IGCP 565 Project Workshop

IGCP 565 Workshop 1: Science of geodetic monitoring of the hydrological cycle

Abstract:

Integrating Geodetic Observations into Hydrological Models
Matt Rodell, Ben Zaitchik, Bailing Li, and Rolf Reichle
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, USA

Sophisticated hydrological models can now run globally at high resolutions on inexpensive computing platforms. The accuracy of their output is limited by the quality of the input data used to parameterize and force the models, the model developers’ understanding of the physics involved, and the simplifications necessary to depict the Earth system economically. Geodetic observations offer additional constraints which may be useful for improving model simulations, despite having their own set of issues, such as data gaps, measurement uncertainty, and low resolutions. The advantages of both hydrological models and geodetic observations can be harnessed via data integration. Techniques available for integrating geodetic observations into land surface models include parameterization, calibration, and data assimilation. This presentation will describe progress on these techniques to date and opportunities for the future.