Monitoring hydroclimatic characteristics using satellite observations from West Africa

Abstract

The deficiencies and problems associated with obtaining hydrological and hydroclimatological information in West Africa are briefly discussed. Temporal and spatial variations of the hydroclimatic components using annual and seasonal characteristics of such variations are also analyzed. Both location and regional examples have been used for illustration. The extent to which satellite information has been employed in studies involving hydrological and hydroclimatological characteristics in the region is also discussed. The paper also attempts to examine the problems which limit the application of satellite information in the region and discusses the possible solutions to these problems and other difficulties which face improvement in the information systems in the region. The results of the study show that, as far as West Africa is concerned, there are a lot of variations in the characteristics of the hydroclimatic components. These variations make it difficult to ascertain whether information obtained by using satellites in a relatively small area or during a particular period of a year can be used to generalize for a large area. Thus the study shows that the variations in the hydroclimatic characteristics in West Africa limit the representatives of any data that may be obtained for generalizations. In using satellite observations to monitor hydroclimatic characteristics in West Africa therefore the present study emphasizes the need to encourage many projects such as the International Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) in order to improve the lack of information and coverage of data available, ascertain the validity of using satellite information for monitoring hydroclimatic components, and improve the monitoring of hydroclimatic information in West Africa. The paper finally emphasizes the need to coordinate many other efforts and systems currently available for collecting, processing and archiving any satellite information available in the different parts of the region.