104-615: The Caucasus Mountains to the northwest, the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf to the south, and the Indian subcontinent to the southeast. As a historical region, it includes Parthia , Media , Persis , and some of the previous territories of Greater Iran . The Zagros form the plateau's western boundary, and its eastern slopes may also be included in the term. The Encyclopædia Britannica excludes "lowland Khuzestan " explicitly and characterizes Elam as spanning "the region from

3201-640: The Initial Upper Paleolithic (c. 45kya) and Upper Paleolithic (c. 38kya) periods respectively. Ancient and modern populations in the Iranian plateau have a similar genetic component to the Ancient West Eurasian lineage which stayed in the 'population hub' (WEC2), but also display some ancestry from Basal Eurasians and Ancient East Eurasians via contact events starting in the Paleolithic . In

3298-718: The Mesopotamian plain to the Iranian Plateau". From the Caspian in the northwest to the Suleiman mountains in the southeast, the Iranian Plateau extends for close to 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi). It encompasses a large part of Iran , all of Afghanistan , and the parts of Pakistan that are situated to the west of the Indus River , covering an area of some 3,700,000 square kilometres (1,400,000 sq mi) In spite of being called

3395-500: The Muş Plain . This threshold has then been lowered at times by erosion. The first acoustic survey of Lake Van was performed in 1974. Kempe and Degens later identified three physiographic provinces comprising the lake: The deepest part of the lake is the Tatvan basin, which is almost completely bounded by faults. Land terraces (remnant dry, upper banks from previous shorelines) above

3492-677: The Pontic and Taurus Mountains converge, is rugged country with higher elevations, a more severe climate, and greater precipitation than are found on the Anatolian sub-plateau . The region is known as the Anti-Taurus , and the average elevation of its peaks exceeds 3,000 m (9,800 ft). Mount Ararat , at 5,137 meters (16,854 ft) the highest point in Turkey , is located in the Anti-Taurus. Lake Van

3589-655: The Turkish State Railways , the largest of their kind in Turkey, entered service in Lake Van. Ferit Melen Airport abuts Van . Turkish Airlines , AnadoluJet , Pegasus Airlines , and SunExpress are the airlines which have regular flights. Lake Van occasionally hosts several water sports , sailing , and inshore powerboat racing events, such as the UIM World Offshore 225 Championship 's IOC Van Grand Prix, and

3686-500: The bedrock . This study is often known as Quaternary geology , after the Quaternary period of geologic history, which is the most recent period of geologic time. Magma is the original unlithified source of all igneous rocks . The active flow of molten rock is closely studied in volcanology , and igneous petrology aims to determine the history of igneous rocks from their original molten source to their final crystallization. In

3783-512: The geochemical evolution of rock units. Petrologists can also use fluid inclusion data and perform high temperature and pressure physical experiments to understand the temperatures and pressures at which different mineral phases appear, and how they change through igneous and metamorphic processes. This research can be extrapolated to the field to understand metamorphic processes and the conditions of crystallization of igneous rocks. This work can also help to explain processes that occur within

3880-402: The mantle below (separated within itself by seismic discontinuities at 410 and 660 kilometers), and the outer core and inner core below that. More recently, seismologists have been able to create detailed images of wave speeds inside the earth in the same way a doctor images a body in a CT scan . These images have led to a much more detailed view of the interior of the Earth, and have replaced

3977-434: The relative ages of rocks found at a given location; geochemistry (a branch of geology) determines their absolute ages . By combining various petrological, crystallographic, and paleontological tools, geologists are able to chronicle the geological history of the Earth as a whole. One aspect is to demonstrate the age of the Earth . Geology provides evidence for plate tectonics , the evolutionary history of life , and

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4074-574: The 11th century the lake was on the border between the Eastern Roman Empire , with its capital at Constantinople , and the Turko-Persian Seljuk Empire , with its capital at Isfahan . In the uneasy peace between the two empires, local Armenian-Byzantine landowners employed Turcoman gazis and Byzantine akritai for protection. The Greek-speaking Byzantines called the lake Thospitis limne ( Medieval Greek : Θωσπῖτις λίμνη ). In

4171-440: The 1960s, it was discovered that the Earth's lithosphere , which includes the crust and rigid uppermost portion of the upper mantle , is separated into tectonic plates that move across the plastically deforming, solid, upper mantle, which is called the asthenosphere . This theory is supported by several types of observations, including seafloor spreading and the global distribution of mountain terrain and seismicity. There

4268-522: The 20th century. Almonds and pistachios are common in warmer areas. Dates , oranges , grapes , melon , and limes are also grown. Other edibles include potatoes and cauliflower , which were hard to grow until European settlement brought irrigation improvements. Other vegetables include cabbage , tomatoes , artichokes , cucumbers , spinach , radishes , lettuce , and eggplants . The plateau also produces wheat , barley , millet , beans , opium , cotton , lucerne , and tobacco . The barley

4365-701: The Armenian Kingdom of Vaspurakan . Along with Lake Sevan in today's Armenia and Lake Urmia in today's Iran , Van was one of the three great lakes of the Armenian Kingdom, referred to as the seas of Armenia (in ancient Assyrian sources: "tâmtu ša mât Nairi" (Upper Sea of Nairi ), the Lower Sea being Lake Urmia ). Over time, the lake was known by various Armenian names, including Armenian : Վանա լիճ (Lake of Van), Վանա ծով (Sea of Van), Արճեշի ծով (Sea of Arčeš), Բզնունեաց ծով (Sea of Bznunik), Ռշտունեաց ծով (Sea of Rshtunik), and Տոսպայ լիճ (Lake of Tosp) . By

4462-644: The Bronze Age, Elam stretched across the Zagros mountains, connecting Mesopotamia and the Iranian plateau. The kingdoms of Aratta , known from cuneiform sources, may have been located in the central Iranian plateau. In classical antiquity the region was known as Persia , due to the Persian Achaemenid dynasty originating in Fars . The Middle Persian Erān (whence Modern Persian Irān ) began to be used in reference to

4559-622: The Earth's past climates . Geologists broadly study the properties and processes of Earth and other terrestrial planets. Geologists use a wide variety of methods to understand the Earth's structure and evolution, including fieldwork , rock description , geophysical techniques , chemical analysis , physical experiments , and numerical modelling . In practical terms, geology is important for mineral and hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation, evaluating water resources , understanding natural hazards , remediating environmental problems, and providing insights into past climate change . Geology

4656-424: The Earth, such as subduction and magma chamber evolution. Structural geologists use microscopic analysis of oriented thin sections of geological samples to observe the fabric within the rocks, which gives information about strain within the crystalline structure of the rocks. They also plot and combine measurements of geological structures to better understand the orientations of faults and folds to reconstruct

4753-478: The Grand Canyon in the southwestern United States being a very visible example, the lower rock units were metamorphosed and deformed, and then deformation ended and the upper, undeformed units were deposited. Although any amount of rock emplacement and rock deformation can occur, and they can occur any number of times, these concepts provide a guide to understanding the geological history of an area. Geologists use

4850-606: The Van Lake Festival. The four main islands in Lake Van are Adır , Akdamar , Çarpanak , and Kuş islands. Adır Island is the biggest Island in Lake Van. Each island has Armenian religious structures: Lim Monastery (Adır Island), Holy Cross Cathedral (Akdamar Island), Ktuts monastery (Çarpanak Island) and a small monastery on Kuş Island. Large lakes near Lake Van are Lake Erçek (16km), Lake Turna (23km), Lake Nemrut (12km), Lake Nazik (16km), Lake Batmış (10km), Lake Aygır (5km) and Lake Süphan (18km). Lake Erçek

4947-537: The beginning of the 20th century, advancement in geological science was facilitated by the ability to obtain accurate absolute dates to geological events using radioactive isotopes and other methods. This changed the understanding of geological time. Previously, geologists could only use fossils and stratigraphic correlation to date sections of rock relative to one another. With isotopic dates, it became possible to assign absolute ages to rock units, and these absolute dates could be applied to fossil sequences in which there

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5044-515: The creation of topographic gradients, causing material on the rock unit that is increasing in elevation to be eroded by hillslopes and channels. These sediments are deposited on the rock unit that is going down. Continual motion along the fault maintains the topographic gradient in spite of the movement of sediment and continues to create accommodation space for the material to deposit. Deformational events are often also associated with volcanism and igneous activity. Volcanic ashes and lavas accumulate on

5141-437: The crust, the uplift of mountain ranges, and paleo-topography. Fractionation of the lanthanide series elements is used to compute ages since rocks were removed from the mantle. Other methods are used for more recent events. Optically stimulated luminescence and cosmogenic radionuclide dating are used to date surfaces and/or erosion rates. Dendrochronology can also be used for the dating of landscapes. Radiocarbon dating

5238-570: The fault is a normal fault or a thrust fault . The principle of inclusions and components states that, with sedimentary rocks, if inclusions (or clasts ) are found in a formation, then the inclusions must be older than the formation that contains them. For example, in sedimentary rocks, it is common for gravel from an older formation to be ripped up and included in a newer layer. A similar situation with igneous rocks occurs when xenoliths are found. These foreign bodies are picked up as magma or lava flows, and are incorporated, later to cool in

5335-403: The faults are not planar or because rock layers are dragged along, forming drag folds as slip occurs along the fault. Deeper in the Earth, rocks behave plastically and fold instead of faulting. These folds can either be those where the material in the center of the fold buckles upwards, creating " antiforms ", or where it buckles downwards, creating " synforms ". If the tops of the rock units within

5432-558: The first few meters of sediment, they provided sufficient varves to give proxy climate data for up to 14,570 years BP . A team of scientists headed by palaeontologist Professor Thomas Litt at the University of Bonn has applied for funding from the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) for an akin deeper-drilling project. This expects to find it "stores the climate history of

5529-483: The folds remain pointing upwards, they are called anticlines and synclines , respectively. If some of the units in the fold are facing downward, the structure is called an overturned anticline or syncline, and if all of the rock units are overturned or the correct up-direction is unknown, they are simply called by the most general terms, antiforms, and synforms. Even higher pressures and temperatures during horizontal shortening can cause both folding and metamorphism of

5626-404: The formation of faults and the age of the sequences through which they cut. Faults are younger than the rocks they cut; accordingly, if a fault is found that penetrates some formations but not those on top of it, then the formations that were cut are older than the fault, and the ones that are not cut must be younger than the fault. Finding the key bed in these situations may help determine whether

5723-536: The great folded mountain belts resulting from the collision of the Arabian plate with the Eurasian plate . In this definition, the Iranian plateau does not cover southwestern Iran. The plateau extends from East Azerbaijan Province in northwest of Iran (Persia) all the way to Afghanistan and Pakistan west of the Indus River . It also includes smaller parts of the Republic of Azerbaijan , Iraqi Kurdistan , and Turkmenistan . The northwestern Iranian plateau, where

5820-408: The high altitude and winter averages below 0 °C (32 °F), high salinity usually prevents it from freezing; the shallow northern section can freeze, but rarely. Lake Van is 119 kilometres (74 mi) across at its widest point. It averages 171 metres (561 ft) deep. Its greatest known depth is 451 metres (1,480 ft). The surface lies 1,640 metres (5,380 ft) above sea level and

5917-496: The highlands of Tibet and flows the length of Pakistan almost tracing the eastern edge of the Iranian plateau. Southeast Anatolia lies south of the Anti-Taurus Mountains. It is a region of rolling hills and a broad plateau surface that extends into Syria. Elevations decrease gradually, from about 800 meters (2,600 ft) in the north to about 500 meters (1,600 ft) in the south. Traditionally, wheat and barley are

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6014-497: The history of rock deformation in the area. In addition, they perform analog and numerical experiments of rock deformation in large and small settings. Lake Van Lake Van ( Turkish : Van Gölü ; Armenian : Վանա լիճ , romanized :  Vana lič̣ ; Kurdish : Gola Wanê ) is the largest lake in Turkey . It lies in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey in the provinces of Van and Bitlis . It

6111-423: The internal composition and structure of the Earth. Seismologists can use the arrival times of seismic waves to image the interior of the Earth. Early advances in this field showed the existence of a liquid outer core (where shear waves were not able to propagate) and a dense solid inner core . These advances led to the development of a layered model of the Earth, with a lithosphere (including crust) on top,

6208-435: The lake bed formed by coccoid cyanobacteria ( Pleurocapsa group), which create mats of aragonite that combine with calcite precipitating out of the lake water. The region hosts the rare Van cat breed of cat, having – among other things – an unusual fascination with water. The lake is mainly surrounded by fruit orchards and grain fields, interspersed by some non-agricultural trees. According to legend,

6305-399: The lake hosts the mysterious Lake Van Monster that lurks below the surface, 30-to-40 ft (9-to-12 m) long with brown scaly skin, an elongated reptilian head and flippers. Apart from some inconclusive amateur photographs and videos, there has never been any evidence of it. The claimed profile resembles an extinct mosasaurus or basilosaurus . Tushpa , the capital of Urartu , near

6402-488: The lake is an antidome basin in a tectonic depression. This was formed by normal and strike-slip faulting and thrusting. The lake's proximity to the Karlıova triple junction has led to molten fluids of the Earth's mantle accumulating in the strata beneath, still driving gradual change. Dominating the lake's northern shore is the stratovolcano Mount Süphan . The broad crater of a second, dormant volcano, Mount Nemrut ,

6499-399: The last 800,000 years—an incomparable treasure house of data which we want to tap for at least the last 500,000 years." A test drilling in 2004 detected evidence of 15 volcanic eruptions in the past 20,000 years. Similar but smaller fluctuations have been seen recently. The level of the lake rose by at least 3 m (9.8 ft) during the 1990's, drowning much agricultural land, and (after

6596-459: The later end of the scale, it is marked by the present day (in the Holocene epoch ). The following five timelines show the geologic time scale to scale. The first shows the entire time from the formation of the Earth to the present, but this gives little space for the most recent eon. The second timeline shows an expanded view of the most recent eon. In a similar way, the most recent era is expanded in

6693-454: The lowest layer to deposition of the highest bed. The principle of faunal succession is based on the appearance of fossils in sedimentary rocks. As organisms exist during the same period throughout the world, their presence or (sometimes) absence provides a relative age of the formations where they appear. Based on principles that William Smith laid out almost a hundred years before the publication of Charles Darwin 's theory of evolution ,

6790-494: The main crops of the region. The plateau's mountain ranges can be divided into five major subregions : The Iranian plateau may have played a major role in the expansion of modern humans after the Out of Africa migration , serving as 'population hub' for 'Common Eurasians', where they subsequently diverged into ' Ancient East Eurasians ' and 'Ancient West Eurasians' at c. 50,000 years ago, and from where they expanded in two waves during

6887-493: The mantle and show the crystallographic structures expected in the inner core of the Earth. The geological time scale encompasses the history of the Earth. It is bracketed at the earliest by the dates of the first Solar System material at 4.567 Ga (or 4.567 billion years ago) and the formation of the Earth at 4.54 Ga (4.54 billion years), which is the beginning of the Hadean eon  – a division of geological time. At

6984-405: The matrix. As a result, xenoliths are older than the rock that contains them. The principle of original horizontality states that the deposition of sediments occurs as essentially horizontal beds. Observation of modern marine and non-marine sediments in a wide variety of environments supports this generalization (although cross-bedding is inclined, the overall orientation of cross-bedded units

7081-638: The more mobile Turkish horsemen and Diogenes was captured. Alp Arslan divided the conquered eastern portions of the Byzantine empire among his Turcoman generals, with each ruled as a hereditary beylik , under overall sovereignty of the Seljuq Empire . Alp Arslan gave the region around Lake Van to his commander Sökmen el-Kutbî , who set up his capital at Ahlat on the western side of the lake. The dynasty of Shah-Armens , also known as Sökmenler , ruled this area from 1085 to 1192. The Ahlatshahs were succeeded by

7178-481: The north and the Main Zagros Thrust; the suture zone between the northward moving Arabian plate and the Eurasian continent is the Iranian plateau. It is a geologically well-studied area because of general interest in continental collision zones, and because of Iran's long history of research in geology , particularly in economic geology . The Iranian plateau in geology refers to a geographical area north of

7275-506: The present shore have long been recognized. On a visit in 1898, geologist Felix Oswald noted three raised beaches at 15, 50 and 100 feet (5, 15 and 30 meters) above the lake then, as well as recently drowned trees. Research in the past century has identified many similar terraces, and the lake's level has fluctuated significantly during that time. As the lake has no outlet, the level over recent millennia rests on inflow and evaporation. The water level has vacillated greatly. Investigation by

7372-569: The principles of succession developed independently of evolutionary thought. The principle becomes quite complex, however, given the uncertainties of fossilization, localization of fossil types due to lateral changes in habitat ( facies change in sedimentary strata), and that not all fossils formed globally at the same time. Geologists also use methods to determine the absolute age of rock samples and geological events. These dates are useful on their own and may also be used in conjunction with relative dating methods or to calibrate relative methods. At

7469-519: The reign of Sultan Abdul Hamid II . Near the Van Fortress and the southern shore, on Akdamar Island lies the 10th century Cathedral of the Holy Cross, Aghtamar ( Armenian : Սուրբ Խաչ , Surb Khach), which served as a royal church to the kingdom of Vaspurakan . The ruins of Armenian monasteries also exist on the other three islands of Lake Van: Lim , Arter , and Ktuts . The area around Lake Van

7566-428: The rocks. This metamorphism causes changes in the mineral composition of the rocks; creates a foliation , or planar surface, that is related to mineral growth under stress. This can remove signs of the original textures of the rocks, such as bedding in sedimentary rocks, flow features of lavas , and crystal patterns in crystalline rocks . Extension causes the rock units as a whole to become longer and thinner. This

7663-452: The second half of the 11th century Emperor Romanus IV Diogenes launched a campaign to re-conquer Armenia and head off growing Seljuk control. Diogenes and his large army crossed the Euphrates and confronted a much smaller Seljuk force led by Alp Arslan at the Battle of Manzikert , north of Lake Van on 26 August 1071. Despite their greater numbers, the cumbersome Byzantine force was defeated by

7760-420: The shore length is 430 kilometres (270 mi). It covers 3,755 km (1,450 sq mi) and contains (has a volume of) 607 cubic kilometres (146 cu mi). The western portion of the lake is deepest, with a large basin deeper than 400 m (1,300 ft) lying northeast of Tatvan and south of Ahlat . The eastern arms of the lake are shallower. The Van-Ahtamar portion shelves gradually, with

7857-464: The shores, on the site of what became medieval Van's castle, west of present-day Van city . The ruins of the medieval city of Van are still visible below the southern slopes of the rock on which Van Castle stands. In 2017, archaeologists from Van Yüzüncü Yil University and a team of independent divers who were exploring Lake Van reported the discovery of a large underwater fortress spanning roughly one kilometer. The team estimates that this fortress

7954-433: The simplified layered model with a much more dynamic model. Mineralogists have been able to use the pressure and temperature data from the seismic and modeling studies alongside knowledge of the elemental composition of the Earth to reproduce these conditions in experimental settings and measure changes within the crystal structure. These studies explain the chemical changes associated with the major seismic discontinuities in

8051-524: The southwestern United States, sedimentary, volcanic, and intrusive rocks have been metamorphosed, faulted, foliated, and folded. Even older rocks, such as the Acasta gneiss of the Slave craton in northwestern Canada , the oldest known rock in the world have been metamorphosed to the point where their origin is indiscernible without laboratory analysis. In addition, these processes can occur in stages. In many places,

8148-485: The state (rather than as an ethnic designator) from the Sassanid period (see Etymology of Iran ). Archaeological sites and cultures of the Iranian plateau include: The plateau has historical oak and poplar forests. Oak forests are found around Shiraz . Aspen , elm , ash , willow , walnut , pine , and cypress are also found, though the latter two are rare. As of 1920, poplar was harvested for making doors . Elm

8245-550: The subsurface. Sub-specialities of geology may distinguish endogenous and exogenous geology. Geological field work varies depending on the task at hand. Typical fieldwork could consist of: In addition to identifying rocks in the field ( lithology ), petrologists identify rock samples in the laboratory. Two of the primary methods for identifying rocks in the laboratory are through optical microscopy and by using an electron microprobe . In an optical mineralogy analysis, petrologists analyze thin sections of rock samples using

8342-407: The surface of the Earth and the convecting mantle is called plate tectonics . The development of plate tectonics has provided a physical basis for many observations of the solid Earth . Long linear regions of geological features are explained as plate boundaries: Plate tectonics has provided a mechanism for Alfred Wegener 's theory of continental drift , in which the continents move across

8439-488: The surface of the Earth over geological time. They also provided a driving force for crustal deformation, and a new setting for the observations of structural geology. The power of the theory of plate tectonics lies in its ability to combine all of these observations into a single theory of how the lithosphere moves over the convecting mantle. Advances in seismology , computer modeling , and mineralogy and crystallography at high temperatures and pressures give insights into

8536-474: The surface, and igneous intrusions enter from below. Dikes , long, planar igneous intrusions, enter along cracks, and therefore often form in large numbers in areas that are being actively deformed. This can result in the emplacement of dike swarms , such as those that are observable across the Canadian shield, or rings of dikes around the lava tube of a volcano. All of these processes do not necessarily occur in

8633-742: The surface. Igneous intrusions such as batholiths , laccoliths , dikes , and sills , push upwards into the overlying rock, and crystallize as they intrude. After the initial sequence of rocks has been deposited, the rock units can be deformed and/or metamorphosed . Deformation typically occurs as a result of horizontal shortening, horizontal extension , or side-to-side ( strike-slip ) motion. These structural regimes broadly relate to convergent boundaries , divergent boundaries , and transform boundaries, respectively, between tectonic plates. When rock units are placed under horizontal compression , they shorten and become thicker. Because rock units, other than muds, do not significantly change in volume , this

8730-446: The temperature has reached −30 °C. The lake, particularly on its urban townscape shore, tempers the climate in the city of Van, where the average temperature in July is 22.5 °C, and in January −3.5 °C. The average annual rainfall in the basin ranges from 400 to 700 mm. Prior to 2018, the only fish known to live in the brackish water of Lake Van was Alburnus tarichi or Pearl Mullet ( Turkish : inci kefali ),

8827-407: The third timeline, the most recent period is expanded in the fourth timeline, and the most recent epoch is expanded in the fifth timeline. Horizontal scale is Millions of years (above timelines) / Thousands of years (below timeline) Epochs: Methods for relative dating were developed when geology first emerged as a natural science . Geologists still use the following principles today as

8924-535: The wooded mountains of the plateau. The shores of the Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf house aquatic birds such as seagulls , ducks , and geese . Deer, hedgehogs, foxes, and 22 species of rodents are found in semidesert, and palm squirrels and Asiatic black bears live in Baluchistan. Wide variety of amphibians and reptiles such as toads, frogs , tortoises , lizards , salamanders , racers, rat snakes ( Ptyas ), cat snakes ( Tarbophis fallax ), and vipers live

9021-537: Was also the home to a large number of Armenian monasteries, among the most prominent of these being the 10th century Narekavank and the 11th century Varagavank , the former now destroyed. The Ahlatshahs left a large number of historic headstones in and around the town of Ahlat . Local administrators are currently trying to have the tombstones included in UNESCO 's World Heritage List , where they are currently listed tentatively. The railway connecting Turkey and Iran

9118-415: Was built in the 1970's, sponsored by CENTO . It uses a train ferry (ferry for decanted passengers) across between the cities Tatvan and Van , rather than building tracks around rugged terrain. This limits passenger capacity. In May 2008, talks started between Turkey and Iran to replace the ferry with a double-track electrified railway. In December 2015, the new generation of train ferries operated by

9215-524: Was constructed during the Urartian period, based on their visual assessments. The archaeologists believe that the fortress, along with other parts of the ancient city that surrounded it at the time, had slowly become submerged over the millennia by the gradually rising lake. The lake was the centre of the kingdom of Urartu from about 1000 BC, afterwards of the Satrapy of Armenia , Kingdom of Greater Armenia , and

9312-615: Was datable material, converting the old relative ages into new absolute ages. For many geological applications, isotope ratios of radioactive elements are measured in minerals that give the amount of time that has passed since a rock passed through its particular closure temperature , the point at which different radiometric isotopes stop diffusing into and out of the crystal lattice . These are used in geochronologic and thermochronologic studies. Common methods include uranium–lead dating , potassium–argon dating , argon–argon dating and uranium–thorium dating . These methods are used for

9409-441: Was used for ploughs . Other trees like acacia , cypress, and Turkestan elm were used for decorative purposes. Flower wise, the plateau can grow lilac , jasmine , and roses . Hawthorn and Cercis siliquastrum are common, which are both used for basket weaving . The plateau is abundant with wildlife including leopards , bears , hyenas , wild boars , ibex , gazelles , and mouflons . These animals are mostly found in

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