Understanding the Distribution of Groundwater Resources using Synthetic Aperture Radar Data over Southwest Egypt

Two NSF-funded studies (OISE-0417704; OISE-0513379) carried out by the author over SW Egypt (between 20-24.5degN and 25-32degE, in the East Oweinat and Tushka regions, respectively) used C-band Radarsat-1 SAR images and topographic data to understand groundwater distributions in the local aquifers that underlie the study areas. In these studies, areas with enhanced groundwater represent the best locations for groundwater development in order to address the water and food pressures that exist in the regions. In the East Oweinat area, small-scale agricultural development is already underway, while in Tushka there are plans for development in the near future. Radar waves are uniquely able to image beneath the desert sand in the eastern Sahara to reveal groundwater-related near-surface features, that is, the courses of ancient rivers and streams and faults and fractures. The depth of near-surface imaging for the datasets used is on the order of half a meter. The distribution of groundwater-recharge near-surface features was analyzed and the variation in groundwater storage was appraised. Three new areas have been identified as promising sites for agricultural development.