Issam Hajji: We succeeded in the first experiment in exploring groundwater in the Arabian Desert technology

A research team at the University of California, BUnited State In developing a new technology to explore groundwater in the desert of our Arab region, with the aim of confronting the acute water shortage and overcoming climate change, drought conditions, and desertification.

In exclusive statements to Al Jazeera Net, the researcher in earth and space sciences at the University of Southern California and the agency said NASA Dr. Issam Hajji said that this study aims to develop technology for mapping shallow groundwater reservoirs from the air, in order to know the quantities of water present in these reservoirs that reach a depth of between 20 and 30 meters.

Hajji added that these reservoirs are the first shield to confront periods of drought in the Arab world, and are represented in the entire desert region of North Africa and eastern Arabia, where agriculture depends mainly on groundwater. He explained that studying data in this region provides an opportunity to understand Food security In our Arab region in the short and medium term.

The nature and feasibility of the study

Hajji, who is the lead author of the study, says that the technology used in this technology is inspired by the spacecraft surrounding the Moon and Mars, where low-frequency radar rays are used, part of which is reflected from the surface of the Earth and the other part penetrates the upper layer saturated with groundwater, as a result of the difference in electrical properties. Between dry soil and water-saturated soil.

But the Egyptian scientist added that this also represents a difficulty, because the materials that make up the surface of the planet Earth absorb radar rays more than the materials found on the Moon and Mars. Therefore, radar devices must be stronger and more accurate than those used on other planets.

This study opens the door to hope for monitoring groundwater reservoirs located in North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, an area approximately equivalent to the size of the United States, which enables us to confront climate change and drought and provide food security for our Arab region.

Hajji added that drilling one well costs between 10 and 50 thousand dollars, and we need to drill thousands of wells to cover this vast area. Thus, this technology saves millions of dollars that can be invested in benefiting from the extracted water.

Difficulties and challenges

The researcher in earth and space sciences pointed out that to complete this research, several difficulties had to be overcome, including:

• The first challenge was to convince scientific bodies to develop this technology in the Arab world, as several donors believed that this technology would be difficult to apply in the politically unstable Arab world.
• Foreign experts and scientific advisors also saw the impossibility of using aviation in the Arab region, as well as the use of radar rays, because this requires security approvals in a political environment in which it is difficult to obtain these approvals for experimental flight.
• As a result, the funding needed for this study stopped and it became difficult to complete the research.
• The solution was through Qatari civil society with a personal grant donated by Dr. Hamad Abdul Aziz Al Kuwari to the University of California.
• Through this grant, we were able to appoint the scientific team for this study, produce the prototype, fly it, obtain our results, and prove that this technology is capable of monitoring groundwater in our region, and we published our results in the largest scientific journal in this field.

work team

Regarding the work team that accomplished this technology, Hajji said:

• Through the Qatari grant, we were able to appoint 15 researchers – most of whom are Arab students – in various specializations, such as electrical, radar, earth and space sciences, device manufacturing, and algorithm development.
• This team consists of Arab scientists, who are young men studying at universities in the United States and full of hope, energy and determination.
• We found the same spirit and determination in the demonstrations at American universities calling for freedom and justice in our Arab region.

Field results

The importance of this study is that it moved from theory to practical application, so its main author says:

• We built the initial device and tested it in the desert of the Sultanate of Oman, simulating the actual aerial survey process that will begin in 2025.
• The results we obtained were twice the depth we expected to reach, as we reached 69 meters in the eastern desert of Oman.
• After that, we will manufacture a flying device that can cover vast areas in the Arabian Peninsula, and we have identified 12 sites to begin the survey.
• In a second phase, we will develop an aerial system that operates with research satellites, and can survey the entire Arabian desert to provide groundwater in the coming decades.

The Arab scientific environment

Issam Hajji pointed out that the most dangerous threat in the desert environment is not drought and water shortages, as we think, but rather floods and sudden climate changes. He gave an example of the floods that occurred in the Libyan city of Derna last year, which killed thousands of people in moments.

The researcher in earth and space sciences added that the problems of drought, water shortages, and wars – such as what we see today in Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia – threaten the survival of the Arab world, and therefore we must prepare to confront these changes, and not wait for the Western world to develop solutions to our problems and fight them.

The Egyptian scientist concluded his statements to Al Jazeera Net by saying that our Arab universities should not be preoccupied with international rankings and classification or their image before the world, but rather with their role in front of the society in which they live and solving its problems that threaten its survival, and are more preoccupied with the battle of awareness, and facing the challenges of poverty, disease and ignorance that no one will fight on behalf of. About us.