Hands-on Hydrogeodesy: Combining GPS and Hydrologic datasets

July 18 - 22, 2022

Location: Missoula, Montana
Apply here by April 27, 2022

Instructors

Dr. Alissa White
University of Montana
Dr. Ellen Knappe
University of California, San Diego/ Scripps Institution of Oceanography

Students must apply for this workshop. Applications will be reviewed by workshop organizers and instructors, and students will be notified of their application status in early May.

Join hydrologists and geodesists in this workshop on the emerging discipline of hydrogeodesy: the measurement of the distribution and movement of water on and near Earth’s surface using observations of Earth’s shape, orientation, and gravitational field. This five day workshop will include one full day of field work, and instruction at University of Montana’s Missoula campus. For more information see the agenda and below details.

Workshop Overview

In this workshop we will use Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)/Global Positioning System (GPS) stations to estimate hydrologic loads in combination with with hydrologic and meteorological datasets. This multi-faceted short course will provide a well-rounded and thorough introduction to GNSS-based hydrogeodesy with the combination of field work, data analysis, discussion, lecture, data analysis, and programming.

GNSS-based hydrogeodesy is at the frontiers of water resources research, enabling estimation of terrestrial water storage across spatial (global down to watershed) and temporal (multi-decadal down to daily) scales, previously unavailable with traditional hydrologic methods and other geodetic methods. Hydrogeodesy is an interdisciplinary field and, as part of this workshop, students will explore more traditional hydrologic observations alongside geodetic datasets. Students will be introduced to geodetic observations and specifically focus on how GNSS observations of Earth’s surface can be analyzed and incorporated with hydrologic observations.

The curriculum assumes little prior knowledge or experience working with geodetic data and little experience working with hydrologic datasets, however, familiarity with either is great. A portion of this workshop will take place in the field servicing existing GNSS and weather stations. During the classroom portion of the workshop, students will learn how to process and analyze GNSS position time series and hydrologic datasets and investigate how they can be used in concert.

Course Objective:

This workshop provides an introduction into the emerging discipline of hydrogeodesy, covering field instrumentation and data processing and analysis.

  • Students will learn about the pros and cons, uncertainties, and relevant spatial and temporal scales of geodetic and hydrologic observational datasets
  • Students will visit GNSS and weather stations and will learn how to program and download data from a GNSS station and a weather station. In the field, students will service a station and learn about how these stations produce data, station requirements and the importance of metadata. Previous experience in the field is not required and field safety will be covered prior to the workshop’s field component.
  • Students will learn how GNSS data products are produced and learn how to remove signals from processed GNSS data to isolate the hydrologic signal
  • Students will learn how to obtain, manage, and analyze hydrologic time series
  • Students will work with large time series and learn basic signal processing techniques. At the end of the workshop, students will be able to obtain, manipulate, analyze, compare, and integrate GNSS vertical displacement time series with multiple hydrologic and meteorologic datasets

Workshop Eligibility and Requirements:

Applicants must apply to attend the workshop and there are a limited number of spots available. This workshop is geared toward graduate students; however, undergraduates, postdocs and professionals that meet the requirements are encouraged to apply.

Familiarity with Python programming language is recommended.

Participants must be physically able to spend an entire day outside being active in a remote location of Montana in July.

Registration Costs:

  • CUAHSI Member - Student Registration Fee $400
  • Non-CUAHSI Member - Student Registration Fee $450
  • CUAHSI Member - Professional Registration Fee $500
  • Non-CUAHSI Member - Professional Registration Fee $550

The registration fee includes:

  • Course tuition
  • Facilities costs
  • Field Supplies
  • Lunch on the field day
  • Transportation to/from the field site

*Note lodging is not included in the registration cost

COVID Considerations:

CUAHSI is closely monitoring guidance from the CDC and other health authorities to ensure a safe experience for all participants. CUAHSI requires that all workshop attendees are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as defined by the CDC at the time of the workshop. .

If conditions and advice dictate, CUAHSI reserves the right to cancel or reschedule this workshop.