PNNL

Abstract

Increasing climatic and human pressures are changing the world’s water resources and hydrological processes at unprecedented rates. These changes require monitoring water resources from ground and space at different temporal and spatial scales. This monitoring can be achieved with Hydrogeodesy, the science that measures the Earth’s solid and aquatic surfaces, gravity field, and their changes over time. Hydrogeodesy encompasses geodetic technologies such as Altimetry, Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), Mass gravimetry, and Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS). During the last thirty years, these technologies have contributed to quantifying changes in surface and groundwater resources locally, regionally, and globally. Yet, to our knowledge, the evolution and combination of these technologies and their role within current hydrological, sustainability science, and management frameworks remain unaddressed. Here, we first perform a meta-analysis of over 3,000 articles to understand the range, trends, and applications of hydrogeodetic technologies. Second, we discuss the potential of Hydrogeodesy to significantly advance hydrology, water-related sustainability, and water management. For this, we focus on the 23 Unsolved Questions of the International Association of Hydrological Sciences and the Planetary Boundaries framework (meant as guidance towards a safe operating space for humanity). We find a growing body of literature relating to the advancements in methods, accuracy, precision, and measurements of these technologies and support of hydrological modeling. Hydrogeodesy is also largely published in multidisciplinary and remote sensing journals, which points to considerable potential for integration with water-related sciences, especially regarding terrestrial water features such as wetlands, permafrost, lakes, and rivers. We call for a coordinated way forward for hydrogeodesists to increase interdisciplinary collaboration and broader and deeper application of Hydrogeodesy for understanding and managing water resources and to provide guidance for a safe operating space for humans regarding water resources.