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Staff Profile

Dr Achraf Koulali Idrissi

Lecturer Geospatial Data

  • Telephone: 01912086739
  • Personal Website: https://koulali.github.io
  • Address: G.15 Cassie Building
    School of Engineering
    University of Newcastle
    Newcastle upon Tyne
    NE1 7RU
Background

Background

Dr. Achraf Koulali is a geophysicist who uses space-geodetic observations to study the deformation of the Earth's crust caused by different geophysical processes such as tectonic deformation and surface mass loading. His research over the recent years included studies of interseismic strain accumulation in active tectonic regions.

See also my Personal webpage and Google Scholar profile for more information.

Research

I use geodetic observations to study the active deformation of the Earth’s crust. Measurements of 3D crustal movements allow us to better understand modes of strain accumulation on major faults and the Earth’s rheology. My research areas include South-east Asia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Western Mediterranean and the Arabian Peninsula. My current research theme involves measuring the Glacial Isostatic Adjustment in Antarctica using GPS.


Areas of expertise


My main research interests include:

  • Earth observations- Geodesy
  • Crustal deformation
  • Geophysics
  • Remote sensing
  • Statistical tools to extract information from observational data


Links



Supervision (PhD)


  • Grace Jones-Cooke
  • Daniel BASIL (Co-supervisor)
  • David Gregg (Co-supervisor)
  • Rinrada Srikwanma (Co-supervisor)

 


Publications



  • **Achraf Koulali**, Matt A. King, Peter J. Clarke, Grace A. Nield, Michael J. Bentley, (2025) Geodetic observations reveal near-zero uplift rates in the Transantarctic Mountains: Implications of surface mass loading deformation" [ under review with Geophysical Research Letters].
  • Abdenbi Zagaoui, **Achraf Koulali**, Abdelali Fadil, , Abdelilah Tahayt (2025) GNSS observations suggest a northwest-dipping fault driving the 2023 Mw 6.8 El Haouz earthquake [ under review with Geophysical Research Letters].


1. Grace A. Nield, Michael J. Bentley, **Achraf Koulali**, Peter J. Clarke, Matt A. King, Terry Wilson, Pippa L. Whitehouse (2025)Surface Mass Balance Variability causes Viscoelastic Solid Earth Deformation in the Antarctic Peninsula, Geophysical Research Letters, 52, e2025GL114595, <https://doi.org/10.1029/2025GL114595>


2. Buchta, E., Scheinert, M., King, M. A., Wilson, T., **Koulali, A.**, Clarke, P. J., Gómez, D., Kendrick, E., Knöfel, C., and Busch, P. (2025) Advancing geodynamic research in Antarctica: reprocessing GNSS data to infer consistent coordinate time series (GIANT-REGAIN), *Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 17, 1761–1780*, <https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-1761-2025>


3. Grace A. Nield Matt A. King, **Achraf Koulali**, Nahidul Samrat

(2023) **Postseismic deformation in the Northern Antarctic Peninsula following the 2003 and 2013 Scotia Sea Earthquakes** *Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 128, e2023JB026685.* <https://doi.org/10.1029/2023JB026685>


4. **Achraf Koulali**, Pippa L. Whitehouse, Peter J. Clarke, Michiel R. van den Broeke, Grace A. Nield, Matt A. King, Michael J. Bentley, Bert Wouters, Terry Wilson, **GPS-Observed Elastic Deformation Due to Surface Mass Balance Variability in the Southern Antarctic Peninsula** *Geophysical Research Letters, 49, e2021GL097109.*

<https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL097109>


5. **Achraf Koulali** & Peter Clarke (2020), **Modelling quasi-periodic signals in geodetic time-series using Gaussian processes**, *Geophysical Journal International, Volume 226, Issue 3, Pages 1705-1714.* <https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggab168>


6. **Achraf Koulali** & Peter Clarke (2020), **Effect of snow on vertical GPS position time series in Antarctica**, *Journal of Geodesy, 94, 101* <https://doi.org/10.1007/s00190-020-01403-6>


7. Gordon Lister, Hrvoje Tkalčić, Babak Hejrani, **Achraf Koulali**, Eelco Rohling, Marnie Forster, Simon McClusky (2018), **Volcanic lineaments focus major earthquake ruptures on the East Japan megathrust**, *Lithosphere, 10 (4): 512-522* <https://doi.org/10.1130/L687.1>


8. **Achraf Koulali**, Simon McClusky, Phil Cummins, Paul Tregoning, (2018), **Wedge geometry, frictional properties and interseismic coupling of the Java megathrust.** *Tectonophysics, Volumes 734-735, Pages 89-95,* <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2018.03.012>


9. **A. Koulali**, S. McClusky, L. Wallace, S. Allgeyer, P. Tregoning , E. D'Anastasio, R. Benavente, (2017), **Slow slip events and the 2016 TeAraroa Mw 7.1 earthquake interaction: Northern Hikurangi subduction, New Zealand** *Geophysical Research Letters 44, 833-8344* <https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL074776>


10. **A. Koulali**, S. McClusky, S. Susilo, Y. Leonard, P. Cummins, P. Tregoning, I. Meilano, J. Efendi, A.B. Wijanarto, (2017), **The kinematics of crustal deformation in Java from GPS observations: Implications for fault slip partitioning,** *Earth and Planetary Science Letters,458,69-79* <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2016.10.039>


11. Salim Masoumi, S. McClusky, **A. koulali**, P. Tregoning, (2017), **A directional model of tropospheric horizontal gradients in Global

Positioning System and its application for particular weather scenarios**, *Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres,122,8,4401-4425* <https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JD026184>


12. **Koulali, A.**, A., Susilo, S., McClusky, S., Meilano, I., Cummins, P., Tregoning, P., Lister, G., Efendi, J., Syafii, M.A., (2016), **Crustal strain partitioning and the associated earthquake hazard in the eastern sunda-banda arc**, *Geophysical Research Letters 43, 1943-1949. 2016* <https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL067941>


13. **A. Koulali**, P. Tregoning, S. McClusky, R. Stanaway, L. Wallace and G. Lister, (2015), **New Insights into the present-day kinematics of the central and western Papua New Guinea from GPS**, *Geophysical Journal International, 202, pp. 993 - 1004* <https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggv200>


14. Montillet J-P., Williams S.D.P, **Koulali A.** and McClusky S., (2015), **Estimation of offsets in GPS time-series and application to the detection of earthquake deformation in the far-field**,

*Geophysical Journal International, 77, pp. 70 - 88* <https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggu473>


15. A. Poujol and J.-F. Ritz and A. Tahayt and P. Vernant and M. Condomines and P.-H. Blard and J. Billant and L. Vacher and B. Tibari and L. Hni and **A. Koulali**, (2014), **Active tectonics of

the Northern Rif (Morocco) from geomorphic and geochronological data**, *Journal of Geodynamics, 77, pp. 70 - 88* <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jog.2014.01.004>


16. **A. Koulali**, Ouazar, D., Tahayt, A., King, R.W., Vernant, P., Reilinger, R.E., McClusky, S., Mourabit, T., Davila, J.M. & Amraoui, N. (2011), **New GPS constraints on active deformation

along the Africa-Iberia plate boundary**, *Earth and Planetary Science Letters, vol. 308, no. 1-2, pp. 211-217* <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2011.05.048>


17. Vernant, P., Fadil, A., Mourabit, T., Ouazar, D., **Koulali, A.**, Davila, J.M., Garate, J., McClusky, S. & Reilinger, R. (2010), **Geodetic constraints on active tectonics of the Western Mediterranean: Implications for the kinematics and dynamics of the Nubia-Eurasia plate boundary zone**, *Journal of Geodynamics, vol. 49, no. 3-4, pp. 123-129* <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jog.2009.10.007>


18. **A. Koulali**, Ouazar, D., Bock, O. & Fadil, A. (2012), **Study of seasonal-scale atmospheric water cycle with ground-based GPS receivers, radiosondes and NWP models over Morocco**, *Atmospheric Research, vol. 104-105, pp. 273-291* <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosres.2011.11.002>



Teaching

Modules

Publications