I apply an interdisciplinary research approach that takes advantage of available tools and disciplines (e.g., remote sensing, GIS, geochemistry, geochronology, hydrology, surface runoff and groundwater flow modeling, field geology, etc.) to address a wide range of complex geological and environmental problems.  Ongoing projects address the potential influences of natural processes, global change, and regional human activities on the water and carbon cycles and ecosystems. For example, I am developing and applying an integrated systems approach to assess, monitor, and model the recent and future impacts of changes in landscape and land cover associated with major agricultural development projects in Saharan Africa.  Additional ongoing/forthcoming projects include assessment of alternative renewable groundwater resources in arid and semi-arid areas, modeling storage variability in artificial lakes (Lake Nasser), and evaluation of the water quality and potential pollution sources for urban and semi-urban aquifers in the Central Valley of Costa Rica.  Geoinformatics is an area that is becoming of increasing importance to geologists. I am involved in the development of an interdisciplinary GIS database (TETHYS) as a tool for studying plate collision responses in the Tethyan belt.  It is predicated on a widely-perceived need for a 'synergistic' approach to developing and testing plate collision models. The database will include digitized geological maps, structural indicators, geodetic data, remote sensing data, sample-based major and trace element abundances, radiometric ages, isotopic abundances for ophiolites, ultra-high pressure metamorphic rocks, collision-related magmatic bodies, and seismic data pertaining to mantle and crustal fabric and structure. Projects that were recently conducted include evaluation of the origin and extent of groundwater resources, hydrologic impacts of major engineering projects (e.g., Tushka Canal, SW Egypt), mapping and predicting vector-borne diseases, assessment of encroachment of urbanization on agricultural lands, identification of sources of lead in particulates and non-methane volatile organic compounds in ambient air, and evaluation of seismic risks.  To expand our research activities in the general area of environmental sciences, we are in the process of establishing a direct downlink and processing system for remote sensing data.  Specifically, we are acquiring real-time access to the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) L-band sensor data transmitted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellites, as well as the Orbview-2 satellite that carries the Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) instrument in real time.  This added capability will facilitate new environmental research and application activities in aquatic optics, forest-fire monitoring, and atmospheric sciences. Research activities that were previously funded encompass Quaternary research and Tectonics.

Educational Background

Washington University, St. Louis, MO                 Remote Sensing             Post doc. 1985-88

Washington University, St. Louis, MO                 Geochemistry                Ph.D.    1984

Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt                     Stratigraphy                   M.Sc.   1978

Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt                     Geology                         B.Sc.    1974

Research Specializations

Environmental Sciences and Remote Sensing

Ongoing Projects

Assessment, Monitoring, and Modeling of Changes in Land Use and Land Cover and their Impacts on the Nubian Aquifer, Saharan Africa (NASA)

Towards a better understanding of the hydrology of Lake Nasser, Egypt (NSF International Program)

Developing Renewable Ground Water Resources in Arid Lands: A Pilot Case – the Eastern Desert of Egypt (UNDP Global Environmental Facility)

Urban Aquifers in Costa Rica (National University (Universidad Nacional) of Costa Rica) (Universidad Naciónal de Costa Rica)

A GIS database for studying and visualizing Tethyan plate collisions ( NSF)

A web-based GIS for Egypt’s Geological datasets (NSF)

Monitoring and Event Response for Harmful Algal Blooms - MERHAB (NOAA)

The Mesopotamian Marshes from Disintegration to Restoration (NSF)

Courses Taught

GEOS 521: Remote Sensing Applications in Geological and Environmental Sciences

Recent Publications

1. N. C. Sturchio, X. Du, R. Purtschert, B. E. Lehmann, M. Sultan, L. J. Patterson, Z.-T. Lu, P. Müller, T. Bigler, K. Bailey, T. P. O'Connor, L. Young, R. Lorenzo, R. Becker, Z. El Alfy, B. El Kaliouby, Y. Dawood, and A. M. A. Abdallah, 2004, One million year old groundwater in the Sahara revealed by krypton-81 and chlorine-36, Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 31, No. 5.


2. Sultan, M., Becker, R., Al-Dousari, A., Al-Ghadban, A.N., Bufano, E., 2003, Water, Agriculture and Land Cover: Lessons for the Postwar Era. Geotimes, vol. 48, no. 10, pp. 22-24.


3. Patterson L. J., Sturchio N. C., Kennedy B. M., van Soest M.C., Sultan M.I., Lu Z.T., Lehmann B. E., Purtschert R., El Kaliouby B., Dawood Y., and Abdallah A.M, 2004, Cosmogenic, radiogenic, and stable isotopic constraints on groundwater residence time in the Nubian Aquifer, Western Desert of Egypt, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, (in press).


4. Gheith, H., and Sultan, M., 2002, Construction of a hydrology model for estimating wadi runoff and groundwater recharge in the Eastern Desert, Egypt, Journal of Hydrology, v. 263, p 36-55.


5. Kim, J., and Sultan, M. 2002, Assessment of the long-term hydrologic impacts of Lake Nasser and related irrigation projects in southwestern Egypt, Journal of Hydrology, v. 262, p 68-83.