Abstract
We present preliminary results of an Earth observation approach for the study of past human occupation and landscape reconstruction in the Central Sahara. This region includes a variety of geomorphological features such as palaeo-oases, dried river beds, alluvial fans and upland plateaux whose geomorphological characteristics, in combination with climate changes, have influenced patterns of human dispersal and sociocultural activities during the late Holocene. In this paper, we discuss the use of medium- and high-resolution remotely sensed data for the mapping of anthropogenic features and paleo- and contemporary hydrology and vegetation. In the absence of field inspection in this inaccessible region, we use different remote sensing methods to first identify and classify archaeological features, and then explore the geomorphological factors that might have influenced their spatial distribution.
Highlights
Analysing spatio-temporal characteristics of human-driven landscape change is key for assessing the ecological and socioeconomic consequences of landscape transformations
We have produced a drainage network that optimizes the results of extracted ASTER and data at a range of scales
This network increases the accuracy of the available datasets for the study area (Table 3)
Summary
Analysing spatio-temporal characteristics of human-driven landscape change is key for assessing the ecological and socioeconomic consequences of landscape transformations. Deserts have been—and still are—places of innovation, where humans have been fluidly adapting to extreme environmental conditions. Identifying evidence of human activity in arid lands is crucial to understand how past. (and present) communities coped with the scarcity of natural resources. African and Middle East desert regions has always been limited, due to their physiography and climate. Access has been further reduced due to political instability, civil war and unsafe fieldwork conditions. Archaeological investigations in these regions have been profoundly affected, with the majority of field-based and long-term research projects interrupted
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