#spatiotemporal — Public Fediverse posts on home.social

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-04 · 02:28 UTC

To Predict Tree Death, Scientists Tapped Gamma Rays To Peer Underground
(Airborne radiation sensors could help forecast and prevent drought-driven tree mortality_
--
https://www.science.org/content/article/predict-tree-death-scientists-tapped-gamma-rays-peer-underground <-- shared technical article
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2026GL122182 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @hannah Richter
“Over an 18-month period starting in 2023, the dense forests of Western Australia [WA] experienced a record-setting drought. Jarrah trees towering 35 metres high died off in patchy brown splotches, turning 400 square kilometres - 3% of the forest - into brittle, fire-prone stands. The event led researchers to wonder whether there was a better way to predict where such die-offs might occur both there and in other forests, a problem that has long been tricky to solve because important factors such as soil depth are hidden underground…
Now, those same researchers have unveiled a surprising new tool for predicting tree mortality: gamma rays [link above.] Resulting from the natural decay of the potassium-40 isotope from granite-rich bedrock, the radiation acts as a proxy for soil depth, which in turn signals how much water a tree can access during drought. The new method could be applied to other highly weathered soils, which cover one-third of Earth’s ice-free land...”
--
"... PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: During a record-breaking drought and heat event in 2023–2024, forests in southwestern Australia experienced widespread, patchy die-off. While we know that extreme weather triggers these events, it is often a hidden factor, the thickness of soil and the depth to underlying bedrock, that determines which trees live or die. Trees growing in shallow soil over solid rock are highly vulnerable due to limited water storage. Here, [they] show how to map these hidden zones from the air using gamma rays that are naturally emitted by potassium in the ground. Like southwestern Australia, many parts of the world have highly weathered soils where potassium has been washed out of the upper layers of soil. However, [they] showed that higher potassium areas signal that potassium-rich bedrock is closer to the surface and this is sensitive for tens of meters. By comparing gamma ray maps with ground-based geophysical surveys and satellite data, [they] showed that these potassium hotspots accurately predict where forests are most likely to experience die-off during a drought. These types of soils cover about one-third of the Earth's land, so the method provides a powerful new tool for managers to identify and protect vulnerable forests from future, hotter droughts…”
#GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #Australia #WesternAustralia #WA #forests #vegetation #bush #jarrah #karri #drought #heat #extremedrought #extremeweather #climatechange #water #waterresources #dieoff #soil #weathering #erosion #moisture #nutrients #airborne #gammarays #GRS #granite #gneiss #bedrock #geology #potassium40 #potassium #K #remotesensing #earthobservation #groundwater #interstitial #subsurface #waterstorage #electricalresistivitytomography

#gis #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #australia

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-04 · 02:28 UTC

To Predict Tree Death, Scientists Tapped Gamma Rays To Peer Underground
(Airborne radiation sensors could help forecast and prevent drought-driven tree mortality_
--
https://www.science.org/content/article/predict-tree-death-scientists-tapped-gamma-rays-peer-underground <-- shared technical article
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2026GL122182 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @hannah Richter
“Over an 18-month period starting in 2023, the dense forests of Western Australia [WA] experienced a record-setting drought. Jarrah trees towering 35 metres high died off in patchy brown splotches, turning 400 square kilometres - 3% of the forest - into brittle, fire-prone stands. The event led researchers to wonder whether there was a better way to predict where such die-offs might occur both there and in other forests, a problem that has long been tricky to solve because important factors such as soil depth are hidden underground…
Now, those same researchers have unveiled a surprising new tool for predicting tree mortality: gamma rays [link above.] Resulting from the natural decay of the potassium-40 isotope from granite-rich bedrock, the radiation acts as a proxy for soil depth, which in turn signals how much water a tree can access during drought. The new method could be applied to other highly weathered soils, which cover one-third of Earth’s ice-free land...”
--
"... PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: During a record-breaking drought and heat event in 2023–2024, forests in southwestern Australia experienced widespread, patchy die-off. While we know that extreme weather triggers these events, it is often a hidden factor, the thickness of soil and the depth to underlying bedrock, that determines which trees live or die. Trees growing in shallow soil over solid rock are highly vulnerable due to limited water storage. Here, [they] show how to map these hidden zones from the air using gamma rays that are naturally emitted by potassium in the ground. Like southwestern Australia, many parts of the world have highly weathered soils where potassium has been washed out of the upper layers of soil. However, [they] showed that higher potassium areas signal that potassium-rich bedrock is closer to the surface and this is sensitive for tens of meters. By comparing gamma ray maps with ground-based geophysical surveys and satellite data, [they] showed that these potassium hotspots accurately predict where forests are most likely to experience die-off during a drought. These types of soils cover about one-third of the Earth's land, so the method provides a powerful new tool for managers to identify and protect vulnerable forests from future, hotter droughts…”
#GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #Australia #WesternAustralia #WA #forests #vegetation #bush #jarrah #karri #drought #heat #extremedrought #extremeweather #climatechange #water #waterresources #dieoff #soil #weathering #erosion #moisture #nutrients #airborne #gammarays #GRS #granite #gneiss #bedrock #geology #potassium40 #potassium #K #remotesensing #earthobservation #groundwater #interstitial #subsurface #waterstorage #electricalresistivitytomography

#gis #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #australia

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-04 · 02:28 UTC

To Predict Tree Death, Scientists Tapped Gamma Rays To Peer Underground
(Airborne radiation sensors could help forecast and prevent drought-driven tree mortality_
--
https://www.science.org/content/article/predict-tree-death-scientists-tapped-gamma-rays-peer-underground <-- shared technical article
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2026GL122182 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @hannah Richter
“Over an 18-month period starting in 2023, the dense forests of Western Australia [WA] experienced a record-setting drought. Jarrah trees towering 35 metres high died off in patchy brown splotches, turning 400 square kilometres - 3% of the forest - into brittle, fire-prone stands. The event led researchers to wonder whether there was a better way to predict where such die-offs might occur both there and in other forests, a problem that has long been tricky to solve because important factors such as soil depth are hidden underground…
Now, those same researchers have unveiled a surprising new tool for predicting tree mortality: gamma rays [link above.] Resulting from the natural decay of the potassium-40 isotope from granite-rich bedrock, the radiation acts as a proxy for soil depth, which in turn signals how much water a tree can access during drought. The new method could be applied to other highly weathered soils, which cover one-third of Earth’s ice-free land...”
--
"... PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: During a record-breaking drought and heat event in 2023–2024, forests in southwestern Australia experienced widespread, patchy die-off. While we know that extreme weather triggers these events, it is often a hidden factor, the thickness of soil and the depth to underlying bedrock, that determines which trees live or die. Trees growing in shallow soil over solid rock are highly vulnerable due to limited water storage. Here, [they] show how to map these hidden zones from the air using gamma rays that are naturally emitted by potassium in the ground. Like southwestern Australia, many parts of the world have highly weathered soils where potassium has been washed out of the upper layers of soil. However, [they] showed that higher potassium areas signal that potassium-rich bedrock is closer to the surface and this is sensitive for tens of meters. By comparing gamma ray maps with ground-based geophysical surveys and satellite data, [they] showed that these potassium hotspots accurately predict where forests are most likely to experience die-off during a drought. These types of soils cover about one-third of the Earth's land, so the method provides a powerful new tool for managers to identify and protect vulnerable forests from future, hotter droughts…”
#GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #Australia #WesternAustralia #WA #forests #vegetation #bush #jarrah #karri #drought #heat #extremedrought #extremeweather #climatechange #water #waterresources #dieoff #soil #weathering #erosion #moisture #nutrients #airborne #gammarays #GRS #granite #gneiss #bedrock #geology #potassium40 #potassium #K #remotesensing #earthobservation #groundwater #interstitial #subsurface #waterstorage #electricalresistivitytomography

#electricalresistivitytomography #waterstorage #subsurface #interstitial #groundwater #earthobservation

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @GregCocks · 2026-09-04 · 02:28 UTC

To Predict Tree Death, Scientists Tapped Gamma Rays To Peer Underground
(Airborne radiation sensors could help forecast and prevent drought-driven tree mortality_
--
https://www.science.org/content/article/predict-tree-death-scientists-tapped-gamma-rays-peer-underground <-- shared technical article
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2026GL122182 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @hannah Richter
“Over an 18-month period starting in 2023, the dense forests of Western Australia [WA] experienced a record-setting drought. Jarrah trees towering 35 metres high died off in patchy brown splotches, turning 400 square kilometres - 3% of the forest - into brittle, fire-prone stands. The event led researchers to wonder whether there was a better way to predict where such die-offs might occur both there and in other forests, a problem that has long been tricky to solve because important factors such as soil depth are hidden underground…
Now, those same researchers have unveiled a surprising new tool for predicting tree mortality: gamma rays [link above.] Resulting from the natural decay of the potassium-40 isotope from granite-rich bedrock, the radiation acts as a proxy for soil depth, which in turn signals how much water a tree can access during drought. The new method could be applied to other highly weathered soils, which cover one-third of Earth’s ice-free land...”
--
"... PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: During a record-breaking drought and heat event in 2023–2024, forests in southwestern Australia experienced widespread, patchy die-off. While we know that extreme weather triggers these events, it is often a hidden factor, the thickness of soil and the depth to underlying bedrock, that determines which trees live or die. Trees growing in shallow soil over solid rock are highly vulnerable due to limited water storage. Here, [they] show how to map these hidden zones from the air using gamma rays that are naturally emitted by potassium in the ground. Like southwestern Australia, many parts of the world have highly weathered soils where potassium has been washed out of the upper layers of soil. However, [they] showed that higher potassium areas signal that potassium-rich bedrock is closer to the surface and this is sensitive for tens of meters. By comparing gamma ray maps with ground-based geophysical surveys and satellite data, [they] showed that these potassium hotspots accurately predict where forests are most likely to experience die-off during a drought. These types of soils cover about one-third of the Earth's land, so the method provides a powerful new tool for managers to identify and protect vulnerable forests from future, hotter droughts…”
#GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #Australia #WesternAustralia #WA #forests #vegetation #bush #jarrah #karri #drought #heat #extremedrought #extremeweather #climatechange #water #waterresources #dieoff #soil #weathering #erosion #moisture #nutrients #airborne #gammarays #GRS #granite #gneiss #bedrock #geology #potassium40 #potassium #K #remotesensing #earthobservation #groundwater #interstitial #subsurface #waterstorage #electricalresistivitytomography

#gis #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #australia

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-04 · 02:28 UTC

To Predict Tree Death, Scientists Tapped Gamma Rays To Peer Underground
(Airborne radiation sensors could help forecast and prevent drought-driven tree mortality_
--
https://www.science.org/content/article/predict-tree-death-scientists-tapped-gamma-rays-peer-underground <-- shared technical article
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2026GL122182 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @hannah Richter
“Over an 18-month period starting in 2023, the dense forests of Western Australia [WA] experienced a record-setting drought. Jarrah trees towering 35 metres high died off in patchy brown splotches, turning 400 square kilometres - 3% of the forest - into brittle, fire-prone stands. The event led researchers to wonder whether there was a better way to predict where such die-offs might occur both there and in other forests, a problem that has long been tricky to solve because important factors such as soil depth are hidden underground…
Now, those same researchers have unveiled a surprising new tool for predicting tree mortality: gamma rays [link above.] Resulting from the natural decay of the potassium-40 isotope from granite-rich bedrock, the radiation acts as a proxy for soil depth, which in turn signals how much water a tree can access during drought. The new method could be applied to other highly weathered soils, which cover one-third of Earth’s ice-free land...”
--
"... PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: During a record-breaking drought and heat event in 2023–2024, forests in southwestern Australia experienced widespread, patchy die-off. While we know that extreme weather triggers these events, it is often a hidden factor, the thickness of soil and the depth to underlying bedrock, that determines which trees live or die. Trees growing in shallow soil over solid rock are highly vulnerable due to limited water storage. Here, [they] show how to map these hidden zones from the air using gamma rays that are naturally emitted by potassium in the ground. Like southwestern Australia, many parts of the world have highly weathered soils where potassium has been washed out of the upper layers of soil. However, [they] showed that higher potassium areas signal that potassium-rich bedrock is closer to the surface and this is sensitive for tens of meters. By comparing gamma ray maps with ground-based geophysical surveys and satellite data, [they] showed that these potassium hotspots accurately predict where forests are most likely to experience die-off during a drought. These types of soils cover about one-third of the Earth's land, so the method provides a powerful new tool for managers to identify and protect vulnerable forests from future, hotter droughts…”
#GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #Australia #WesternAustralia #WA #forests #vegetation #bush #jarrah #karri #drought #heat #extremedrought #extremeweather #climatechange #water #waterresources #dieoff #soil #weathering #erosion #moisture #nutrients #airborne #gammarays #GRS #granite #gneiss #bedrock #geology #potassium40 #potassium #K #remotesensing #earthobservation #groundwater #interstitial #subsurface #waterstorage #electricalresistivitytomography

#gis #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #australia

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-03 · 04:13 UTC

Rising Waters Swamp Lake Naivasha [Kenya] [earth observation]
--
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/rising-waters-swamp-lake-naivasha/ <-- shared NASA 2026 technical article
--
https://africasacountry.com/2026/04/the-human-cost-of-kenyas-expanding-lakes <-- shared 2026 technical article
--
https://carrzee.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/kenyarisingwatermenr-scoping-report-latest-5-07-21.pdf <-- shared technical report
--
https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/gwm/lake/91 <-- shared charting, lake water levels
--
https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajrs.20180602.13 <-- shared 2018 paper, ‘An Assessment of the Role of Water Hyacinth in the Water Level Changes of Lake Naivasha Using GIS and Remote Sensing’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-water-hyacinth-invasive-fishing-2ea35d0203bc995a36ddbe32386c1141 <-- shared 2025 media article, ‘How the invasive water hyacinth is threatening fishermen’s livelihoods on … Kenyan [Lake Naivasha]…’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-rising-lakes-naivasha-baringo-cbfbb0b670f831b9a310309a810a0075 <-- shared 2025 media article
--
https://www.sei.org/features/revisiting-the-rising-rift-valley-lakes-a-glimpse-into-kihotos-struggles/ <-- shared 2023 technical article
--
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/17/kenya-quiet-slide-underwater-great-rift-valley-lakes-east-africa-flooding <-- shared 2022 media rticle
--
“Kenya's Lake Naivasha has long been a place of change and reinvention…
Now the lake faces another major change: rapidly fluctuating water levels. The name Naivasha comes from a Maasai word meaning "that which heaves," an apt description of the freshwater lake over the past 25 years. Satellite altimetry measurements of the lake's depth indicate an increase of about 7 metres (23 feet) since 2010, roughly the height of a two-story building. Over the same period, Landsat observed a roughly 40 percent increase in the lake's area, adding 50 kilometres² (19 miles²) of water, equivalent to roughly 15 Central Parks.
The human and economic toll of the rising water levels is considerable..”
#Kenya #LakeNaivasha #Africa #water #hydrology #hydrography #risingwater #waterlevels #GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #humanimpacts #farming #agriculture #infrastructure #damage #community #satellite #altimetry #economy #cost #impact #change #flood #flooding #innundation
@nasa

#kenya #lakenaivasha #africa #water #hydrology #hydrography

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-03 · 04:13 UTC

Rising Waters Swamp Lake Naivasha [Kenya] [earth observation]
--
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/rising-waters-swamp-lake-naivasha/ <-- shared NASA 2026 technical article
--
https://africasacountry.com/2026/04/the-human-cost-of-kenyas-expanding-lakes <-- shared 2026 technical article
--
https://carrzee.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/kenyarisingwatermenr-scoping-report-latest-5-07-21.pdf <-- shared technical report
--
https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/gwm/lake/91 <-- shared charting, lake water levels
--
https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajrs.20180602.13 <-- shared 2018 paper, ‘An Assessment of the Role of Water Hyacinth in the Water Level Changes of Lake Naivasha Using GIS and Remote Sensing’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-water-hyacinth-invasive-fishing-2ea35d0203bc995a36ddbe32386c1141 <-- shared 2025 media article, ‘How the invasive water hyacinth is threatening fishermen’s livelihoods on … Kenyan [Lake Naivasha]…’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-rising-lakes-naivasha-baringo-cbfbb0b670f831b9a310309a810a0075 <-- shared 2025 media article
--
https://www.sei.org/features/revisiting-the-rising-rift-valley-lakes-a-glimpse-into-kihotos-struggles/ <-- shared 2023 technical article
--
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/17/kenya-quiet-slide-underwater-great-rift-valley-lakes-east-africa-flooding <-- shared 2022 media rticle
--
“Kenya's Lake Naivasha has long been a place of change and reinvention…
Now the lake faces another major change: rapidly fluctuating water levels. The name Naivasha comes from a Maasai word meaning "that which heaves," an apt description of the freshwater lake over the past 25 years. Satellite altimetry measurements of the lake's depth indicate an increase of about 7 metres (23 feet) since 2010, roughly the height of a two-story building. Over the same period, Landsat observed a roughly 40 percent increase in the lake's area, adding 50 kilometres² (19 miles²) of water, equivalent to roughly 15 Central Parks.
The human and economic toll of the rising water levels is considerable..”
#Kenya #LakeNaivasha #Africa #water #hydrology #hydrography #risingwater #waterlevels #GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #humanimpacts #farming #agriculture #infrastructure #damage #community #satellite #altimetry #economy #cost #impact #change #flood #flooding #innundation
@nasa

#kenya #lakenaivasha #africa #water #hydrology #hydrography

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-03 · 04:13 UTC

Rising Waters Swamp Lake Naivasha [Kenya] [earth observation]
--
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/rising-waters-swamp-lake-naivasha/ <-- shared NASA 2026 technical article
--
https://africasacountry.com/2026/04/the-human-cost-of-kenyas-expanding-lakes <-- shared 2026 technical article
--
https://carrzee.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/kenyarisingwatermenr-scoping-report-latest-5-07-21.pdf <-- shared technical report
--
https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/gwm/lake/91 <-- shared charting, lake water levels
--
https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajrs.20180602.13 <-- shared 2018 paper, ‘An Assessment of the Role of Water Hyacinth in the Water Level Changes of Lake Naivasha Using GIS and Remote Sensing’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-water-hyacinth-invasive-fishing-2ea35d0203bc995a36ddbe32386c1141 <-- shared 2025 media article, ‘How the invasive water hyacinth is threatening fishermen’s livelihoods on … Kenyan [Lake Naivasha]…’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-rising-lakes-naivasha-baringo-cbfbb0b670f831b9a310309a810a0075 <-- shared 2025 media article
--
https://www.sei.org/features/revisiting-the-rising-rift-valley-lakes-a-glimpse-into-kihotos-struggles/ <-- shared 2023 technical article
--
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/17/kenya-quiet-slide-underwater-great-rift-valley-lakes-east-africa-flooding <-- shared 2022 media rticle
--
“Kenya's Lake Naivasha has long been a place of change and reinvention…
Now the lake faces another major change: rapidly fluctuating water levels. The name Naivasha comes from a Maasai word meaning "that which heaves," an apt description of the freshwater lake over the past 25 years. Satellite altimetry measurements of the lake's depth indicate an increase of about 7 metres (23 feet) since 2010, roughly the height of a two-story building. Over the same period, Landsat observed a roughly 40 percent increase in the lake's area, adding 50 kilometres² (19 miles²) of water, equivalent to roughly 15 Central Parks.
The human and economic toll of the rising water levels is considerable..”
#Kenya #LakeNaivasha #Africa #water #hydrology #hydrography #risingwater #waterlevels #GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #humanimpacts #farming #agriculture #infrastructure #damage #community #satellite #altimetry #economy #cost #impact #change #flood #flooding #innundation
@nasa

#kenya #lakenaivasha #africa #water #hydrology #hydrography

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-03 · 04:13 UTC

Rising Waters Swamp Lake Naivasha [Kenya] [earth observation]
--
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/rising-waters-swamp-lake-naivasha/ <-- shared NASA 2026 technical article
--
https://africasacountry.com/2026/04/the-human-cost-of-kenyas-expanding-lakes <-- shared 2026 technical article
--
https://carrzee.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/kenyarisingwatermenr-scoping-report-latest-5-07-21.pdf <-- shared technical report
--
https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/gwm/lake/91 <-- shared charting, lake water levels
--
https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajrs.20180602.13 <-- shared 2018 paper, ‘An Assessment of the Role of Water Hyacinth in the Water Level Changes of Lake Naivasha Using GIS and Remote Sensing’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-water-hyacinth-invasive-fishing-2ea35d0203bc995a36ddbe32386c1141 <-- shared 2025 media article, ‘How the invasive water hyacinth is threatening fishermen’s livelihoods on … Kenyan [Lake Naivasha]…’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-rising-lakes-naivasha-baringo-cbfbb0b670f831b9a310309a810a0075 <-- shared 2025 media article
--
https://www.sei.org/features/revisiting-the-rising-rift-valley-lakes-a-glimpse-into-kihotos-struggles/ <-- shared 2023 technical article
--
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/17/kenya-quiet-slide-underwater-great-rift-valley-lakes-east-africa-flooding <-- shared 2022 media rticle
--
“Kenya's Lake Naivasha has long been a place of change and reinvention…
Now the lake faces another major change: rapidly fluctuating water levels. The name Naivasha comes from a Maasai word meaning "that which heaves," an apt description of the freshwater lake over the past 25 years. Satellite altimetry measurements of the lake's depth indicate an increase of about 7 metres (23 feet) since 2010, roughly the height of a two-story building. Over the same period, Landsat observed a roughly 40 percent increase in the lake's area, adding 50 kilometres² (19 miles²) of water, equivalent to roughly 15 Central Parks.
The human and economic toll of the rising water levels is considerable..”
#Kenya #LakeNaivasha #Africa #water #hydrology #hydrography #risingwater #waterlevels #GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #humanimpacts #farming #agriculture #infrastructure #damage #community #satellite #altimetry #economy #cost #impact #change #flood #flooding #innundation
@nasa

#innundation #flooding #flood #change #impact #cost

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @GregCocks · 2026-09-03 · 04:13 UTC

Rising Waters Swamp Lake Naivasha [Kenya] [earth observation]
--
https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/rising-waters-swamp-lake-naivasha/ <-- shared NASA 2026 technical article
--
https://africasacountry.com/2026/04/the-human-cost-of-kenyas-expanding-lakes <-- shared 2026 technical article
--
https://carrzee.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/kenyarisingwatermenr-scoping-report-latest-5-07-21.pdf <-- shared technical report
--
https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/gwm/lake/91 <-- shared charting, lake water levels
--
https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajrs.20180602.13 <-- shared 2018 paper, ‘An Assessment of the Role of Water Hyacinth in the Water Level Changes of Lake Naivasha Using GIS and Remote Sensing’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-water-hyacinth-invasive-fishing-2ea35d0203bc995a36ddbe32386c1141 <-- shared 2025 media article, ‘How the invasive water hyacinth is threatening fishermen’s livelihoods on … Kenyan [Lake Naivasha]…’
--
https://apnews.com/article/kenya-rising-lakes-naivasha-baringo-cbfbb0b670f831b9a310309a810a0075 <-- shared 2025 media article
--
https://www.sei.org/features/revisiting-the-rising-rift-valley-lakes-a-glimpse-into-kihotos-struggles/ <-- shared 2023 technical article
--
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/17/kenya-quiet-slide-underwater-great-rift-valley-lakes-east-africa-flooding <-- shared 2022 media rticle
--
“Kenya's Lake Naivasha has long been a place of change and reinvention…
Now the lake faces another major change: rapidly fluctuating water levels. The name Naivasha comes from a Maasai word meaning "that which heaves," an apt description of the freshwater lake over the past 25 years. Satellite altimetry measurements of the lake's depth indicate an increase of about 7 metres (23 feet) since 2010, roughly the height of a two-story building. Over the same period, Landsat observed a roughly 40 percent increase in the lake's area, adding 50 kilometres² (19 miles²) of water, equivalent to roughly 15 Central Parks.
The human and economic toll of the rising water levels is considerable..”
#Kenya #LakeNaivasha #Africa #water #hydrology #hydrography #risingwater #waterlevels #GIS #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #humanimpacts #farming #agriculture #infrastructure #damage #community #satellite #altimetry #economy #cost #impact #change #flood #flooding #innundation
@nasa

#kenya #lakenaivasha #africa #water #hydrology #hydrography

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-09-01 · 02:30 UTC

Annual High-Resolution Global Ambient Population Estimates From 1975 To 2024
--
https://doi.org/10.31223/X5MV3R <-- shared paper
--
https://landscan.ornl.gov/ <-- shared webmap and data link (via download -> LandScan Mosaic Time Series)
--
https://gee-community-catalog.org/projects/landcast/ <-- shared link to GEE community catalog collection ‘LandScan Mosaic Annual Global Ambient Population Time Series’
--
H/T @andrew Zimmer || Geographer | Research Scientist @ Oak Ridge National Laboratory
“LSM-TS provides annual global estimates of ambient population from 1975–2024 at ~90 m resolution, creating a spatially and temporally consistent reconstruction of population change designed for longitudinal analysis. Reconstruction of historical populations are driven by current LandScan Mosaic building-level population distributions, scaled by built-surface change from #GHSL … and calibrated to annual national-level estimates from U.S. Census Bureau…”
--
“LandScan is a globally recognized, R&D100-winning population data platform developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Its datasets provide human population distribution estimates down to 100 meter grid resolution. LandScan supports disaster response, humanitarian aid, environmental analysis, and urban planning by providing insights into where people live and how they move…”
--
“Gridded population data support assessments of human exposure, settlement change, infrastructure demand, and access to services, yet global datasets combining annual coverage over multiple decades with fine spatial resolution remain limited. LandScan Mosaic Time Series provides 50 annual estimates of global ambient population distribution at 3 arc-second resolution from 1975 through 2024. The series is anchored to the 2024 LandScan Mosaic surface, produced through a building-level population modeling workflow. Historical surfaces are reconstructed using annualized changes in built surface and derived first-level administrative population trajectories. Every layer, including 2024, is normalized to administrative targets scaled to annual country totals from the U.S. Census Bureau International Database. The dataset is distributed as 50 single-band Cloud Optimized GeoTIFFs on an identical WGS84 grid, with values representing estimated persons per cell. Its common grid and methodology support fine-scale longitudinal analysis of ambient population distribution while documented validation and limitations guide appropriate reuse…”
#demographics #change #spatiotemporal #1975 #2024 #population #change #grid #global #LandScan #POPGRID #LSMTS #ambientpopulation #GHSL #OakRidge #ORNL #usecase #opendata #disasterresponse #humanitarianaid #environmentalanalysis #urbanplanning #humanexposure #settlementchange #city #rural #infrastructure #demand #accesstoservices #GIS #spatial #mapping #building #outline #model #modeling
@OAK Ridge National Laboratory | National Security Sciences at ORNL | @POPGRID Data Collaborative

#ghsl #demographics #change #spatiotemporal #population #grid

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-08-25 · 23:19 UTC

Anthropogenic River Flows
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https://doi.org/10.1088/3033-4942/ae94a0 <-- shared technical perspective
--
H/T @Homero Paltán | Water, Energy, Land & Infrastructure Systemic Risks | Lecturer
“Are global river flows no longer natural? Can we really talk about natural rivers? [The authors] started asking ourselves these questions a few years ago over wonderful discussion sessions.
[They] argue that global river systems have entered a new phase, one of Anthropogenic River Flows, where flow regimes arise from the persistent interaction of:
• the physical alteration of river systems,
• the institutional and socio-technical organisation of water use and allocation
• broader global and systemic processes operating across scales.
In the Anthropocene, these domains do not operate independently because a change in one alters how the other two function. Global water risks and river flow properties then become an emergent property of these interactions.
As a result, [the authors] call for a rethinking of how we study, understand, and manage river flows to better reflect this new reality…”
#water #hydrology #Anthropogenic #River #Flow #spatial #mapping #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #flowregimes #risk #waterrisk #global #climatechange #watersecurity #baseline #humanimpacts #magnitude, #seasonality #variability #waterquality #sociohydrology #hydroclimate #regulation #waterresources #engineering #governance #pumping #alteration

#water #hydrology #anthropogenic #river #flow #spatial

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-08-18 · 03:01 UTC

Widespread Landslide Activity in an Extreme Wet Season and Implications for Regional Sediment Management, Eastern San Francisco Bay Area, California
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https://doi.org/10.1029/2026EA005227 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @amy East, Ph.D., P.G. | Researcher integrating geoscience and climate-change preparedness
“[This paper (link above) is] a collaboration with [the H/T’s] colleagues from [the] USGS Landslide Hazards Program, who mapped over 8,900 landslides in the eastern San Francisco Bay Area during an extreme wet winter.
How much sediment does such an extreme winter produce, from landslides or in stream discharge? How does that compare with long-term sediment production and landscape denudation rates?
[They] f[o]nd that landslide sediment mobilization is comparable to long-term denudation rates, emphasizing the role of extreme events in long-term sediment production. However, one extreme wet year has a negligible effect toward counteracting ongoing problems of sediment deficit in San Francisco Bay: to keep pace with sea-level rise, extreme wet conditions would need to occur in 50 out of the next 75 years…”
--
"PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: Watersheds will likely produce more sediment in a warmer future with more extreme rain, primarily through landslides in steep terrain. This study examines how an extremely wet season affected sediment production and transport in the eastern San Francisco Bay area, California. By mapping and measuring 8,928 landslides, [they] found that rare, extreme rain conditions are likely responsible for the vast majority of long-term hillslope erosion rates in this region. However, due to long residence times for sediment on hillslopes and in stream channels, a maximum of 1%–2% of that newly mobilized landslide material could have potentially contributed to sediment carried by streams into the Bay that year. Even extremely wet years cannot provide enough sediment for Bay wetlands and shorelines to keep pace with rising sea levels. To meet the demand for sediment in the Bay, such extreme rain and sediment production would need to occur in most years, which is not realistic. To restore wetlands and protect shorelines, managers likely will need to supplement the coastal system with repurposed dredged material…”
#massmovement #soil #water #hydrology #hydrography #geology #soils #geomorphometry #hydrogeomorphology #geomorphology #landslide #masswasting #climatechange #extremeweather #precipitation #rainfall #weather #climate #mapping #engineeringgeology #mapping #SanFrancisco #BayArea #USA #California #fedscience #fedservice #oublicgood #sediment #stream #discharge #extremewinter #sealevelrise #SLR #hillslope #erosion #sedimentation #tidal #wetlands #coast #coastline #shoreline #GIS #spatial #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #watershed
#USGS | #USGSLandslideHazardsProgram

#massmovement #soil #water #hydrology #hydrography #geology

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-08-11 · 03:35 UTC

Classification And Conceptualization Of Karst Recharge Processes Through Spectral And Change Point Analysis Of Drip Water Dynamics
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https://doi.org/10.1029/2025WR042816 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @ Danyang Sun | UNSW-PhD student
“… [The authors] analysed one year of drip water monitoring data from 46 monitoring sites across six karst regions in southeastern Australia. By integrating fast Fourier analysis, cross-wavelet transform and change point analysis, [they] identified five characteristic recharge behaviours and developed a conceptual framework linking temporal drip dynamics with recharge mechanisms. [They] hope this framework will contribute to a better understanding of recharge heterogeneity in karst systems and support future groundwater research under a changing climate…”
#karst #Australia #water #hydrology #underground #subsurface #recharge #dynamics #spectral #changepoint #cave #dripwater #analysis #spatiotemporal #groundwater #research #climatechange #extremeweather #flow #storage #vadose #epikarst #watertable #aquifer #percolation #rainfall #precipitation #climate #lithology #geology #spatialanalysis

#karst #australia #water #hydrology #underground #subsurface

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-08-04 · 04:36 UTC

A National-Scale Database Of Groundwater Level Data For Switzerland
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https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-026-07353-6 <-- shared paper
--
H/T @RaoulCollenteur | Groundwater Hydrologist at Collenteur HydroConsult GmbH
“Looking for a ready-to-use FAIR dataset with groundwater levels, signatures, and meteorological drivers to test new models and analysis methods to learn from groundwater level data? Why not try [the authors’] new Swiss Groundwater Database with almost 1,000 piezometers in diverse climatological and hydrogeological settings within Switzerland? 💡
💧 Long groundwater level time series with frequent measurements
💧 Meteorological drivers included
💧Unique dataset in terms of hydrogeological data in an alpine setting
… [They] hope [that they] can develop the database in the future with other variables (i.e., groundwater temperature, spring discharge, etc.) and welcome additions and collaborations to make this happen. 🌊…”
--
“Groundwater is a vital component of the global supply of freshwater, playing a critical role for human populations, agriculture, and ecosystems. Due to the complex interactions between groundwater, surface water, climate, and human activity, these systems are frequently studied using advanced data analysis and modeling techniques. The effectiveness of these methods is generally enhanced by the availability and quality of data. In Switzerland, the focus area of this study, groundwater data is fragmented and lacks a standardized nationwide compilation. Consequently, the process of conducting nationwide studies with substantial sample sizes is both resource-intensive and time-consuming. In this paper, [they] introduce the Swiss Groundwater Database, a comprehensive compilation of groundwater time series and associated metadata throughout Switzerland. The current database consists of groundwater level data from 985 monitoring wells, which were completed with additional static and time-varying variables. The environmental characteristics and climate indices were compiled and determined for each monitoring well. The database is designed to facilitate and support large-sample hydrological research related to groundwater in Switzerland and beyond…”
#water #hydrography #database #GIS #spatial #mapping #groundwater #Switzerland #FAIR #SwissGroundwaterDatabase #opendata #hydrogeology #meteorology #weather #climate #alpine #waterresources #agriculture #ecosystems #humanimpacts #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #model #modeling #dataanalysis #nationwide #metadata #monitoring #wells
@Federal Office for the Environment FOEN | @Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology MeteoSwiss

#water #hydrography #database #gis #spatial #mapping

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 04:30 UTC

Global Performance of #RemoteSensing Based and Reanalysis-Driven Models to Estimate Open Water Evaporation
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2025WR042363
--
“ABSTRACT: Evaporation plays an essential role in the water cycle, influencing local and regional climates while directly impacting water availability in lakes. However, directly measuring evaporation over water bodies remains challenging due to the high costs of installing and maintaining the required in situ instrumentation. Although several remote sensing algorithms have been providing evaporation estimates, the lack of a global validation hinders our understanding of their relative uncertainties and performances across different regions. Here, [they] analyze[d] the performance of a suite of models that leverage satellite data and meteorological reanalysis to estimate evaporation over lakes worldwide. [They] compare[d] three remote sensing-based models, one reanalysis-driven model and one ensemble approach, using in situ observations from 27 lakes representing a diverse range of geographic and climatic regions. [Their] results demonstrate that, overall, the ensemble outperformed any individual model in terms of accuracy, with a RMSE and a bias of 1.3 and 0.3 mm/day, respectively. These findings highlight the benefits of using an ensemble approach to estimate open water evaporation with satellite-based models at the global scale, leveraging the unique strengths of each model. For the individual models, differences in the representation of heat storage changes and advection effects led to lower values of RMSE and bias, depending on the location and depth of the lakes. This study sets the path for future improvement of open water evaporation algorithms globally, while remote sensing techniques are proven satisfactory to monitoring of water loss in lakes globally, an essential step toward effective large-scale water resources management.
PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: Water loss through evaporation in lakes and reservoirs directly affects water availability, which highlights the need to monitor these losses. However, measuring evaporation in situ is challenging and expensive. An alternative is to estimate evaporation using remote-sensing models and compare these estimates with in-situ data to verify their accuracy. Here, [they] evaluated four models and their ensemble (the models' mean value) using measurements from 27 lakes and reservoirs worldwide. [They] found that the ensemble presented higher accuracy and consistency than any individual model because it benefits from the strengths of each model. This approach can guide future improvements in estimating open-water evaporation, which is essential for large-scale water-resource management…”
#global #mapping #earthobservation #GIS #spatial #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #model #modeling #water #hydrology #surfacewater #waterbody #lake #reservoir #evaporation #evapotranspiration #watercycle #weather #meteorology #usecase #waterresources #watermanagement #waterloss #regional #estimate #policy #planning #instrumentation #comparasion

#remotesensing #global #mapping #earthobservation #gis #spatial

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 04:30 UTC

Global Performance of #RemoteSensing Based and Reanalysis-Driven Models to Estimate Open Water Evaporation
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2025WR042363
--
“ABSTRACT: Evaporation plays an essential role in the water cycle, influencing local and regional climates while directly impacting water availability in lakes. However, directly measuring evaporation over water bodies remains challenging due to the high costs of installing and maintaining the required in situ instrumentation. Although several remote sensing algorithms have been providing evaporation estimates, the lack of a global validation hinders our understanding of their relative uncertainties and performances across different regions. Here, [they] analyze[d] the performance of a suite of models that leverage satellite data and meteorological reanalysis to estimate evaporation over lakes worldwide. [They] compare[d] three remote sensing-based models, one reanalysis-driven model and one ensemble approach, using in situ observations from 27 lakes representing a diverse range of geographic and climatic regions. [Their] results demonstrate that, overall, the ensemble outperformed any individual model in terms of accuracy, with a RMSE and a bias of 1.3 and 0.3 mm/day, respectively. These findings highlight the benefits of using an ensemble approach to estimate open water evaporation with satellite-based models at the global scale, leveraging the unique strengths of each model. For the individual models, differences in the representation of heat storage changes and advection effects led to lower values of RMSE and bias, depending on the location and depth of the lakes. This study sets the path for future improvement of open water evaporation algorithms globally, while remote sensing techniques are proven satisfactory to monitoring of water loss in lakes globally, an essential step toward effective large-scale water resources management.
PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: Water loss through evaporation in lakes and reservoirs directly affects water availability, which highlights the need to monitor these losses. However, measuring evaporation in situ is challenging and expensive. An alternative is to estimate evaporation using remote-sensing models and compare these estimates with in-situ data to verify their accuracy. Here, [they] evaluated four models and their ensemble (the models' mean value) using measurements from 27 lakes and reservoirs worldwide. [They] found that the ensemble presented higher accuracy and consistency than any individual model because it benefits from the strengths of each model. This approach can guide future improvements in estimating open-water evaporation, which is essential for large-scale water-resource management…”
#global #mapping #earthobservation #GIS #spatial #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #model #modeling #water #hydrology #surfacewater #waterbody #lake #reservoir #evaporation #evapotranspiration #watercycle #weather #meteorology #usecase #waterresources #watermanagement #waterloss #regional #estimate #policy #planning #instrumentation #comparasion

#remotesensing #global #mapping #earthobservation #gis #spatial

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 04:30 UTC

Global Performance of #RemoteSensing Based and Reanalysis-Driven Models to Estimate Open Water Evaporation
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2025WR042363
--
“ABSTRACT: Evaporation plays an essential role in the water cycle, influencing local and regional climates while directly impacting water availability in lakes. However, directly measuring evaporation over water bodies remains challenging due to the high costs of installing and maintaining the required in situ instrumentation. Although several remote sensing algorithms have been providing evaporation estimates, the lack of a global validation hinders our understanding of their relative uncertainties and performances across different regions. Here, [they] analyze[d] the performance of a suite of models that leverage satellite data and meteorological reanalysis to estimate evaporation over lakes worldwide. [They] compare[d] three remote sensing-based models, one reanalysis-driven model and one ensemble approach, using in situ observations from 27 lakes representing a diverse range of geographic and climatic regions. [Their] results demonstrate that, overall, the ensemble outperformed any individual model in terms of accuracy, with a RMSE and a bias of 1.3 and 0.3 mm/day, respectively. These findings highlight the benefits of using an ensemble approach to estimate open water evaporation with satellite-based models at the global scale, leveraging the unique strengths of each model. For the individual models, differences in the representation of heat storage changes and advection effects led to lower values of RMSE and bias, depending on the location and depth of the lakes. This study sets the path for future improvement of open water evaporation algorithms globally, while remote sensing techniques are proven satisfactory to monitoring of water loss in lakes globally, an essential step toward effective large-scale water resources management.
PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: Water loss through evaporation in lakes and reservoirs directly affects water availability, which highlights the need to monitor these losses. However, measuring evaporation in situ is challenging and expensive. An alternative is to estimate evaporation using remote-sensing models and compare these estimates with in-situ data to verify their accuracy. Here, [they] evaluated four models and their ensemble (the models' mean value) using measurements from 27 lakes and reservoirs worldwide. [They] found that the ensemble presented higher accuracy and consistency than any individual model because it benefits from the strengths of each model. This approach can guide future improvements in estimating open-water evaporation, which is essential for large-scale water-resource management…”
#global #mapping #earthobservation #GIS #spatial #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #model #modeling #water #hydrology #surfacewater #waterbody #lake #reservoir #evaporation #evapotranspiration #watercycle #weather #meteorology #usecase #waterresources #watermanagement #waterloss #regional #estimate #policy #planning #instrumentation #comparasion

#remotesensing #global #mapping #earthobservation #gis #spatial

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 04:30 UTC

Global Performance of #RemoteSensing Based and Reanalysis-Driven Models to Estimate Open Water Evaporation
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2025WR042363
--
“ABSTRACT: Evaporation plays an essential role in the water cycle, influencing local and regional climates while directly impacting water availability in lakes. However, directly measuring evaporation over water bodies remains challenging due to the high costs of installing and maintaining the required in situ instrumentation. Although several remote sensing algorithms have been providing evaporation estimates, the lack of a global validation hinders our understanding of their relative uncertainties and performances across different regions. Here, [they] analyze[d] the performance of a suite of models that leverage satellite data and meteorological reanalysis to estimate evaporation over lakes worldwide. [They] compare[d] three remote sensing-based models, one reanalysis-driven model and one ensemble approach, using in situ observations from 27 lakes representing a diverse range of geographic and climatic regions. [Their] results demonstrate that, overall, the ensemble outperformed any individual model in terms of accuracy, with a RMSE and a bias of 1.3 and 0.3 mm/day, respectively. These findings highlight the benefits of using an ensemble approach to estimate open water evaporation with satellite-based models at the global scale, leveraging the unique strengths of each model. For the individual models, differences in the representation of heat storage changes and advection effects led to lower values of RMSE and bias, depending on the location and depth of the lakes. This study sets the path for future improvement of open water evaporation algorithms globally, while remote sensing techniques are proven satisfactory to monitoring of water loss in lakes globally, an essential step toward effective large-scale water resources management.
PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: Water loss through evaporation in lakes and reservoirs directly affects water availability, which highlights the need to monitor these losses. However, measuring evaporation in situ is challenging and expensive. An alternative is to estimate evaporation using remote-sensing models and compare these estimates with in-situ data to verify their accuracy. Here, [they] evaluated four models and their ensemble (the models' mean value) using measurements from 27 lakes and reservoirs worldwide. [They] found that the ensemble presented higher accuracy and consistency than any individual model because it benefits from the strengths of each model. This approach can guide future improvements in estimating open-water evaporation, which is essential for large-scale water-resource management…”
#global #mapping #earthobservation #GIS #spatial #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #model #modeling #water #hydrology #surfacewater #waterbody #lake #reservoir #evaporation #evapotranspiration #watercycle #weather #meteorology #usecase #waterresources #watermanagement #waterloss #regional #estimate #policy #planning #instrumentation #comparasion

#comparasion #instrumentation #planning #policy #estimate #regional

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @GregCocks · 2026-07-23 · 04:30 UTC

Global Performance of #RemoteSensing Based and Reanalysis-Driven Models to Estimate Open Water Evaporation
--
https://doi.org/10.1029/2025WR042363
--
“ABSTRACT: Evaporation plays an essential role in the water cycle, influencing local and regional climates while directly impacting water availability in lakes. However, directly measuring evaporation over water bodies remains challenging due to the high costs of installing and maintaining the required in situ instrumentation. Although several remote sensing algorithms have been providing evaporation estimates, the lack of a global validation hinders our understanding of their relative uncertainties and performances across different regions. Here, [they] analyze[d] the performance of a suite of models that leverage satellite data and meteorological reanalysis to estimate evaporation over lakes worldwide. [They] compare[d] three remote sensing-based models, one reanalysis-driven model and one ensemble approach, using in situ observations from 27 lakes representing a diverse range of geographic and climatic regions. [Their] results demonstrate that, overall, the ensemble outperformed any individual model in terms of accuracy, with a RMSE and a bias of 1.3 and 0.3 mm/day, respectively. These findings highlight the benefits of using an ensemble approach to estimate open water evaporation with satellite-based models at the global scale, leveraging the unique strengths of each model. For the individual models, differences in the representation of heat storage changes and advection effects led to lower values of RMSE and bias, depending on the location and depth of the lakes. This study sets the path for future improvement of open water evaporation algorithms globally, while remote sensing techniques are proven satisfactory to monitoring of water loss in lakes globally, an essential step toward effective large-scale water resources management.
PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY: Water loss through evaporation in lakes and reservoirs directly affects water availability, which highlights the need to monitor these losses. However, measuring evaporation in situ is challenging and expensive. An alternative is to estimate evaporation using remote-sensing models and compare these estimates with in-situ data to verify their accuracy. Here, [they] evaluated four models and their ensemble (the models' mean value) using measurements from 27 lakes and reservoirs worldwide. [They] found that the ensemble presented higher accuracy and consistency than any individual model because it benefits from the strengths of each model. This approach can guide future improvements in estimating open-water evaporation, which is essential for large-scale water-resource management…”
#global #mapping #earthobservation #GIS #spatial #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #model #modeling #water #hydrology #surfacewater #waterbody #lake #reservoir #evaporation #evapotranspiration #watercycle #weather #meteorology #usecase #waterresources #watermanagement #waterloss #regional #estimate #policy #planning #instrumentation #comparasion

#remotesensing #global #mapping #earthobservation #gis #spatial

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-07-02 · 01:32 UTC

Advancing Detailed Flood Hazard Identification in Alberta, Canada - Insights from Two Recent Flood Studies
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https://doi.org/10.3390/w18131592 <-- shared paper
--
“The increasing frequency of floods and the severity of their consequences for public safety, infrastructure, and the economy demand improved methods for flood hazard identification. Flood studies that include flood hazard mapping are critical tools for informing emergency response and flood recovery, as well as for land use and mitigation planning. The methodology for such flood studies has evolved, and access to more powerful computational resources and high-resolution base data has contributed to the increased use of two-dimensional hydraulic modelling, where one-dimensional modelling previously was the default. However, local-scale flood studies face real-world constraints, including sparse data, challenging hydrologic conditions, and budget limitations, which can hinder the application of advanced techniques. This study addresses these challenges through innovative, practice-driven solutions in two case studies in Alberta, Canada: a small, partly channelised prairie stream network (Wolf Creek, Lacombe) and a laterally dynamic river on a distributary delta (Swan River, Kinuso). Three core components of flood hazard studies are described: field survey data collection, regional hydrology assessment, and hydraulic modelling. Key findings include demonstrating that LiDAR-derived terrain models alone cannot capture channel conveyance, the importance of low-flow calibration in the absence of high-water marks, the selection of a modelling methodology based on bathymetric and topographic features within a study area, and the development of inflow hydrographs for unsteady-state simulation in flat floodplains…”
#FloodMapping #FloodRisk #Hydrology #HydraulicModeling #HECRAS #WaterResources #Alberta #Resilience #RiverSurvey #spatialanlaysis #spatiotemporal #floodhazardmapping #HECRAS #model #modeling #remotesensing #LiDAR #bathymetry #floodfrequencyanalysis #unsteadysimulation #FHIMP #FHIP #WoldCreek #Lacombe #SwanRiver #Kinuso #Alberta #Canada #localscale #provincialfloodstudy # prairie #stream #river #flood #flooding #water #hydrology #risk #hazard #watershed #publicsafety #cost #damage #economics #infrastructure #use #practicedriven #floodhazard #survey #hydraulic #terrainmodels #hydrogeomorphology #topography #elevation #floodplain
@Alberta Environment and Protected Areas | @Government of Alberta | @Barr Engineering

#floodmapping #floodrisk #hydrology #hydraulicmodeling #hecras #waterresources

💧🌏 Greg Cocks @[email protected] · 2026-06-13 · 05:44 UTC

Late Miocene Euphrates River Drained Into A Partially Desiccated Eastern Mediterranean
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https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-026-01962-x <-- shared paper
--
[the paleogeographic reconstruction is outstanding, including the strength and information conveyed so well in that figure, kudos!]
H/T @lina Jakaitė-Darkšė
“Although the Euphrates River - stretching ~3,000 km across Western Asia - has shaped the region’s geology for millions of years, the timing of its origin and the evolution of its course remain enigmatic. So far, two contrasting hypotheses have been proposed to explain the fluvial system’s Late Neogene path: termination in Anatolia at a palaeo-lake or the Mediterranean, or a southeastward continuation to Arabia. Here [they] use seismic-reflection and topographic data to show that two previously identified sedimentary accumulations - deposited during the terminal phase of the Late Miocene Messinian salinity crisis - resulted from dual riverine systems that drained into a partially desiccated eastern Mediterranean before avulsing toward the Persian Gulf and converging to form the modern Euphrates River. From probabilistic sediment-budget modelling, [they] show that although the latest Messinian drainage basins were an order of magnitude smaller than their present-day extents, the total palaeo-discharge exceeded that of the modern Tigris, Euphrates and Nile rivers combined, indicating intense palaeo-precipitation and high palaeo-relief. These results suggest that plate-margin deformation both controlled the fluvial avulsions that diverted the Euphrates River from the Anatolian–Eurasian Plate to the Arabian Plate, and established the conditions necessary for the development of the alluvial Fertile Crescent…”
#water #hydrology #hydrography #paleogeography #Euphrates #river #Miocene #reconstruction #spatialreconstruction #geology #change #erosion #MiddleEast #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #Neogene #Anatolia #paleolake #Mediterranean #Arabia #Messinian #remotesensing #model #modeling #topography #hydrogeomorphology #geomorphology #PersianGulf #sediment #paleodischarge #volume #Tigris #elevation #platetectonics #structuralgeology #platemargin #fluvial #avulsion #FertileCrescent