Saudi Arabia's non-renewable aquifers underlie much of the Kingdom's agricultural production and some of its industrial activity. The depletion of these aquifers — particularly the Saq Aquifer in the Najd region — is proceeding faster than most ground-based monitoring networks can detect with adequate spatial resolution.
The Sensing Approach
Hyperspectral imagery measures surface reflectance across hundreds of narrow spectral bands, enabling detection of subsurface moisture indicators through spectral signatures of hydration-sensitive minerals, vegetation stress patterns, and soil moisture proxies in the visible to shortwave infrared range.
While hyperspectral sensing does not directly observe aquifer water tables, it provides strong proxy indicators for the rate of depletion in irrigated agricultural zones — which are the primary draw on Najd aquifer resources.
