This research aims to calculate the rate of rainfall for two consecutive years, 2018 and 2019, to study and analyze the drought periods during these years. The research was conducted in Kirkuk province north of Iraq, by dividing the study area into five regions based on five stations of rainfall records. Two types of data used in investigations; remotely sensed daily precipitations from integrated multi-satellite retrievals and monthly precipitations average rate from NASA power application. The methodology involved the calculation of rainfall rats by three methods; Mean, Thiessen’s polygons, and the Isohyetal technique. Data were analyzed, and final maps were produced using Geographic Information Systems. For the year 2018 the average annual rainfall rate produced by Mean, Thiessen’s polygons, and Isohyetal technique were; 1.376, 1.341, and 1.343 respectively. But, for the year 2019 the average annual rainfall rate produced by Mean, Thiessen’s polygons, and Isohyetal technique were; 0.966, 0.932, and 0.882 respectively. The results showed the scarcity of water and the lack of rainfall during the study years, which has a great impact on the region's exposure to drought, represented by the drying up of rivers.

In this paper, we assess the extent of environmental pollution in terms of PM2.5 particulate matter and noise in Tikrit University, located in Tikrit City of Iraq. The geographic information systems (GIS) technology was used for data analysis. Moreover, we built two multiple linear regression models (based on two different data inputs) for the prediction of PM2.5 particulate matter, which were based on the explanatory variables of maximum and minimum noise, temperature, and humidity. Furthermore, the maximum prediction coefficient R² of the best models was 0.82, with a validated (via testing data) coefficient R² of 0.94. From the actual total distribution of PM2.5 particulate values ranging from 35–58 μg/m³, our best model managed to predict values between 34.9–60.6 μg/m³. At the end of the study, the overall air quality was determined between moderate and harmful. In addition, the overall detected noise ranged from 49.30–85.79 dB, which inevitably designated the study area to be categorized as a noisy zone, despite being an educational institution.

Iraq’s lakes and rivers are currently exposed to drought because of climatic and political conditions. This study uses satellite images and geographic information systems to display the water depletion and the change in the surface water area of Hamrin Lake. Sentinel-2 imagery of 2018 and 2022 was used to analyze the surface water area changes and water depletion. A comparison was made by studying the changes that happened between 2018 and 2022 respectively. Moreover, a supervised classification technique was implemented using the Support Vector Machine algorithm (SVM). Besides the shrinkage of Hamrin Lake was determined based on 2017 to 2022 Sentinel-2 images and the Normal Difference Water Index (NDWI). Findings showed an extreme change occurred in the surface water area of the lake, which had decreased by 73% in study years and changed to land in 2022. Based on the resultant maps clear alteration is notable in the shape of the lake from north to southeast where the maximum retraction occurred. The surface water area was 144 km2 in 2018 which decreased to 39 km2 in 2022 and was concentrated in the western part of the lake. Besides, the lake's capacity has become 234 million cubic meters, and the amount of water in it is very little while its capacity is more than two billion cubic meters. This sharp drop in the water level in the lake indicates that what is flowing to the lake is less than what is released from it, especially due to the lack of rain. In addition to the drought, the neighboring countries have taken measures to change courses, cut off some rivers, and build dams, all of which are additional influential factors that impose quick intervention and action to prevent the lake from drying out completely.

Urban air pollution poses significant health and environmental concerns in rapidly developing cities such as Kirkuk, Iraq. This study examines the spatial distribution and intensity of PM2.5, NOx, and CO along the Kirkuk-Baghdad Road using AERMOD integrated with Python-based GIS tools. Emission rates were calculated from vehicle counts, speeds, and emission factors during the peak traffic hours of 8-10 AM and 5-7 PM. The model incorporated meteorological data, terrain characteristics, and emission sources to simulate pollutant dispersion patterns. The results revealed that pollutant concentrations near traffic hotspots frequently exceeded the proposed limits. Peak concentrations reached 125 μg/m³ for PM2.5 at K-B R16, 21 ppm for CO, and 1.00 ppm for NOx at K-B R18. Heavy-duty vehicles, especially trucks and motorcycles, contributed significantly to elevated concentrations. Weather conditions and topography influenced dispersion patterns substantially. Python-based spatial analysis facilitated efficient processing of traffic and monitoring data, enabling visualization of pollution hotspots and comprehensive mapping across the study area. This research demonstrates the value of integrated GIS-AERMOD approaches for urban air quality assessment and provides insights for traffic management and emission-reduction strategies to protect public health.