Scaling Remotely Sensed ET Measurements in the Lower Colorado River Region in the Development of User-Friendly Water Management Tools
Abstract
The lower Colorado River region in the U.S. Southwest is one of the most productive areas for food production providing nearly 90% of the U.S. supply of fresh winter vegetables. Climate variability and regional drought are greatly curtailing water availability, increasing soil salinity, and exacerbating conflict with urban water users. Agriculture accounts for 70% of fresh water utilization in this region so farmers recognize the imperative for efficient water use, but the available tools to document crop water requirements and salt management needs are inadequate. Accurate ET measurements are paramount in water management decisions. Since 2016 we have been using a network of Eddy Covariance flux towers, Large Aperture Scintillometers, soil moisture observations, and measurements of irrigation inputs to generate accurate ET estimates for the complex crop rotations utilized in the region. While these ground based systems are robust and reliable research tools they are site specific, expensive, and will not provide user-friendly ET estimates across all complex multi-cropping systems deployed in the region. Thus, we are using these tools to also calibrate ET estimates derived from space-based sensors. Data streams from Landsat 8, Sentinel 2a/2b, VENuS, and ECOSTRESS are being evaluated. In some situations UAV and manned aircraft mounted sensors are used to validate the algorithms used to downscale imagery to scales relevant to management. Progress and challenges encountered will be discussed.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2018
- Bibcode:
- 2018AGUFMPA44B..05S
- Keywords:
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- 1871 Surface water quality;
- HYDROLOGYDE: 1880 Water management;
- HYDROLOGYDE: 1895 Instruments and techniques: monitoring;
- HYDROLOGYDE: 6309 Decision making under uncertainty;
- POLICY SCIENCES