Red Sea heat flow

Since 1970, the number of heat flow observations in the Red Sea has increased fivefold. A new heat flow map is presented together with a table of observations. The new data confirm that the whole of the Red Sea is associated with high heat flow. The observations within 5 km distance of the deepest water of the axial trough have a mean of 467 mWm-2 (i.e. about eight times the world mean) and the observations from 50 to 170 km from the axial deep water have a mean of 111 mWm-2 (i.e. about twice the world mean). The heat flow distribution is thus typical of that associated with an active spreading centre. The observations are difficult to assess and interpret in detail because of the complex sedimentary and tectonic environment. The high heat flow extends at least as far as the Red Sea coasts.