LAUSR

This study demonstrates the use of ASTER data to map the siltation of the Al-Khod Dam constructed at the lower reaches of Samail Catchment area, north Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. In this study, the decorrelated image of spectral bands 6, 3, and 1 clearly discriminated the distribution of siltation. The occurrence of siltation is confirmed by the detection of minerals using the VNIR-SWIR bands by the Spectral Angle Mapper (SAM) method. In addition, the siltation of the dam is studied for the years 1987 to 2018 using Landsat satellite images. Interpretation of images showed a gradual increase of the siltation. Mapping accuracy for the occurrence of siltation is assessed by a confusion matrix which produced an overall accuracy of 97.88% and Kappa coefficient of 0.98 in the Maximum Likelihood method. Results of image analyses are verified in the field and confirmed through laboratory analyses. The study of spectral absorption characters of field samples using a Portable Infrared Mineral Analyzer (PIMA) showed the presence of OH molecule bearing minerals (clays, serpentines, etc.) and carbonate minerals (calcite and dolomite) in the silt deposits. The occurrence of these minerals is confirmed further by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) analyses.