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Accelerated currents and sediment transport off the Damietta Nile promontory

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Abstract

Severe erosion of valuable agricultural and recreational lands along the apex of the Damietta Nile promontory (Fig. 1) following the closure of the Aswan High Dam remains a problem. Despite extensive shoreline studies, the fate of eroded material and the main mechanism of sediment transport along this coast are unclear1. An 11-day bathymetric survey provided exploratory measurements in the coastal waters surrounding the promontory. We report here current meter and side-scan sonar observations which indicate that a high-speed jet forming off the promontory is driving a field of actively migrating sand ridges easterly over a smooth mud plain. These ridges seem to be the dominant along-shore pathway for sediment transport between Damietta and the Suez Canal.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Coastal Studies Institute, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803, USA

    Stephen P. Murray, James M. Coleman & Harry H. Roberts

  2. Coastal Protection Branch, Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Alexandria, Egypt

    Monir Salama

Authors
  1. Stephen P. Murray
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  2. James M. Coleman
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  3. Harry H. Roberts
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  4. Monir Salama
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Murray, S., Coleman, J., Roberts, H. et al. Accelerated currents and sediment transport off the Damietta Nile promontory. Nature 293, 51–54 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1038/293051a0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/293051a0

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