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Flood modeling through remote sensing datasets such as LPRM soil moisture and GPM-IMERG precipitation: A case study of ungauged basins across Morocco

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Abstract

North Africa is characterized by several ungauged basins, especially in Morrocco, where satellite products could be an alternative of the lack ground-based measurements. In this study, the Land Parameter Retrieval Model (LPRM) soil moisture and the Integrated Multi-Satellite Retrievals for Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM-IMERG) were used in flood modeling in Moroccan ungauged basins (Bourrous, Al Wiza, El Hallouf and Jamala). We started with comparing GPM-IMERG Early with ground measurements from five rain gauges. Next, the Soil Conservation Service – Curve Number (SCS-CN) was applied with ground precipitation measurements, LPRM and GPM-IMERG Early datasets to simulated flood events in a gauged basin, the Ghdat. Finally, this SCS-CN model was transposed with these satellite data sets validated to those ungauged basins in order to reproduce flood events. The results show that the GPM-IMERG Early is best with in situ measurements (correlation coefficient = 0.50; relative bias = 27.51%; probability of detection = 0.77; false alarm rate = 0.23), on a daily scale. The observed precipitation, LPRM and GPM-IMERG Early were performed well in validation to simulate floods in the Ghdat, where Nash–Sutcliffe criterion range from 0.43 and 0.98 using the SCS-CN model. For Bourrous, Al Wiza, El Hallouf and Jamala all flood events and hydrographs were reproduced by GPM-IMERG Early and LPRM products. Furthermore, LPRM products were validated against soil moisture measurements with a coefficient of determine R2 between 0.72 and 0.84. The results of this work provided interesting insights for flood modeling using GPM-IMERG and LPRM satellite products in ungauged basins.

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  • 17 December 2022

    The first affiliation has been updated.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to express their gratitude for the Tensift Hydrological Basin Agency (ABHT) and NASA's mission Giovanni for providing the datasets required for this study.

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  1. Georesources, Geoenvironment and Civil Engineering Laboratory, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, 40000, Morocco

    Mounir Ouaba & Mohamed Elmehdi Saidi

  2. IMS Engineers, Houston, TX, USA

    Md Jobair Bin Alam

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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. M.O wrote the paper and performed the analysis; M.E.S write the paper and contributed in the analysis; M.J.B.A checked the data and helped write the paper.

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Ouaba, M., Saidi, M.E. & Alam, M.J.B. Flood modeling through remote sensing datasets such as LPRM soil moisture and GPM-IMERG precipitation: A case study of ungauged basins across Morocco. Earth Sci Inform 16, 653–674 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12145-022-00904-6

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