TITLE:
Geo-Historical and Geomorphological Evolution of the Sabkhas and Ridges at the Al-Khiran Area, State of Kuwait
AUTHORS:
Adeeba E. Al-Hurban, Hamdy I. El-Gamily
KEYWORDS:
Geo-History; Geodatabase; GIS; Remote Sensing; Coastal Ridges; Sabkha; Kuwait; Arabian Gulf
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geographic Information System,
Vol.5 No.3,
June
17,
2013
ABSTRACT: The State
of Kuwait is located in the northwestern Arabian Gulf.
It is characterized by arid to semi-arid weather. This study’s concerned with
the southern coastal area of the Al-Khiran. The purpose of this study is to evaluate and study the
geo-history and evolution of geomorphologic features, especially coastal Ridges
and Sabkhas in the Al-Khiran study area. This study based on the field
observations as well as the application of Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
and Remote Sensing techniques to establish a geodatabase for the study area in
different disciplines. The results showed that the Al-Khiran coastal area was
affected by the sea level fluctuation and coastal sedimentation during the
Holocene and late Pleistocene. The coastal Ridges were originally coastal
dunes, which were composed during the sea regression periods and consolidated
with time. These Ridges were developed with time and separated the Al-Khiran
area as a closed lagoon. This lagoon dried with time and formed a Sabkha field,
especially on the depression zone that intersected or surrounded with the
coastal Ridges. The Remote Sensing change detection technique shows that the
changes were mainly concentrated on covering Sabkhas in some locations and
might be due to the impact of active sand sheets and Aeolian sands. Land
development in the Al-Khiran area led to the demolition of most of the coastal
Ridges and Sabkha deposits.