Groundwater storage depletion is a critical issue for many of the major aquifers in the U.S., particularly during intense droughts. The GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) satellites launched in 2002, with sensors designed to measure changes in the Earth’s gravitational field at large spatial scales (≥ ~200,000 km2). These changes are primarily driven by changes in water storage on the Earth’s surface. Estimates of groundwater storage changes based on these gravity measurements have attracted considerable media attention in the U.S. and globally. However, groundwater storage changes are computed indirectly by subtracting snow, surface water, and soil moisture storage from the total water storage monitored...
|
