Zamzam Well (Technical Informations)

Origin of Zamzam

The Well of Zamzam (or the Zamzam Well, or just Zamzam; Arabic: زمزم‎) is a well located within the Masjid al Haram in Mecca, 20 meters east of the Kaaba, the holiest place in Islam. According to Islamic belief, it was a miraculously-generated source of water from Allah (God), which began thousands of years ago when Ibrahim's infant son Ishmael was thirsty and kept crying for water and was kicking at the ground when water gushed out.

Technical information

The Zamzam well was excavated by hand, and is about 30 meters deep and 1.08 to 2.66 meters in diameter. It taps groundwater from the wadi alluvium and some from the bedrock. Originally water from the well was drawn via ropes and buckets, but today the well itself is in a basement room where it can be seen behind glass panels (visitors are not allowed to enter). Electric pumps draw the water, which is available throughout the Masjid via water fountains and dispensing containers near the Tawaf area.
Hydrogeologically, the well is in the Wadi Ibrahim (Valley of Abraham). The upper half of the well is in the sandy alluvium of the valley, lined with stone masonry except for the top meter which has a concrete "collar". The lower half is in the bedrock. Between the alluvium and the bedrock is a half-meter section of permeable weathered rock, lined with stone, and it is this section that provides the main water entry into the well. Water in the well comes from absorbed rainfall in the Wadi Ibrahim, as well as runoff from the local hills. Since the area has become more and more settled, water from absorbed rainfall on the Wadi Ibrahim has decreased.
The Saudi Geological Survey has a "Zamzam Studies and Research Centre" which analyzes the technical properties of the well in detail. Water levels were monitored by hydrograph, which in more recent times has changed to a digital monitoring system that tracks the water level, electric conductivity, pH, Eh, and temperature. All of this information is made continuously available via the Internet. Other wells throughout the valley have also been established, some with digital recorders, to monitor the response of the local aquifer system.
The water level is 3.23 meters (about 10.59 ft) below the surface. A pumping test at 8000 liters/second for more than a 24 hour period showed a drop in water level from 3.23 meters below surface to 12.72 meters and then to 13.39 meters, after which the water level stopped receding. When pumping stopped, the water level recovered to 3.9 meters below surface only 11 minutes later. This data shows that the aquifer feeding the well seems to recharge from rock fractures in neighboring mountains around Mecca.^{[citation needed]}
Zamzam Water has no color or smell, but it has a distinct taste, and its pH is 7.9–8.0, indicating that it is alkaline to some extent.
A study conducted in American laboratories showed that traces of thirty elements were identified in Zamzam water by means of energizing neutrons. Some of these elements scored less than 0.01.
After matching up the chemical analysis to international specifications, especially to the specifications of the World Health Organization (WHO), results proved the potability of Zamzam water as well as its beneficial effect on the body health. Additionally, sodium is very high in Zamzam water and the international specifications do not put a limit to the measurement of its composition.
Minerals Percentages
Calcium 198
Magnesium¨ 43.7
Chloride 335
Sulfur 370
Iron 0.15
Manganese 0.15
Copper 0.12
(Analysis of a study conducted in the laboratory of the Department of Water and Waste Water Treatment, the Western Province, Saudi Arabia, 1400 H.E.)