where does water in the dead sea come from and how has it changed over the years?

The water in the Dead Sea primarily comes from the Jordan River, which flows from the north into the lake. Historically, this was the main source of water for the Dead Sea. Besides the Jordan River, the Dead Sea also receives some water from smaller perennial springs around its edges and occasional rainfalls, though these are quite rare. Over the years, the water level and volume of the Dead Sea have changed drastically. Since the 1960s, there has been a significant diversion of water from the Jordan River for agricultural and domestic uses by Israel, Jordan, and neighboring countries. This diversion, combined with the high evaporation rates due to the region's hot and arid climate, has caused the Dead Sea's water level to drop sharply. For example, the surface level was about 400 meters below sea level in the mid-20th century but had dropped to about 430 meters below sea level by the mid-2010s, and it continues to decline at roughly 1 meter per year. This drop has also changed the lake's physical appearance, such as the drying out of its southern basin and the formation of a land strip separating the northern and southern basins. The salinity of the lake has increased as water levels decreased, making the water denser and more saline than before. The composition of salts is also different from typical ocean water, with an especially high concentration of magnesium chloride and bromide ions. In summary, the Dead Sea's water mainly comes from the Jordan River and small springs, but human water use and natural evaporation have caused the water level to drop and the salinity to increase significantly over the years, profoundly changing the lake's ecology and appearance.