Sand seas of the western desert of Egypt

Aeolian sand covers wide areas in the Egyptian deserts. This aeolian sand occurs in several forms, of which sand seas are the most widespread. Except for the North Sinai Sand Sea, all other sand seas are developed in the Western Desert. This desert accommodates five sand seas, each of which covers over 5,000 km². These five sand seas cover together more than two fifths of Egypt’s one million square kilometers. Aeolian forms, sand characteristics, controlling factors, mode of development, and age of each sand sea are discussed in this paper.