Kashif Noor

Bio: Kashif Noor is an academic researcher from King Abdulaziz University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Flood myth & Flash flood. The author has an hindex of 5, co-authored 7 publications receiving 56 citations. Previous affiliations of Kashif Noor include University of Oulu.

Flash flood risk assessment in urban arid environment: case study of Taibah and Islamic universities’ campuses, Medina, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Abstract: Flooding impacts can be reduced through application of suitable hydrological and hydraulic tools to define flood zones in a specific area. This article proposes a risk matrix technique which is app...

The impact of rainfall distribution patterns on hydrological and hydraulic response in arid regions: case study Medina, Saudi Arabia

Abstract: Rainfall distribution patterns (RDPs) are crucial for hydrologic design. Hydrologic modeling is based on Soil Conservation Services (SCS) type RDPs (SCS type I, IA, II, and III). SCS type II method is widely used by hydrologists in arid regions. These RDPs were designed for the USA and similar temperate regions. There is no scientific justification for using SCS type II method in arid regions. The consequences of using SCS type II have impacts on the hydrologic and hydraulic modeling studies. The current paper investigates the validity of the SCS type II and in arid regions. New temporal RDPs were applied and compared with SCS type II RDPs. The produced peak discharges, volumes, maximum inundation depths, top widths, and velocities from both approaches were analyzed. An application is made on the protection channel in Taibah and Islamic Universities campuses in Medina, Saudi Arabia. A methodology was followed which included frequency analysis, catchment modeling, hydrological modeling, and hydraulic modeling. Results indicated that there are considerable consequences on infrastructural design, and hydrologic and hydraulic parameters if inappropriate RDPs are used. The investigation confirmed that the SCS type RDPs do not reflect the actual flood features in arid regions.

Arctic Snow Isotope Hydrology: A Comparative Snow-Water Vapor Study

Abstract: The Arctic’s winter water cycle is rapidly changing, with implications for snow moisture sources and transport processes. Stable isotope values (δ18O, δ2H, d-excess) of the Arctic snowpack have potential to provide proxy records of these processes, yet it is unclear how well the isotope values of individual snowfall events are preserved within snow profiles. Here, we present water isotope data from multiple taiga and tundra snow profiles sampled in Arctic Alaska and Finland, respectively, during winter 2018–2019. We compare the snowpack isotope stratigraphy with meteoric water isotopes (vapor and precipitation) during snowfall days, and combine our measurements with satellite observations and reanalysis data. Our analyses indicate that synoptic-scale atmospheric circulation and regional sea ice coverage are key drivers of the source, amount, and isotopic composition of Arctic snowpacks. We find that the western Arctic tundra snowpack profiles in Alaska preserved the isotope values for the most recent storm; however, post depositional processes modified the remaining isotope profiles. The overall seasonal evolution in the vapor isotope values were better preserved in taiga snow isotope profiles in the eastern Arctic, where there is significantly less wind-driven redistribution than in the open Alaskan tundra. We demonstrate the potential of the seasonal snowpack to provide a useful proxy for Arctic winter-time moisture sources and propose future analyses.

Integrating Hydrological and Hydraulic Modelling for Flood Risk Management in a High Resolution Urbanized Area: Case Study Taibah University Campus, KSA

Abstract: Flood risk management specially in arid urban area in different parts of the world is becoming an essential design criteria for flood protection measures. To contribute towards addressing such issue in a typical arid urban environment such as Saudi Arabia, this study tried to apply statistical, hydrological and hydraulic models for different flood frequencies. The models demonstrated application were evaluated on small urban catchment covering Taibah university campus in medina, Saudi Arabia. Urban development exists upstream and downstream of the university. The catchment is dreaned by upstream low drainage network and one main channell that runs through Taibah and then Islamic universities then jointing the main channell of Wadi Alaqiq shown in Fig. 1 left. The catchment covers an area of 34.11 km2, with 10% slope with a main 13.2 km channel length. Open image in new window Fig. 1 Catchment delineation boundary projected on satellite image (left) and land use and land cover map (right) based on high resolution images for estimated curve number CN = 86

Flash flood risk assessment in urban arid environment: case study of Taibah and Islamic universities’ campuses, Medina, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Abstract: Flooding impacts can be reduced through application of suitable hydrological and hydraulic tools to define flood zones in a specific area. This article proposes a risk matrix technique which is app...

Dam break analysis and flood disaster simulation in arid urban environment: the Um Al-Khair dam case study, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Abstract: This study used a simulation methodology for dam break analysis and flood simulation in an urbanized arid region, namely Um Al-Khair dam in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The analysis was performed using the 2011 rainfall storm of 111 mm and 281 min duration. The results show that the rainfall depth corresponds to a return period between 50 and 100 years. The hydrograph resulting from this storm was estimated using a rainfall–runoff model. The hydrograph was found to fall in between 100- and 200-years return period. This confirms that it is not necessarily to have the same return period for both rainfall and its corresponding flood due to the nonlinearity of the rainfall–runoff process. The dam breach parameters and the inflow hydrograph were used to model the flood propagation due to Um Al-Khair dam breach using HEC-RAS-2D software. A comparison between the modeled and observed water depths showed a relatively reasonable correlation coefficient of 0.57 and the RMSE of the water depth is 0.45 m, which are acceptable in such studies under the scarcity of accurate field measurements.

Future increases in Arctic precipitation linked to local evaporation and sea ice retreat

Abstract: Precipitation changes projected for the end of the twenty-first century show an increase of more than 50 per cent in the Arctic regions. This marked increase, which is among the highest globally, has previously been attributed primarily to enhanced poleward moisture transport from lower latitudes. Here we use state-of-the-art global climate models to show that the projected increases in Arctic precipitation over the twenty-first century, which peak in late autumn and winter, are instead due mainly to strongly intensified local surface evaporation (maximum in winter), and only to a lesser degree due to enhanced moisture inflow from lower latitudes (maximum in late summer and autumn). Moreover, we show that the enhanced surface evaporation results mainly from retreating winter sea ice, signalling an amplified Arctic hydrological cycle. This demonstrates that increases in Arctic precipitation are firmly linked to Arctic warming and sea-ice decline. As a result, the Arctic mean precipitation sensitivity (4.5 per cent increase per degree of temperature warming) is much larger than the global value (1.6 to 1.9 per cent per kelvin). The associated seasonally varying increase in Arctic precipitation is likely to increase river discharge and snowfall over ice sheets (thereby affecting global sea level), and could even affect global climate through freshening of the Arctic Ocean and subsequent modulations of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation.