HYDROWEB provides continuous time-series of water levels for the world's 20 largest rivers and over 80 major lakes. The LEGOS laboratory constructs these series using high-rate altimetry data from Jason-2 and Saral satellites, updated within 1.5 days for operational measurements. This data supports the characterization of the continental water cycle, which accounts for 0.65% of Earth's total water.
Use Cases
- Model river discharge and flow rates using water level time-series at over 300 operational measurement points.
- Analyze long-term trends in freshwater storage for major global rivers like the Amazon or Nile from multi-year satellite records.
- Calibrate hydrological models by comparing satellite-derived water level data with in-situ gauge measurements.
- Assess flood or drought conditions by monitoring anomalies in the operational water level time-series updated near-real-time.
- Study climate variability impacts on continental water resources using the research series covering about 1000 measurement points.
Strengths
- Operational series updated within 1.5 days of new satellite measurements for near-real-time monitoring.
- Covers approximately 300 operational measurement points along 20 major rivers globally.
- Research series provides extended coverage of about 1000 measurement points for in-depth analysis.
Limitations
- Data quality can be reduced over complex terrain or vegetated areas where radar echoes are interfered with, leading to fewer valid measurements.
- Time-series construction requires at least two high-rate data points per satellite cycle for averaging, potentially creating data gaps.
- Limited to large rivers and lakes (surface area > 100 km²), excluding smaller water bodies.
Provenance
- Source
- LEGOS laboratory, part of the CEOS_EXTRA organization.
- Collection Method
- Constructed from Jason-2 and Saral satellite Geodetic Data Records (GDRs), using high-rate (20 or 40Hz) altimetry data averaged at defined virtual stations.
- Time Range
- null
- Freshness
- Operational measurement series updated within 1.5 days; research series updated at regular intervals based on processing progress.
- Geography
- Global coverage of approximately 20 major world rivers and over 80 large lakes.