Challenges and Opportunities of Satellite Observations for Studying Hydrologic Process and Their Variability
Viviana Maggioni is an Associate Professor of Environmental and Water Resources Engineering and the Director of Undergraduate Affairs in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering at George Mason University.
Abstract: Investigating how hydrologic variables change in space and time is crucial for sustainable water resources management, for characterizing extremes and their socioeconomic impacts, and for policymaking. This seminar presents the challenges and opportunities of satellite-based observations for studying hydrologic patterns and trends. Satellites offer a unique perspective to look at water quantity and distribution globally everywhere anytime. Nevertheless, in order to efficiently use satellite-based observations, we need to improve the inherent coarse resolution of satellite-based observations down to finer scales and their accuracy. To address the first limitation, the seminar will present novel approaches to downscale atmospheric and hydrological variables. The gain of this shift is both practical and conceptual: not only the wealth of information generated at the finer scale vastly benefits decision-making processes, but it also allows for the study of physical processes that remain invisible at coarser scales. Estimating hydrologic variables such as precipitation can be complicated by several factors, including complex orography and lack of ground references, among others. Therefore, evaluating the quality and reliability of hydrologic data, before analyzing their trends and patterns, is fundamental. As an example, the seminar will present a comprehensive assessment of high- resolution satellite-based and model reanalysis precipitation estimates conducted in some of the most complex regions in the world such as High Mountain Asia and West Africa.
About: Viviana Maggioni, PhD. is Associate Professor of Environmental and Water Resources Engineering the Director of Undergraduate Affairs in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering at George Mason University, Fairfax, VA. Dr. Maggioni received her B.S. and M.S. degrees in Environmental Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy, in 2003 and 2006 respectively, and her Ph.D. degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of Connecticut, Storrs, in 2012. Her research interests lie at the intersection of hydrology and remote sensing. In particular, she is interested in the application of satellite remote sensing techniques to estimate and monitor hydrological variables at the local to global scale. Her work has direct applications in water resources management, weather and climate prediction, as well as agriculture and irrigation practices. Since 2010, she has published more than 70 peer-reviewed scientific articles, 5 book chapters, 3 scientific reports, and co-edited a book on Extreme Hydroclimatic Events and Multivariate Hazards in a Changing Climate (Elsevier, 2019). She currently serves as Editor in Chief of the Journal of Hydrometeorology (American Meteorological Society Publications) and as Associate Editor of Frontier in Climate – Climate Services. She has served as one of the two co-chairs of the International Precipitation Working Group (IPWG) and the Chair of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) Technical Committee on Precipitation.