[Rockhounds] Mediterranean Sea lost almost all of its water, triggering a global crisis

[Kreigh Tomaszewski]

About 6 million years ago, an extraordinary event occurred that
restructured the Mediterranean and its water. This phenomenon, known as the
Messinian Salinity Crisis, transformed the sea into a massive salt basin.

But how did a million cubic kilometers of salt come to rest in such a short
time on the Mediterranean seabed? Until now, that remained a mystery.

Now, scientists have made a significant breakthrough. By analyzing chlorine
isotopes found in the salt on the Mediterranean seabed, they’ve unveiled
the two distinct phases of this intense evaporation event.
https://www.earth.com/news/the-mediterranean-nearly-lost-all-of-its-water-6-million-years-ago/