Abstract Recently, an increasing number of sinkholes related to cavernous karst bedrock has been documented in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). One of the most hazardous areas is Al Jouf region, with an average annual rainfall below 35 mm. Here, crop fields irrigated with groundwater have experienced a very rapid expansion. Limited hydrogeological data indicate that the over-exploitation of the aquifers with very low recharge have caused a decline of around 50 m in the groundwater level. Landsat images acquired in 2002, 2015, and 2018 were utilized to automatically map and assess the expansion of agricultural activities in the area, as a proxy for groundwater withdrawal. The data indicate a rising expansion rate, from 57 km2/yr in the period 2002–2015, to 123 km2/yr during the 2015–2018 interval. The recent sinkhole spate is attributed to the growth of irrigated crops and the associated groundwater level decline, as supports the temporal and spatial correlation. It is proposed that the water level drawdown entails an increase in the effective weight of the roof of relict cavities formed in the past. This interpretation is substantiated at a specific sinkhole investigated by ERT. The geophysical investigation provides information of the position of the underlying cavity and indicates that its roof has been affected by buoyancy loss related to the anthropogenic water level decline.

中文翻译：

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在干旱的沙特阿拉伯，不受控制地抽取地下水用于农业导致的污水坑。遥感和地球物理 (ERT) 技术的整合

摘要 最近，沙特阿拉伯王国 (KSA) 记录了越来越多的与海绵状岩溶基岩有关的天坑。最危险的地区之一是 Al Jouf 地区，年平均降雨量低于 35 毫米。在这里，用地下水灌溉的农田经历了非常迅速的扩张。有限的水文地质数据表明，补给量非常低的含水层的过度开发导致地下水位下降约 50 m。2002、2015 和 2018 年获取的 Landsat 图像被用于自动绘制和评估该地区农业活动的扩展，作为地下水抽取的代理。数据表明，扩张速度从 2002-2015 年期间的 57 平方公里/年上升到 2015-2018 年期间的 123 平方公里/年。最近的天坑喷发归因于灌溉作物的生长和相关的地下水位下降，这支持了时间和空间的相关性。建议水位下降导致过去形成的残余空腔屋顶的有效重量增加。这种解释在 ERT 调查的特定污水坑中得到证实。地球物理调查提供了下伏空洞位置的信息，并表明其顶板已受到​​与人为水位下降相关的浮力损失的影响。这种解释在 ERT 调查的特定污水坑中得到证实。地球物理调查提供了下伏空洞位置的信息，并表明其顶板已受到​​与人为水位下降相关的浮力损失的影响。这种解释在 ERT 调查的特定污水坑中得到证实。地球物理调查提供了下伏空洞位置的信息，并表明其顶板已受到​​与人为水位下降相关的浮力损失的影响。