One doesn’t often think of space technology and the ruins of ancient civilisations at the same time, but recent discoveries made possible by satellite images have brought the two together in a new and very promising way. Although photographs have been taken from outer space for decades now, only in the past few years has the clarity of the resolution of those photographs allowed archaeologists to recognise potential sites for further exploration.

This new area of archaeology is still in its pioneering days. One such investigator is Dr. Sarah Parcak from the University of Alabama, in the USA. Her work has led to the discovery of many new finds in the eastern Nile River Delta, and in Middle Egypt in the past few years. Some of these sites are no larger than a modern-day living room, and are located in some of the most remote places on earth.

In 2003 and 2004 Dr. Parcak conducted surveys and expeditions that confirmed 132 sites that were initially suggested by satellite images. And in the past few years she has found hundreds more. It is her belief now that Egyptologists have only found a tiny number of the ruins that are still out there to locate, which is very exciting news for her field.

Discoveries of this kind are also very important to the government of Egypt, which endeavours to protect such sites from plunder and inappropriate use. The Supreme Council of Antiquities has restricted excavation in the most environmentally sensitive areas along the Nile River, and wants to encourage further exploration of areas in northern Egypt. There is a constant pressure from population growth and development to build over areas that have not yet been fully investigated. These new techniques will help identify such potential sites, which can be earmarked and protected for exploration.

Dr. Parcak studies satellite images from NASA (the USA’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and plugs in global positioning coordinates for suspected sites, then takes a team to the site to explore further. In the images she can also perceive patterns in settlements that correspond to ancient texts, showing where foreign invasions affected the occupation of various sites. It brings history alive far better than mere excavations can. As she explains, “We can see where the Romans built over what the Egyptians had built, and where the Coptic Christians built over what the Romans had built. It is an incredible continuity of occupation and reuse.”

The new images have also shed light on the rising and falling levels of the Nile over time, revealing patterns of city growth and collapse. She uses NASA images from the wet season as the wet soil shows images better. Dr. Sarah Parcak’s book, Satellite Remote Sensing and Archaeology, will be published later this year.

Friday, 6th February, 2009, 9:13 am | Egypt News