Combining satellite image data and field observations to characterize fresh-water carbonates in Kurkur Oasis, Southern Egypt

Gaber, Ahmed; Khalaf, Fikry I.; Bastawisy, Mohamed; El-Baz, Farouk

doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2017.12.008

Cited by 8 publications

(10 citation statements)

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“…This uniqueness can be linked to the composition, the depositional environment, and the mode of occurrence of these rocks. Quaternary carbonate formations are quite common in the oases of the Western Desert (Crombie et al, 1997; Gaber et al, 2018; Jimenez, 2014; Nicoll & Sallam, 2017; Wanas, 2012; Wanas & Armenteros, 2019), as well as the aquatic (also lacustrine) palaeoenvironments (Kieniewicz & Smith, 2009; Kleindienst et al, 2008; Maxwell et al, 2010; Osinski et al, 2007; Smith, 2012; Smith et al, 2004; Szabo et al, 1995; Wanas, 2012; Wanas & Armenteros, 2019). The studied rocks differ petrographically from the other palaeolake‐related sediments of the Western Desert (see references above) and some other arid regions of the world (e.g., Cordova et al, 2013; Creutz, Van Bocxlaer, Abderamane, & Verschuren, 2016), and their diagenetic alteration (calcite replacement by dolomite) is also highly peculiar.…”

Section: Geoheritage Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Oases of the Western Desert of Egypt host many notable geological features of Quaternary age, which reveal striking changes in the regional palaeoenvironments (Brook et al, 2003; Brookes, 1993; Crombie, Arvidson, Sturchio, El Alfy, & Abu Zeid, 1997; Gaber, Khalaf, Bastawisy, & El‐Baz, 2018; Hamimi, El‐Barkooky, Martínez Frías, Fritz, & Abd El‐Rahman, 2020; Nicoll & Sallam, 2017; Said, 2017; Wanas, 2012). Their uniqueness makes them objects of geoheritage that can be either specified as geosites or included into bigger geosites; some of these objects can be ranked nationally and even globally (e.g., Abdel Maksoud, Al‐Metwaly, Ruban, & Yashalova, 2019; Abdel Maksoud, Elfeky, Ruban, & Ermolaev, 2020; Al‐Dhwadi & Sallam, 2019; Plyusnina, Sallam, & Ruban, 2016; Sallam & Ruban, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quaternary lacustrine dolostones of Sahara: New geoheritage evidence from the Farafra Oasis (Egypt)

2021

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Oases of the Western Desert of Egypt host numerous geoheritage features. Field investigations in the Farafra Oasis have permitted to establish the presence of brown dolostones occurring in channels incised in the Upper Cretaceous rocks, on slopes of topographic highs, as fills of the karst features, and directly on wide depressions floor. Their origin is linked to carbonate deposition in a palaeolake that existed in the pluvial conditions of the Pleistocene. Such dolostones are rare on regional, national, and even global scales, and, thus, they constitute a high‐value geoheritage feature. The latter can be assigned to sedimentary, palaeogeographical, and stratigraphical geoheritage types. The most typical locality of these lacustrine dolostones is North Ain El‐Wadi that is proposed as a geosite. This new evidence extends the previous knowledge of the geoheritage of the Farafra Oasis. Although the main utility of the proposed geosite is scientific, this object can also be used for the purposes of geoeducation and geotourism in combination with the other geoheritage resources of the central part of the Western Desert of Egypt.

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Section: Geoheritage Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quaternary lacustrine dolostones of Sahara: New geoheritage evidence from the Farafra Oasis (Egypt)

2021

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“…Wadi Kurkur is presently a dry riverbed and defunct tributary of the Nile Basin (Said, 1962). It traverses the main geomorphic provinces of the region: the Sinn El-Kaddab Plateau, Nubian Plain, Red Sea Hills, and Nubian Swell (Gaber et al, 2018). With an average elevation of 350 m, the Sinn El-Kaddab plateau is comprised of a ~1 km thick sequence of Late Cretaceous-Early Eocene clastic and carbonate sediments (Issawi, 1978).…”

Section: Choice Of the Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This prominent carbonate tableland is extensive, stretching ~300 km from northto-south and ~100 km westward from Kurkur to the Darb El-Arbain escarpment, which borders the Kharga Oasis depression (Issawi, 1978). Such setting had facilitated ground water sapping during previous wet periods along the contacts of permeable fractured limestone and the impermeable shale (Gaber et al, 2018). The Nubia sandstone sequence in the study area consists of alternating beds of sandstone, shale, and clay (Issawi, 1978).…”

Section: Choice Of the Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrated Land Use Planning in Wadi El-Amal, Aswan Governorate, Egypt

Elwan

2020

Journal of Soil and Water Sciences

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The study shows how to use cutting-edge geospatial technology to better assess desert resources and provides a systematic approach that can be used elsewhere under the same conditions. A total studied area of 19320 Faddan in Wadi El-Amal located in Aswan governorate, Egypt. This study area is a desert; however, haphazard planning, management practices, and inadequate investments result in land and water resource degradation. The pedomorphologial, physical, chemical, fertility characteristics of the selected soils were studied based on in-situ, remotely sensed and other data sources. Data on water geochemistry of water samples, collected from three dug wells were also utilized for this study. Five soil mapping units (SMUs) were prepared based on soil depth, rock fragments intensity and size, soil texture, and land topography. The SMUs are: (i) deep moderately fine textured soils with almost flat topography (4760 Faddan; 24.64%), (ii) deep gravelly medium textured soils with gently undulating topography (4740 Faddan; 24.53%), (iii) moderately deep gravelly coarse textured soils with gently undulating topography (3350 Faddan; 17.34%), (iv) shallow cobbly coarse textured soils with undulating topography (2900 Faddan; 15.01%), and (v) very shallow stony coarse textured soils with undulating topography (3570 Faddan; 18.48%). Different evaluation methods were utilized to characterize, evaluate, and plan the studied lands based on the collected data related to soil, water, environmental, political, and socioeconomic criteria. Three different evaluation methods namely qualitative desert land potentiality evaluation (Q L DLPE), the American land capability classification (USDA LCC), and qualitative desert land aptness for crops (Q L DLAC) were used to implement assess the potentiality and capability of the studied lands to produce various suitable crops. Q L DLPE model has grouped the study area into four potentiality classes (high, moderate, slight, and low) while the USDA LCC system classified the study area into three capability classes (class-III, class-IV, and class-V). The characteristics of each soil unit were compared with the requirements of major crops of the study area and suitable crops for each unit were identified. Six land utilization types (field crops, vegetables, citrusfruits, oil crops, forages, aromatic plants) were suggested as value-added crops for cultivation following the precision farming technique. The results of the evaluation analyses were integrated to propose a sustainable plan through integrated desert land use planning (IDLUP) methodology. Accordingly, about of 66.51% of the total study area (12850 Faddan) was determined for agricultural development, while the rest area (33.49%) was excluded from the agrarian expansion and may be used for the housing and constructions. Value-added crops were prioritized as follows: Field crops and vegetables (4760 Faddan) > citrus-fruits and oil crops (4740 Faddan) > medicinal, aromatic plants, and forages (3350 Faddan). The findings suggest strategies for c...

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“…Dating and geochemical study of these tufa can elucidate these past humid periods, recording information about the type of recharge, moisture source origins and relationships with larger scale changes in the climate system. In Egypt, previous studies provided important information about tufa and travertine deposits (Butzer 1964;Ahmed 1996;Anwar 2004;Adelsberger and Smith 2010;Smith 2012;Sallam et al 2018;Sallam and Ruban 2019), and some studies (Crombie et al 1997;Sultan et al 1997;Smith 2001;Wanas 2012;Hassan 2014;Jimenez 2014;Hassan 2015;Hamdan and Brook 2015;Abotalib et al 2016;Nicoll and Sallam 2017;Gaber et al 2018) utilised stable isotopes to reconstruct the temperature or  18 O of the precipitating water. However, the timing of humid periods compared to forcing (which is expected to underlie change in rainfall in the region) is still debated, and research progress has been challenged by uncertainties due to assumptions regarding the  18 O or T values of the precipitating water, and because of kinetic fractionation during tufa deposition.…”

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confidence: 99%

Were springline carbonates in the Kurkur–Dungul area (southern Egypt) deposited during glacial periods?

Kele

Sallam

Capezzuoli

et al. 2021

JGS

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The tufa deposits in the Kurkur–Dungul area, southern Egypt, date from marine isotope stage (MIS) 11 to MIS 1. Springs across the region were active during glacial periods (with sea-level below –50 m), reflecting changed atmospheric circulation over the Indian Ocean, as well as peak interglacial periods. During times of low sea-level, reduced Indonesian throughflow promoted formation of an Indian Ocean Warm Pool, and anomalous rainfall on its western margin. We suggest that Egypt lies at the intersection of westerly (‘maghrebian’) and easterly (‘mashriqian’) rainfall provinces, which show different timing with relation to orbital forcing and different source water regions. Tufa-growth periods are therefore not mechanistically linked to ‘humid periods’ or ‘sapropel events’ identified elsewhere. Stable isotope and T(Δ47) data are also inconsistent with these spring systems being part of a larger system spanning northern Africa, and lack a clear interaction between northern hemisphere heating and mid-latitude rainfall. We also follow previous researchers in concluding that formation of springline deposit formation was probably delayed compared with rainfall, owing to aquifer flow distances. This delay is unlikely to be sufficient to explain why rainfall is out of phase with movements of the monsoon belts, but may complicate interpretation of these records.Supplementary material: A lithofacies description and supplementary figures and tables are available at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.5246661

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Combining satellite image data and field observations to characterize fresh-water carbonates in Kurkur Oasis, Southern Egypt

Cited by 8 publications

References 57 publications

Quaternary lacustrine dolostones of Sahara: New geoheritage evidence from the Farafra Oasis (Egypt)

Quaternary lacustrine dolostones of Sahara: New geoheritage evidence from the Farafra Oasis (Egypt)

Integrated Land Use Planning in Wadi El-Amal, Aswan Governorate, Egypt

Were springline carbonates in the Kurkur–Dungul area (southern Egypt) deposited during glacial periods?

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