Researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology confirmed that the Red Sea once completely dried up around 6.2 million years ago, only to be suddenly refilled by a catastrophic influx of water from the Indian Ocean. Their work places a precise timeline on a remarkable event that reshaped the basin’s history.

By combining seismic imaging, microfossil analysis, and geochemical dating, the team discovered that this transformation occurred within just 100,000 years, an exceptionally short span in geological terms.