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Monitoring groundwater storage changes in the highly seasonal humid tropics: Validation of GRACE measurements in the Bengal Basin

Shamsudduha, M; Taylor, RG; Longuevergne, L; (2012) Monitoring groundwater storage changes in the highly seasonal humid tropics: Validation of GRACE measurements in the Bengal Basin. Water Resources Research , 48 , Article W02508. 10.1029/2011WR010993. Green open access

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Abstract

Satellite monitoring of changes in terrestrial water storage provides invaluable information regarding the basin-scale dynamics of hydrological systems where ground-based records are limited. In the Bengal Basin of Bangladesh, we test the ability of satellite measurements under the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) to trace both the seasonality and trend in groundwater storage associated with intensive groundwater abstraction for dry-season irrigation and wet-season (monsoonal) recharge. We show that GRACE (CSR, GRGS) datasets of recent (2003 to 2007) groundwater storage changes (ΔGWS) correlate well (r = 0.77 to 0.93, p value < 0.0001) with in situ borehole records from a network of 236 monitoring stations and account for 44% of the total variation in terrestrial water storage (ΔTWS); highest correlation (r = 0.93, p value < 0.0001) and lowest root-mean-square error (<4 cm) are realized using a spherical harmonic product of CSR. Changes in surface water storage estimated from a network of 298 river gauging stations and soil-moisture derived from Land Surface Models explain 22% and 33% of ΔTWS, respectively. Groundwater depletion estimated from borehole hydrographs (−0.52 ± 0.30 km3 yr−1) is within the range of satellite-derived estimates (−0.44 to −2.04 km3 yr−1) that result from uncertainty associated with the simulation of soil moisture (CLM, NOAH, VIC) and GRACE signal-processing techniques. Recent (2003 to 2007) estimates of groundwater depletion are substantially greater than long-term (1985 to 2007) mean (−0.21 ± 0.03 km3 yr−1) and are explained primarily by substantial increases in groundwater abstraction for the dry-season irrigation and public water supplies over the last two decades.

Type: Article
Title: Monitoring groundwater storage changes in the highly seasonal humid tropics: Validation of GRACE measurements in the Bengal Basin
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1029/2011WR010993
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2011WR010993
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright 2012 by the American Geophysical Union
Keywords: Bengal Basin, GRACE, Groundwater, Humid, In situ
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Inst for Risk and Disaster Reduction
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Dept of Geography
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1349215
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