RMI Contribution to the Development Phase of the H-SAF (Hydrology – Satellite Application Facility) EUMETSAT Project

Persons :

• Ir.  ROULIN Emmanuel - Royal Meteorological Institute (RMI)
  Coordinator of the project
  Financed belgian partner
  Duration: 1/9/2005-31/12/2007
  

Description :

In December 2002, the Council of EUMETSAT approved a new Satellite Application Facility (SAF) theme on support to Hydrology and Water Management. The consortium of 20 teams from 11 countries and ECMWF is organized in 4 clusters:

1. Italy is leading the cluster in charge of the development of products related to precipitation, (precipitation rate and precipitation cumulated over different time lengths, from MW and from MW and IR merged);
2. Austria is leading the cluster for soil moisture products;
3. Finland is leading the cluster for snow products, (snow recognition, snow effective coverage, snow status and snow water equivalent);
4. Poland is leading the hydrological validation programme.

RMI will contribute to the “precipitation” and “hydrological validation programme” themes. More specifically, for precipitation, RMI will contribute to (i) the extension of the database of cloud/precipitation radiative models, (ii) the precipitation products calibration and validation, and (iii) additional developments. As far as the hydrological validation programme is concerned, RMI will contribute mainly to (i) the analysis of requirements concerning H-SAF products for operational hydrology and water management users, and (ii) the assimilation of satellite products into hydrological models, catchment-based pilot or impact studies to assess the added value of H-SAF products to operational hydrology.

Satellite(s) or flight opportunity(ies):
- MSG
- METOP
- NOAA
- DMSP-15, DMSP-16

Field of research:

Earth Observation: Meteorology and Climatology