Characterizing Regional Specific Yields by Integrating In-Situ and Remote Sensing Data Types in High Mountain Asia
Abstract
Climate change is rapidly altering the hydrology of High Mountain Asia (HMA) and in turn affecting groundwater availability, an important resource for the millions of people living downstream of these mountains. Accurately quantifying regional groundwater storage changes can ascertain the complex interrelationships between groundwater and land surface conditions to support effective management of this resource. In this study we characterize the subsurface spatial distribution of specific yields across HMA, a region covering vast and diverse landforms and posing significant challenges for data collection. We constrain specific yields by applying the GRACE resolution operator to spatio-temporally aggregated groundwater storage changes calculated from in-situ data combined with modeled estimates of soil moisture, snow water equivalent, and surface water from NASA's Land Information System. We compare the combined total water storage change estimates with the regularized GRACE mass change solutions (mascons) for the period of interest (2003-2016). The result of the comparison is reduced uncertainty in gridded estimates of the aquifer specific yields that can be used for improved estimates of groundwater storage changes across the HMA region.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2018
- Bibcode:
- 2018AGUFM.H41J2200A
- Keywords:
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- 1829 Groundwater hydrology;
- HYDROLOGYDE: 1835 Hydrogeophysics;
- HYDROLOGY