Research Platform 4: Integrated observation of the terrestrial water cycle
Foto: DLR
Need for long-term observations
Climate and land use change are key factors influencing the terrestrial hydrological system which need to be managed by society in the coming decades. Therefore optimal management and sustainable use of water resources require the availability and valorization of long-term monitoring data related to the water status of the terrestrial system from the local to the catchment scale as well as validated and integrated hydrological models. Long-term observations are needed in order to detect complex interaction and feedback mechanism between the various compartments of the hydrological system and to identify long-term trends in observed states and fluxes.
Research focus
The combination of comprehensive multi-scale and multi-temporal measurements of terrestrial system states and fluxes with physically based simulations is a prerequisite to improve our understanding of hydrological processes and to validate integrated terrestrial models. The process-oriented and hypothesis-driven observation of landscapes and catchments requires the development of new and the improvement of existing surface- and subsurface characterization and environmental sensing concepts and technologies. Their application should allow a comprehensive and quantitative description of reference catchments with respect to the complex variety of environmental parameters and fluxes.
Work package 1: Development of novel observation and exploration technologies
Work package 2: Establishing a network of hydrological observaties for model development and validation
Work package 3: Data Management and data integration
Work package 4: Dataassimilation and demand driven observation
Research interfaces within Helmholtz Water Network:
- Research Platform 3 -
SolFlux - Research Platform 5 - Integrated modelling and model benchmarking
Events:
- TERENO-Workshop „Research on Terrestrial Ecology and Water Quality“ October 2016 in Leipzig (UFZ, FZJ, GFZ, KIT, HZG)
- Allianz-Week of the Helmholtz-Allianz "
Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics" June 2016 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Coordination: DLR, contribution: HMGU, GFZ, UFZ, GEOMAR, FZJ, KIT, TU München, Potsdam University) - ScaleX-Monitoring Campaign at TERENO Observatory „Bayerische Alpen Voralpenland“ in February 2016 (Coordination: KIT, contribution: DLR, UFZ)
- Alliance Week of the Helmholtz Alliance: "Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics" June 2015 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Coordination: DLR, contribution:
HMGU, GFZ, UFZ, GEOMAR, FZJ, KIT, TU München, Potsdam University)
- 1. TERENO Conference Bonn, September 2014 "From observation to prediction in terrestrial systems"
- SABLE-Monitoring Campaign (August 2014, Coordination: University Hohenheim, contributing institutions: UFZ, KIT, HMGU)
- Second Alliance Week of the Helmholtz Alliance "Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics" in July 2014 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Coordination: DLR, contributing institutions: HMGU, GFZ, UFZ, GEOMAR, FZJ, KIT, TU München, UniversityPotsdam)
- Focus of the 3. Water Research Horizon Conference 2012 "New Perspectives in Integrated Monitoring, Assessment and Management in the Water Sector"
- First Alliance Week of the Helmholtz Alliance: "Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics" in October in Garmisch-Partenkirchen (Coordination: DLR, contribution: HMGU, GFZ, UFZ, GEOMAR, FZJ, KIT, TU München, Potsdam University)
- Workshop Helmholtz Alliance: "Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics" Topic: Hydroshpere (20./21..02.2013)
Research within the Helmholtz Association (POF III):
- Research Programme "Terrestrial Environment", Topic "Terrestrial Systems: From Observation to Prediction" (Integrated Project: From measurements to models) (FZJ, UFZ)
- Research Programme "Geosystem: The changing Earth", Topic "Earth surface and climate interactions" (GFZ)
- Helmholtz – Chinese Academy of Sciences Network: Research Centre for Environmental Information Science (RCEIS) (Coordination: UFZ, contribution: DLR, FZJ, KIT, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS))
- Helmholtz Virtual Institute of Integrated Climate and Landscape Evolution Analyses ICLEA (Koordination: GFZ)
Infrastructures:
- MOSES (Modular Observation Solutions for Earth Systems) (Coordination: UFZ, contribution: KIT, FZJ, GFZ, HMGU, AWI, HZG, DLR, GEOMAR)
- TERENO - Terrestrial Environmental Observatories (Coordination: FZJ, UFZ, KIT, HMGU, GFZ, DLR, with the involvement of many universities)
- ACROSS - Advanced Remote Sensing – Ground Truth Demo and Test Facilities (FZJ, GFZ, HMGU, HZG, KIT, UFZ)
- Helmholtz-Allianz: Remote Sensing and Earth System Dynamics (DLR, UFZ, GFZ, HMGU, FZJ, KIT)
Projects and further activities:
- DFG Ensemble Kalman Filter for estimation of rock properties in geothermal reservoirs characterized by fractured rocks or fluviatile sediments
- BMBF BONARES - Zentrum für Bodenforschung (Koordination: UFZ, beteiligte Institutionen: TU München)
- BMBF INPLAMINT
- Erhöhung der landwirtschaftlichen Nährstoffnutzungseffizienz durch
Optimierung von Pflanze-Boden-Mikroorganismen-Wechselwirkungen
(Koordination: FZJ, beteiligte Institutionen: HMGU)
- BMBF Soil³ - Nachhaltiges Unterbodenmanagement (Koordination: Universität in Bonn, beteiligte Institutionen: FZJ)
- DFG-Project IMAP "Integrating Microwave Link Data For Analysis of Precipitation in Complex Terrain: Theoretical Aspects and Hydrometeorological Applications" (Coordination: KIT, contributing institutions: TU München, An-Najah National University (Palästina), Tel Aviv University (Israel), Kinneret Limnological Laboratory (Israel), The Jerusalem College of Technology (Israel))
- Virtual Institute PROCEMA “Regional Precipitation Observation by Cellular Network Microwave Attenuation and Application to Water Resources Management” (KIT)
- ICLEA - Virtual Institute of Integrated Climate and Landscape Evolution Analyses (GFZ, Ernst Moritz Arndt University Greifswald, BTU Cottbus, Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN))
- DFG FOR 2131 "Data Assimilation for Improved Characterization of Fluxes across Compartmental Interfaces" (Koordination: Univ. Bonn, beteiligte Institutionen: FZJ, UFZ, Univ. Tübingen)
- TR-32 - Transregional Collaborative Research Centre 32 (FZJ, RWTH Aachen, University Bonn, University Cologne)
- CAWa - Regional Research Network "Central Asian Water" (Koordinierung: GFZ)
- CAOS: From Catchments as Organised Systems to Models based on Functional Units (DFG-Research group) (Coordination: KIT, contributing institutions: UFZ, GFZ)
- EU-Project: ModelPROBE - Model driven Soil Probing, Site Assessment and Evaluation (Coordination: UFZ, contribution: University Bonn)
- PhD-Twinning: Emerging Contaminats in Aquatic Sediments - Focus on European estuarys (HZG, UFZ)
- PhD-Twinning: Reactive N in watersheds – sources, cycling and sinks (HZG, UFZ)
Completed projects:
- DFG-Project WATERFLUX (UFZ, Universität Bayreuth)
- Virtual Institute HALO “High-Altitude Long-Distance Research Aircraft” (DLR, GFZ, FZJ, KIT, MPI)
- WISDOM – Water-related Information System for the sustainable Development of the Mekong Delta in Vietnam (Coordination: DLR, contributing institutions: GFZ, further: UNU-EHS, Univ. Würzburg, ZEF, INRES...)
