Remote Sensing Applications in Water Resources

Abstract

With the introduction of the earth observing satellites, remote sensing has become an important tool in analyzing the Earth’s surface characteristics, and hence in supplying valuable information necessary for the hydrologic analysis. Due to their capability to capture the spatial variations in the hydro-meteorological variables and frequent temporal resolution suffi cient to represent the dynamics of the hydrologic processes, remote sensing techniques have signifi cantly changed the water resources assessment and management methodologies. Remote sensing techniques have been widely used to delineate the surface water bodies, estimate meteorological variables like temperature and precipitation, estimate hydrological state variables like soil moisture and land surface characteristics, and to estimate fl uxes such as evapotranspiration. Today, near-real time monitoring of fl ood, drought events, and irrigation management are possible with the help of high resolution satellite data. This paper gives a brief overview of the potential applications of remote sensing in water resources.