APPLICATION OF GIS IN

AGRIBUSINESS

Submitted to: Submitted by:

Mahipal sir 17-8-2021 G. Pawan santhosh
F20010
Contents
Introduction..................................................................................................................................................... 4
About GIS....................................................................................................................................................... 4
Application of GIS in agribusiness.................................................................................................................. 7
About Aapah Innovation................................................................................................................................. 7
Aapah innovations services............................................................................................................................ 9
1) Geospatial modelling.................................................................................................................................. 9
2) Mathematical Modelling........................................................................................................................... 9
3) GIS solutions......................................................................................................................................... 10
4) Consultancy........................................................................................................................................... 10
5) Training................................................................................................................................................. 10
6) Satellite remote sensing........................................................................................................................ 11
Aapah products............................................................................................................................................. 11
1) VATI...................................................................................................................................................... 11
2)ambhasGW............................................................................................................................................ 11
3) Vashp.................................................................................................................................................... 11
4) Samyak Sechan.................................................................................................................................... 12
5) Vikleda.................................................................................................................................................. 12
6) Satellite rainfall...................................................................................................................................... 12
7)Sasya..................................................................................................................................................... 12
Area of focus................................................................................................................................................ 13
1) Crop insurance...................................................................................................................................... 13
Case 1- Mapping India’s farmland from space.............................................................................................13
Case 2- Satellite remote sensing for crop insurance settlement...................................................................14
Case 3- Satellite remote sensing for crop insurance underwriting................................................................14
Case 4- Satellite remote sensing for crop insurance.....................................................................................15
2)Agriculture................................................................................................................................................. 15
Case 1- Want to know how Turmeric is growing in your area?.....................................................................15
Case 2- Did crop get enough water in Maharashtra this Kharif season?.......................................................17
Case 3- Monitor agricultural drought using satellite data in near real time....................................................19
Case 4- Soil Moisture Map for the state of Andhra Pradesh.........................................................................19
3)Water resources........................................................................................................................................ 20
Case 1- Prediction of flood risk..................................................................................................................... 20
Case 2- Integrated Water Management Programme (IWMP).......................................................................20
Case 3- Weather Forecasting....................................................................................................................... 20

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Projects of aapah.......................................................................................................................................... 21
Estimation of evapotranspiration from remote sensing data......................................................................21
Estimation of root zone soil moisture from satellite....................................................................................22
Rainfall estimation from the satellite.......................................................................................................... 23
Estimation of surface soil moisture from the satellite.................................................................................24
A distributed surface-ground water model.................................................................................................24

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Introduction

About GIS
A geographic information system (GIS) is a computer system for capturing, storing,
checking, and displaying data related to positions on Earth’s surface. GIS can show many different
kinds of data on one map, such as streets, buildings, and vegetation. This enables people to more
easily see, analyze, and understand patterns and relationships.
GIS technology is a crucial part of spatial data infrastructure, which the White House defines
as “the technology, policies, standards, human resources, and related activities necessary to
acquire, process, distribute, use, maintain, and preserve spatial data.”  
GIS can use any information that includes location. The location can be expressed in many
different ways, such as latitude and longitude, address, or ZIP code.  
Many different types of information can be compared and contrasted using GIS. The system
can include data about people, such as population, income, or education level. It can include
information about the landscape, such as the location of streams, different kinds of vegetation, and
different kinds of soil. It can include information about the sites of factories, farms, and schools, or
storm drains, roads, and electric power lines.
With GIS technology, people can compare the locations of different things in order to
discover how they relate to each other. For example, using GIS, a single map could include sites
that produce pollution, such as factories, and sites that are sensitive to pollution, such as wetlands
and rivers. Such a map would help people determine where water supplies are most at risk.

Data Capture

Data Formats 

GIS applications include both hardware and software systems. These applications may

include cartographic data, photographic data, digital data, or data in spreadsheets.
Cartographic data are already in map form, and may include such information as the
location of rivers, roads, hills, and valleys. Cartographic data may also include survey data and
mapping information that can be directly entered into a GIS. 

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 Photographic interpretation is a major part of GIS. Photo interpretation involves analyzing
aerial photographs and assessing the features that appear. 
Digital data can also be entered into GIS. An example of this kind of information is computer
data collected by satellites that show land use—the location of farms, towns, and forests.
Remote sensing provides another tool that can be integrated into a GIS. Remote sensing
includes imagery and other data collected from satellites, balloons, and drones.
Finally, GIS can also include data in table or spreadsheet form, such as population
demographics. Demographics can range from age, income, and ethnicity to recent purchases
and internet browsing preferences.  
GIS technology allows all these different types of information, no matter their source or
original format, to be overlaid on top of one another on a single map. GIS uses location as the key
index variable to relate these seemingly unrelated data. 
Putting information into GIS is called data capture. Data that are already in digital form, such
as most tables and images taken by satellites, can simply be uploaded into GIS. Maps, however,
must first be scanned, or converted to digital format.
The two major types of GIS file formats are raster and vector. Raster formats are grids of
cells or pixels. Raster formats are useful for storing GIS data that vary, such
as elevation or satellite imagery. Vector formats are polygons that use points (called nodes) and
lines. Vector formats are useful for storing GIS data with firm borders, such as school districts or
streets.

Spatial Relationships

GIS technology can be used to display spatial relationships and linear networks. Spatial
relationships may display topography, such as agricultural fields and streams. They may also
display land-use patterns, such as the location of parks and housing complexes.  
Linear networks, sometimes called geometric networks, are often represented by roads,
rivers, and public utility grids in a GIS. A line on a map may indicate a road or highway. With GIS
layers, however, that road may indicate the boundary of a school district, public park, or other
demographic or land-use area. Using diverse data capture, the linear network of a river may
be mapped on a GIS to indicate the stream flow of different tributaries.   
GIS must make the information from all the various maps and sources align, so they fit
together on the same scale. A scale is the relationship between the distance on a map and the
actual distance on Earth. 

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 Often, GIS must manipulate data because different maps have different projections.
A projection is the method of transferring information from Earth’s curved surface to a flat piece of
paper or computer screen. Different types of projections accomplish this task in different ways, but
all result in some distortion. To transfer a curved, three-dimensional shape onto a flat surface
inevitably requires stretching some parts and squeezing others. 
A world map can show either the correct sizes of countries or their correct shapes, but it
can’t do both. GIS takes data from maps that were made using different projections and combines
them so all the information can be displayed using one common projection. 

GIS Maps

Once all the desired data have been entered into a GIS system, they can be combined to
produce a wide variety of individual maps, depending on which data layers are included. One of the
most common uses of GIS technology involves comparing natural features with human activity.
For instance, GIS maps can display what man-made features are near certain natural
features, such as which homes and businesses are in areas prone to flooding. 
GIS technology also allows users to “dig deep” in a specific area with many kinds of
information. Maps of a single city or neighbourhood can relate such information as average
income, book sales, or voting patterns. Any GIS data layer can be added or subtracted to the same
map.  
GIS maps can be used to show information about numbers and density. For example, GIS
can show how many doctors there are in a neighbourhood compared with the area’s population. 
With GIS technology, researchers can also look at change over time. They can use satellite
data to study topics such as the advance and retreat of ice cover in polar regions, and how that
coverage has changed through time. A police precinct might study changes in crime data to help
determine where to assign officers. 
One important use of time-based GIS technology involves creating time-lapse
photography that shows processes occurring over large areas and long periods of time. For
example, data showing the movement of fluid in ocean or air currents help scientists better
understand how moisture and heat energy move around the globe.
GIS technology sometimes allows users to access further information about specific areas
on a map. A person can point to a spot on a digital map to find other information stored in the GIS
about that location. For example, a user might click on a school to find how many students are
enrolled, how many students there are per teacher, or what sports facilities the school has. 

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 GIS systems are often used to produce three-dimensional images. This is useful, for
example, to geologists studying earthquake faults. 
GIS technology makes updating maps much easier than updating maps created manually.
Updated data can simply be added to the existing GIS program. A new map can then be printed or
displayed on screen. This skips the traditional process of drawing a map, which can be time-
consuming and expensive.

Application of GIS in agribusiness

To make knowledgeable decisions about land use and the environment, you have to
simultaneously consider input from multiple, interrelated data sources and types. Geographic
information systems (GIS) help you to keep track of all this information at once. Geo-information
and Remote sensing technologies are playing an increasing role in agriculture production because
they let farmers to manage resources, increase yields, reduce input costs, predict outcomes,
improve business practices. GIS can be useful for examination of farm conditions and monitoring
effects of farm management practices such as estimates of crop yield, soil amendment analysis,
identification of erosion and remedies for it, farm input cost such as seed, fertilizers, fuels, labor
and transportation.
GIS technology is useful for increase production, reduction of cost and effective
management of the land. Profitability and success of agriculture depends on balancing inputs and
outputs of the farm. Using satellite images and GIS can possible to collect visual evidence, in
certain fraud conditions. And due to the actual location mapping, it can provide accurate results.
Accurate locational data collection is important in strategic decision making. GIS precisely record
and publish agriculture data for operating agriculture
RS data provides early warning system, so can possible to improve information on crop
conditions. Advance of GIS technology is valuable in management of large quantity of databases,
traditional digital maps and data models. Benefits of GIS in many applications and it are very
important to decision makers for strategic decision making.
agricultural planners use geospatial data for deciding best zone for certain plant, soil
suitability, topography and Size and location of biologically suitable areas can be determined by
using rainfall data. The ultimate output includes transport, infrastructure, labor availability,
overlays with land ownership and distance to market centers. GIS is useful in modelling, by using
real world data for representing natural behavior and simulating the effect of particular processes.

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About Aapah Innovation
Aapah Innovations is an Earth Observation and Engineering Consultancy company having
its office in Hyderabad, India. We strive to leverage cutting edge Research and Technology for
developing practical, sustainable and innovative solutions for agriculture and water resources
(surface, soil moisture, and groundwater) for improving the environment to create a better
tomorrow.
Aapah has created an eco-system of talent from premier research institutions of India and
abroad for hydrology, hydraulics, crop science, remote sensing, environmental engineering, data
science, and software application development.
Aapah has developed solutions for wide ranging industries such as agriculture, crop
insurance, marine, land management, disaster management, water management and weather for
the national and global market.
Vision of Aapah is to become Most preferred remote sensing value added service provider
on the planet.
Aapah innovations working with

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Aapah innovations services

1) Geospatial modelling
2) Mathematical modelling
3) GIS solutions
4) Consultancy
5) Training
6) Satellite remote sensing

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 1) Geospatial modelling

Most of the data collected is a point-based data which represents a very small area.
Therefore, analysing the spatial variability and its impact on the areal value need to be analysed.
For Indian conditions high spatial resolution microwave images provides unique opportunities for
modelling variety of land surface parameters using which efficient disaster management and land
use planning can be implemented. Our expertise enabled us to provide IT solutions for a variety of
geospatial data management.

2) Mathematical Modelling

Modelling hydrological cycle at higher spatiotemporal resolution need

approximate solutions for complex differential equations. Furthermore, correct utilisation of raw
satellite data, in particular, microwave remote sensing observations need in-depth understanding of
propagation electromagnetic waves and their interactions with matter. Analytical and complete
solutions for hydrological processes and electromagnetic wave equations are not possible, in
particular, for generating near real-time products at higher spatial resolution.

3) GIS solutions

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 We perform various GIS tasks e.g., Data format conversion, Projection conversion,
Orthorectification, Classification, Raster and Vector data creation, Spatial modelling and analysis
and Watershed delineation.

4) Consultancy

We provide consultancy service for every phase of the projects, including preparation of
detailed project reports, preparation of feasibility reports and preparation of proof of concept
reports.

5) Training

aapah offer trainings on-site at the premise of a customer.

Trainings provided:

 Automating GIS tasks using Python, KSRSAC, December 11-16, 2016.

 Microwave Remote sensing for agro-hydrology, Indian institute of science, Bangalore
November 6-7, 2017.

6) Satellite remote sensing

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 We utilise multi-satellite data to improve the spatial resolution and temporal revisit time. We
have developed innovative algorithms to extract useful information in near-real time and for the
historical time as well.

Aapah products
1) VATI

VATI (Value Added information in real time) is an application to visualize value-added

information in real time. The value-added products/information is estimated by processing the data
from multiple satellites.

2)ambhasGW
A distributed groundwater models. Developed jointly with Indian Institute of Science,
Bangalore. The model has been tested in agricultural and urban conditions.

3)Vashp
Satellite estimated actual evapotranspiration.

4) Samyak Sechan
Samyak Sechan tool uses the observation of soil moisture and crop specific Maximum
Allowed Depletion (MAD) to quantify the optimal irrigation requirement. The observation of soil
moisture required for tool could come from ground station or from satellite. The tool also provides
guidance on optimal time for the application of fertilizer and pesticides.

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5) Vikleda
Satellite estimated soil moisture.
Aapah has developed the innovative algorithm named Vikleda to estimate soil moisture from
multi-satellite data having all-weather capabilities. The algorithms have been tested with various
satellite data (e.g., RADARSAT-2, RISAT-1, ENVISAT, Sentinel-1 and ALOS-PALSAR). The
algorithm combines the strength of active and passive microwave to provide a higher spatio-
temporal resolution soil moisture product. Further, the algorithms do not require site-specific
calibration and hence can be easily applied over larger areas. By combining multi-satellite data, we
provide customized daily (surface and root zone) soil moisture products up to 30 m spatial
resolution.

6) Satellite rainfall
We use the rainfall data from multiple satellites and combine them to provide optimal output.
This product is available in near real time and can be used to augment the weather stations
network data.

7)Sasya
Our satellite remote sensing-based crop health monitoring product provides the following
information for policy makers and farmers:

 Irrigation monitoring and management

 Area under different crops
 Pest/disease attack
 Crop water stress
 Nutrient stress
 Flooding
 Crop health
 Likely crop yield
 Monitoring of floods
 Monitoring of droughts
 Identification of planting and harvesting date

Area of focus

1) Crop Insurance
2) Agriculture
3) Water resources

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1) Crop insurance

Most of the crop insurance companies need GIS to predict the risk.
So, this will help to fight the crop insurance fraud. Crop insurance
companies use GIS to catch fraud and verify seeded crops.
Some of the real time cases where Aapah innovation worked in
this crop insurance

Case 1 - Mapping India’s farmland from space

In India, 72 % of the farmers hold less than 2 ha of land, out of which approximately two-
third has less than 0.5 ha of land, based on the latest available agriculture census (see Figure 1).
With more than a lakh farmer falling in this category, the regular maintenance of the farm records
(farming type, type of crop, health of the crop, water stress, etc.) is a humongous task. While
agriculture is influenced by factors varying from farm to farm and requires information tailored to
the local scale1. Due to the lack of proper data, the unit of the various government schemes is not
an individual farmer, but rather a larger administrative unit (e.g., a village, panchayat, taluka, tehsil,
district, etc.).
Once such large scheme is
crop insurance (Pradhan Mantri Fasal
Bima Yojna(PMFBY)) which aims to
provide protection to farmer against
losses caused by crop failure and
thereby ensuring stability in farm
income. Due to the tedious effort
required in collecting the data at the
farm scale, the crop insurance is
implemented using the homogeneous
area approach. However, the cause of crop failure varies from farm to farm and a significant
variation is observed within a village.
A possible solution to collect the data at farm scale is the satellite remote sensing. The
availability of higher resolution satellite in microwave bands which are capable of penetrating
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clouds makes it possible to collect the data at farm scale in all weather conditions. As an example,
the active microwave (RADARSAT-2) estimated soil moisture for the farms in Chamarajnagar
district of Karnataka, India is shown in the above figure. The satellite estimated soil moisture was
validated using the 1262 data points spanning over 4 years in 50 farms. During the validation, the
mean Root Mean Squared Error was observed to be around 0.04–0.06 m3/m3 indicating the good
retrieval of soil moisture from satellite data
at the farm scale.

Case 2- Satellite remote

sensing for crop insurance
settlement
Services for crop insurance settlement are:

 Identification of suitable site for CCE.

 Monitor the CCE sites for any sudden change.
 Crop yield estimation.
 Claims estimates.

Case 3- Satellite remote sensing for crop insurance underwriting

services for crop insurance underwriting are:

 Trend analysis of historical crop yield data and acreage.

 Weekly soil moisture and crop growth for past 14 years at a spatial resolution of 500 m are
useful for village level applications.
 Application of satellite soil moisture to compute the risk associated with crop yield.
 Analysis of soil moisture data to identify trends in the irrigation activities.
 Analyzing the impact of the drought by considering the irrigation.
 Analyzing the impact of shift in the monthly rainfall pattern on crop output.

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Case 4- Satellite remote sensing for crop insurance
Our services for crop insurance are:

 Identification of no-sowing area.

 Identify area impacted by localized risks of hailstorm, landslide, and Inundation affecting
isolated farms in the notified area.
 Prevented sowing failures (e.g., due to very low soil moisture).
 Analysis of weather indices.
 Periodical (fortnightly) crop health monitoring.
 Midterm loss reports.
 Identification of post-harvest perils due to unseasonal rain.

2)Agriculture

Case 1- Want to know how Turmeric is growing in your area?

Advanced estimate of the crop yield is useful in various applications e.g., crop insurance,
harvest planning, delivery estimates, etc. Advanced estimate of the crop yield can be obtained by
performing the statistical analysis; however, it does not take into account the current ground
realities and rely only on the historical data. The satellite remote sensing provides the ground
information in near real time which can be assimilated in a crop yield prediction model to provide
the improved crop yield forecast dynamically.
Though crop yield depends on many factors such as climate (e.g. maximum and minimum
temperature, rainfall), nutrient, etc., relatively it depends more on soil moisture 1. The Turmeric crop
yield model was developed by using the satellite soil moisture and observed crop yield data. In the
model, MODIS and SMOS satellite data was used for obtaining soil moisture. The observed yield
data of Turmeric crop used to calibrate the model for Kharif season from 2003 to 2014 and was
downloaded from data.gov.in portal. The observed yield data showed a significant temporal
variability having range from 5692 to 9046 kg/ha.

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 Turmeric crop yield predication for Medak district
The modelling was performed using copula, an advanced statistical tool to describe the
dependence between variables in terms of univariate marginal distribution functions. The copula
model was calibrated based on the satellite-estimated soil moisture and estimated crop yield (in
kilogram/hectare). The simulated crop yield is shown in terms of expected yield along with the 50
% confidence limit (CL). The dynamic crop yield prediction model showed a significant temporal
variability. As can be seen from above figure, at the end of cropping season, in Medak district,
there were 50% chances of crop yield being between 5000 to 8700 kg/ha and the expected yield
was 7432 kg/ha. The model can be used to monitor the growth of any crop in near real time and to
predict the crop yield.

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Case 2- Did crop get enough water in Maharashtra this Kharif
season?

The Kharif season is approaching its end and the availability of water to crops in
Maharashtra using Satellite microwave remote sensing reasonably be quantified. The satellite
estimated daily soil moisture is converted into monthly average relative soil moisture for June-
September 2017 as shown in the figures.
During June, relative soil moisture varies from 0 to 0.8. Soil moisture is low in most part of
the state except few patches in certain districts such as Ahmadnagar, Pune, Satara, Solapur,
Osmanabad and Sangali. The low soil moisture in June had impacted the sowing activities
adversely.

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 In July, relative soil moisture was better than June in most of the states, however still below
0.5. Though the soil moisture improved in July, however, it was still not sufficient to eliminate the
water stress in the crops and provide a conductive environment for the crops to grow.

Subsequently, Soil moisture in August improved significantly that varied from 0.4 to 0.8,
except some districts such as Amaravati, Aurangabad, Nashik and Pune division, having soil
moisture below 0.3. This being the time for the grain filling activities of crops, the yield in these
districts is expected to adversely impacted.
Soil moisture was found to be improved further in September, as most of the state has
relative soil moisture around 0.8, providing a conducive environment during the ripening stage of
the crops. However, still, some parts of Vidarbha and Pune regions had relative soil moisture less
than 0.5. Vidarbha and Marathwada regions are the
drought-prone regions, which received the deficient
rainfall (23% as of 20th September) this season.

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Case 3- Monitor agricultural drought using satellite data in near
real time
A deficit in the available soil moisture for agriculture is termed as drought which results in
the lack of crop growth and production.
Microwave satellite provides information about the available soil moisture in near real time
which is useful for drought early warning. The conventional method of monitoring drought based on
crop variables e.g., NDVI captures the drought once it has impacted the crops which do not provide
enough time to intervene and save the agriculture. Another advantage of microwave satellite is the
capability to penetrate the clouds which are prevalent during Kharif season.
Aapah monitors the drought over SAARC region using a combination of active and passive
microwave satellites in near real time. The near real-time soil moisture data can be helpful for
institutions to manage the crisis. The historical availability (15 years) of soil moisture data is also
helpful for the risk management.

Case 4- Soil Moisture Map for the state of Andhra Pradesh

The image shows the soil moisture map for Andhra Pradesh state for 26-Feb-2018. The
map is prepared by merging data from multiple satellites using the vikleda algorithm.
Some of the applications where soil moisture is useful are:

 Optimal irrigation in farms

 Identify areas being over-irrigated
 Improved flood risk estimation
 Monitor agricultural drought in near real time
 Improved weather forecast
 Analyse the impact of an irrigation project
 Identify the irrigated area by an irrigation source
 Automatic billing of farm based on the actual irrigation
 Estimation of actual evapotranspiration taking place
 Estimation of area getting degraded

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3)Water resources

Case 1- Prediction of flood risk

The flood depends upon the intensity of rainfall and the infiltration (absorption) capacity of
soil which is related to soil moisture. The satellite soil moisture provides information on the soil
infiltration capacity.
A combination of real-time precipitation availability and satellite soil moisture can predict the
floods. Based on precipitation forecast and soil moisture data, the flash flood advisory can be
issued every 24 hours to reduce the losses due to floods.

Case 2- Integrated Water Management Programme (IWMP)

The primary objective of IWMP is to address the issue of soil degradation & moisture
conservation in the rain-fed areas of the state.
The satellite soil moisture can help in the assessment of the impact of the watershed
management programme on agriculture. The availability of long term (before and after the project
is executed) soil moisture data can help in evaluating the impact of a water resources project. The
long-term monitoring minimizes the influence on extreme events on the assessment. Comparison
of projects can be done to identify the management practices being more effective.
Estimates of evapotranspiration can be used to quantify crop water productivity—the
amount of marketable crops (for example, kilograms of grain) produced per cubic meter of water
consumed to grow that crop.

Case 3- Weather Forecasting

The satellite soil moisture can provide the estimate of evaporation and transpiration. The
information on the evaporation from the land surface and transpiration from plants can be used to
enhance the short and medium-term weather forecast.

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 The weather forecast would help us in preparing for the calamities like flood and in short-
term irrigation planning.

Projects of aapah
Estimation of evapotranspiration from remote sensing data
There have been various attempts worldwide to understand the hydrological cycle spatially
and temporally. The advent of new satellite platforms has helped in the development of a number
of continental and global scale land surface schemes designed to provide the insight into the
movement of water through the terrestrial system. The Assimilation of Multi satellite data at
Berambadi watershed for Hydrology And land Surface experiment (AMBHAS) is one such
programme to understand the water and energy cycle spatially and temporally in a small watershed
in South India. The watershed is located in semi-arid climate settings. In such climate settings,
around 60 to 80 % of the water which falls through precipitation evaporates into the atmosphere
through Evapo-Transpiration (ET). Hence to understand the hydrological cycle a better
understanding of the ET is must. This study presents a approach to estimate the ET using the only
satellite data. The remote sensing products used in the present study are from the MODIS sensor
on-board Aqua satellite.

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Estimation of root zone soil moisture from satellite

An estimate of the spatial distribution and temporal variation of soil moisture content in the top few
meters of the earth’s surface is important for numerous environmental studies including
meteorology, hydrology, agronomy and climate studies. Although the amount of water in this layer
seems insignificant compared to the total amount of water on the global scale, this thin layer of soil
controls the success of agriculture and partition of precipitation into runoff, evapotranspiration and
groundwater storage. Soil moisture can be measured by point measurements and remote sensing
or can be calculated by water balance models. While point measurements allow for the collection
of high-resolution data through the soil profile, it is limited to a local scale due to instrument and
logistic constraints. The satellite remote sensing is limited to the top few centimeters but yields
good spatial information over large areas. On the other hand, water balance models can provide
the both but suffers from the modeling errors. Hence there is a need to combine all the three ways
of estimating soil moisture to get the soil moisture optimally. Present study provides a way to

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combine these ways by means of soil moisture model, inverse modeling and data assimilation
approach.

Rainfall estimation from the satellite

The knowledge of hydrological variables (e.g., soil moisture, evapotranspiration, runoff, and
recharge) is of pronounced importance in various applications including flood control, agricultural
production and effective water resources management. These applications require the accurate
prediction of hydrological variables spatially and temporally in watershed/basin. Though
hydrological models can simulate these variables at desired resolution (spatial and temporal), but
requires the inputs data (e.g., rain, evapotranspiration) at the same resolution. Often rainfall data,
which is highly spatially variable, is not available at the desired resolution. Other data like
evapotranspiration are also not available at the desired resolution but has lesser spatially variability
and can be interpolated with relative ease. Remote sensing has the potential to improve the
resolution of data like rainfall, which is the one of the objectives of MT Satellite mission. Retrieval of
rain rate from remote sensing requires validation of algorithms using field studies.
Rain rate derived from satellite is validated using the automatic weather station. The
validation is performed at several temporal resolution: daily, weekly and monthly. A significant bias
is observed in the satellite rainfall and this bias is removed using the quantile matching approach.

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Estimation of surface soil moisture from the satellite

A model is developed to estimate the surface soil moisture in agricultural semi-arid area.
Model is developed based on the CDF transformation approach to retrieve the surface soil
moisture map for the watershed with a spatial resolution of 100 m (i.e., one hectare). The map of
the uncertainty in the retrieved surface soil moisture was also estimated using the Clayton copula.

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A distributed surface-ground water model

A coupled surface-ground water model was developed, which had 5 layers for the vadose
zone and one layer for the ground water zone, in order to consider the major hydrological
processes from ground surface to ground water table in a semi-arid watershed. The major aim of
this model was to be able to use remotely sensed data of surface soil moisture and
evapotranspiration to simulate recharge. The performance of the model was evaluated with the
measured watershed average root zone soil moisture and ground water levels. The watershed
average root zone soil moisture was obtained by averaging the field measurements from 20 plots
and average ground water level was obtained by averaging the field measurement from 200 bore
wells. In order to assimilate the AET into the coupled model, the daily AET at a spatial resolution of
1 km was estimated from MODIS data. The AET was validated in one forested and four agricultural
sites in the watershed. The validation was based on the comparison with AET simulated from water
balance models. It was found that the assimilation helped in capturing the trends in deeper layer
soil moisture and ground water level.

Reference
About GIS GIS (Geographic Information System) | National Geographic Society
About Aapah innovations Home - Aapah Innovations Pvt Ltd

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