Utilizing Multi-Temporal Thermal Data To Assess Environmental Land Degradation Impacts: Example From Suez Canal Region, Egypt.

Land surface temperature (LST) analysis of Satellite data is critical for studying the impacts of geo-environmental, hydrometeorological, and land degradation. However, challenges arise to resolve the LST and ground field data resulting from the constant development of land use and land cover (LULC). This study aims to monitor, analyze, assess, and map the environmental land degradation impacts utilizing image processing and GIS tools of space-borne thermal data and fieldwork. Two thermal and optical sets of multi-temporal Landsat TM+5 and TIRS+8 satellite data dated 1984 and 2018 were used to test, detect, and map the thermal and LULC change and their land degradation in the Suez Canal region (SCR). The LULC classification was categorized into seven classes: water bodies, urban, agricultural land, barren land, wetland, clay, and salt crust. LULC and LST change detection and mapping results revealed that the impervious surface, industrial area, saline soil, and urban area have high LST, while wetlands, vegetation cover, and water bodies suffered low LST. The spectral, LST profiles and statistical analyses examined the association between LST and LULC deriving factors. The cluster analyses defined the relationship between LST and LC patterns at the LU level, where the fast transformation of LULC had significant changes in LST. According to these analyses and the fieldwork observations, the SCR was divided into six main areas. These areas vary in LST in association with land degradation and hydro-environmental impacts such as rising groundwater levels, salt accumulation, active seismic fault zones, water pollution, and urban and agricultural activities.

The Vulnerability and Resilience of the Global Container Shipping Industry

Intermodal shipping containers, standardized and capable of being carried on trucks, trains, barges, or ships, have transformed the global economy since they were introduced in 1959. By allowing previously separated segments of regional and global transport systems to interact, they have vastly expanded global trade and facilitated supply chains that stretch around the world. But vulnerabilities in the system became apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Problems at key bottlenecks in the system, compounded by an unexpected six-day shutdown of the vital Suez Canal, precipitated global disruptions leading to shortages of goods and soaring prices around the world. As the global shipping industry recovers, it will have an opportunity to transition toward a system that is more resilient.

Right out of the gate: the genomics of Lessepsian invaders in the vicinity of the Suez Canal

Marine organisms that enter the Mediterranean from the Red Sea via the Suez Canal are known as Lessepsian bioinvaders. In general, genetic studies of Lessepsian fishes have shown little structure between Red Sea and Mediterranean populations. Yet notable exceptions suggest the importance of life-history factors that may influence patterns of spatial genetic variation. In this study, by sampling two invasive fishes with different life histories (the rabbitfish Siganus rivulatus and the filefish Stephanolepis diaspros), we looked at evidence of population structure and selection at the boundary between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean (the Suez Canal), using thousands of molecular markers. Results illustrate two divergent patterns of genetic patterns, with little genetic structure in S. rivulatus and strong population structure in S. diaspros, even at such small spatial scale. We discuss differences in ecological characteristics between the two species to account for such differences. In addition, we report that in the face of both high (S. rivulatus) and low (S. diaspros) gene flow, loci under selection were uncovered, and some protein coding genes were identified as being involved with osmoregulation, which seems to be an important feature of individuals crossing the salinity-variable Suez Canal. The presence of genes under selection in populations near the Suez Canal supports the idea that selection may be active and essential for successful invasions right out of the gate.

Technical Analyses of Necib El-Kilani’s Novel “Ramadan Habîbî”

Najib el-Kîlânî, who lived in Egypt from 1931 to 1995, is one of the important figures in Islamic literature. He dabbled in literature when he was young and wrote about a hundred works. The period he lived and the countries he visited gave him the opportunity to get to know the problems faced by the Islamic society. The author depicted these problems that he witnessed in his works. Najib el-Kîlânî, who focuses on the social, political, economic and religious problems of the Muslim community in his literary works, deals with 1973 Egypt-Israel war in his novel “Ramazan Habîbî” that is the focal point of our research. The novel is about the expansionist policy of the Jews, the unjust oppression they faced and the struggle of the Egyptian people against America's hypocrisy. In the novel, the struggle of the Egyptian people against Israel for the liberation of the Sinai Desert and the Suez Canal, the occupied lands, is told. It is about the war between the Arabs and Israel in 1973, known as the Ramazan War (Yom Kippur War). It relates the overnight seizure of the “Bar-Lev Line”, which Israel says is impassable. In this study, Najib el-Kîlânî’s novel “Ramazan Habîbî” will be examined technically and thematically within the framework of issues such as the cultural corruption experienced by the Arab society, their approach to Zionism and the problem of the sense of belonging for their homeland.

Sentinel-2 Reveals Abrupt Increment of Total Suspended Matter While Ever Given Ship Blocked the Suez Canal

The blockage of the Suez Canal, one of the world’s key trade routes, by a giant container ship in March 2021 was in the spotlight of news media worldwide, mainly because of its economic impacts. In this study, we look at this event from an environmental perspective by analyzing the impact of the artificial barrier made by the ship over the channel and of operations like dredging on the concentration of total suspended matter (TSM). In this context, multitemporal Sentinel-2 images are used to study short-term variations of TSM within a time window spanning before, during, and after the blockage event. A well-established neural network-based processor called Case 2 Regional CoastColour (C2RCC) is employed to derive remote sensing reflectance (Rrs) and then TSM concentrations from Sentinel-2 imagery. The results indicate that the stuck ship acted as an artificial barrier leading to very different TSM conditions north and south of the canal. Furthermore, the blockage of the Suez Canal and subsequent dredging caused an abrupt increment (+400%) in the concentration of TSM moving north from the ship’s location. We also identified a very high contrast between the TSM concentration in the north and south of the vessel during the blockage event.

The Simulation of Sloped Bank Effect Influence on Container Ship Trajectory

The latest container vessel grounding in the Suez Canal, which occurred on 23 March 2021 (the Ever Given), raised many questions regarding the safety of navigation. The sudden concern about safety is due to fears that traffic flow through the Suez Canal could be blocked for longer periods of time. Besides external forces imposed by wind, in this case bank effect had a significant influence on the ship’s grounding. Bank effect occurs due to restricted water flow caused by narrow waterways. Many fairway design standards consider sloped banks such as those of the Suez Canal as unsubstantial in bank-effect forces. This paper analyses the impact of sloped banks on container ship trajectory and proposes minimal distances that may decrease bank-effect forces in order to reduce the risk of vessel grounding and increase the safety of navigation. However, this type of accident has happened before and may occur again due to a small sailing distance from the bank in cases where vessel speed is increased.