What are the rings in Saudi Arabia viewed from air?

[merlinsmate]

Friends flying over Saudi Arabia las year saw "rings" on the ground which no one seemed to be able to identify. They couldn't really get an idea of the scale either, but said there were a lot of them. Can anyone tell us what they are?

[Clanad]

I suspect they are similar to what we have here in the western U.S. They are Center Pivot Irrigation sprinkler systems used to water crops. They can be relatively small, covering perhaps 1/4 section and sometimes they can be huge covering double that amount. They are driven by high pressure water pumps that not only pump the water out of deep wells but the hydraulic pressure of the water also drives the mechanism that automatically drives the wheels...

[spudqueen]

Are they like the ones on google earth at 29 36 22.55 N
35 35 38.81 E ? These are in Saudi Arabia and the information marker next to them says they are for irrigation.

[merlinsmate]

Hi all, thanks for your answers. Yes that looks the same so they must be for irrigation, as you have said. Mystery solved. cheers.