Sediment transport in South Asian rivers high enough to impact satellite gravimetry

verfasst von
Alexandra Klemme, Thorsten Warneke, Heinrich Bovensmann, Matthias Weigelt, Jürgen Müller, Tim Rixen, Justus Notholt, Claus Lämmerzahl
Abstract

Satellite gravimetry is used to study the global hydrological cycle. It is a key component in the investigation of groundwater depletion on the Indian subcontinent. Terrestrial mass loss caused by river sediment transport is assumed to be below the detection limit in current gravimetric satellites of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On mission. Thus, it is not considered in the calculation of terrestrial water storage (TWS) from such satellite data. However, the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers, which drain the Indian subcontinent, constitute one of the world’s most sediment-rich river systems. In this study, we estimate the impact of sediment mass loss within their catchments on local trends in gravity and consequential estimates of TWS trends. We find that for the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna catchment sediment transport accounts for (4 ± 2) % of the gravity decrease currently attributed to groundwater depletion. The sediment is mainly eroded from the Himalayas, where correction for sediment mass loss reduces the decrease in TWS by 0.22 cm of equivalent water height per year (14 %). However, sediment mass loss in the Brahmaputra catchment is more than twice that in the Ganges catchment, and sediment is mainly eroded from mountain regions. Thus, the impact on gravimetric TWS trends within the Indo–Gangetic Plain – the main region identified for groundwater depletion – is found to be comparatively small (< 2 %).

Organisationseinheit(en)
Institut für Erdmessung
Externe Organisation(en)
Universität Bremen
Leibniz-Zentrum für Marine Tropenökologie GmbH
Typ
Artikel
Journal
Hydrology and Earth System Sciences
Band
28
Seiten
1527–1538
Anzahl der Seiten
12
ISSN
1027-5606
Publikationsdatum
04.04.2024
Publikationsstatus
Veröffentlicht
Peer-reviewed
Ja
ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete
Gewässerkunde und -technologie, Erdkunde und Planetologie (sonstige)
Ziele für nachhaltige Entwicklung
SDG 15 – Lebensraum Land
Elektronische Version(en)
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1527-2024 (Zugang: Offen)