Satellite mapping of oolitic ridges in Arabs Gulf,Egypt

When the ecological effects of the proposed Qattara Hydrosolar Power Project were investigated, a number of submarine ridges were found in Arabs Gulf, Egypt.Those ridges were of unconsolidated oolitic origin, which was of critical importance for the water intake conditions of the Qattara Project. They were scientifically extremely interesting as being the first recent oolites ever found in the Mediterranean. The ridges have been studied concerning the geology, morphology and the water dynamics both in the field and from different satellite sensors‐MSS, TM and SPOT. Satellite mapping of the structure of the ridges, benthic algae and geology has been performed. The identification of the benthic algae has been accomplished by a semi‐manual box‐classifier technique.

A new accurate depth chart of Arabs Gulf has been constructed using TM data calibrated against echosoundings.

By creating a synthetical digital terrain model of the bed‐rock of Arabs Gulf and comparing it with the satellite image the amount of oolitic material of the bay has been estimated.

The character and location of the ridges has been compared with similar oolitic forms in the West Indies.