Sarah Parcak

Sarah Helen Parcak (born 1978) is an American archaeologist and Egyptologist, who has used satellite imagery to identify potential archaeological sites in Egypt, Rome, and elsewhere in the former Roman Empire. She is a professor of Anthropology and director of the Laboratory for Global Observation at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. In partnership with her husband, Greg Mumford, she directs survey and excavation projects in the Faiyum, Sinai, and Egypt's East Delta.

Education

Parcak was born in Bangor, Maine, and received her bachelor's degree in Egyptology and Archaeological Studies from Yale University in 2001, and her PhD from the University of Cambridge. She is a professor of Anthropology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB); prior to that she was a teacher of Egyptian art and history at the University of Wales, Swansea.

During her undergraduate studies at Yale University, Parcak participated in her first of many digs in Egypt as well as a remote sensing course.

Career

From 2003 to 2004, Parcak used satellite images and surface surveys to discover sites of archaeological interest, some dating back to 3000 BC. Parcak's work consists of trying to find minute differences in topography, geology, and plant life to explore sites from a variety of cultures, although Egypt is her specialty. Satellites recording infrared wavelengths are able to distinguish differentiations in plant's chlorophyll, which can distinguish the less healthy plants that grow over buried structures.

In partnership with her husband, Dr. Greg Mumford, she directs Survey and Excavation Projects in the Fayoum, Sinai, and Egypt's East Delta. They used satellite imagery to look for water sources and archaeological sites. According to Parcak, this approach reduces the time and cost for determining archaeological sites compared to surface detection.