Reassessment of the November 7, 2010 Earthquake Northwest of the Aswan High Dam, Egypt

On November 7, 2010, an earthquake of magnitude 4.6 ML hit the area between the High Dam and the old Aswan Dam, 4.5 km northwest of the High Dam. It occurred near the spillway fault (24.00 °N, 32.85 °E), which is believed to be the origin of this activity. This earthquake was felt in Aswan and the surrounding areas. Aswan local seismic network and Egyptian National Seismic Network (ENSN) were used to pinpoint the event’s venue. Extensive ground cracks were discovered in the epicentral region west of the spillway fault. Seismic activity in this region from 1982 to 2020 indicates almost no seismic activity before 1999. From November 1999 to July 2003, a few minor events occurred in conjunction with the seasonal rise in the lake water level, which exceeded 180 m in 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001 and peaked at 181.6 m in 1999—this event’s total moment tensor decomposition revealed a non-double-couple variable. The fluid pore pressure from intrusion into pre-existing intersection faults by the lake can cause the non-dual pair segment. A microgravity survey was carried out in the epicentral zone. The outcome demonstrates a key feature of N-S trending anomalous activity. This function can be interpreted as a complex fault system that runs vertically to obliquely. This fault system’s amplitude is shallow in depth and has a high-density contrast. The leveling measurements showed subsidence along the spillway fault’s western side and uplift along the eastern side.