Tracking Flood Waters from Space

LAND MARINE ATMOSPHERE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT CLIMATE CHANGE SECURITY

ISSUE 22 / SEPTEMBER 2013

TRACKING FLOOD WATERS Costs FROM SPACE Affected people, damage and economic losses in the EU in In recent years, Europe has suffered from more than 200 major floods, including the period 1998 to 2009: the catastrophic flooding of the Danube and Elbe regions in 2002. Since 1998, > More than 1.100 fatalities floods have been responsible for more than 1.100 fatalities and the displacement > More than 3 million people of about half a million people. Floods are typically caused by extremely heavy rain, affected but in spring they are also a consequence of melting snow. The longer the snowpack > Cost of € 60 billion in total lasts into spring, the greater the risk of rapid melt and flash flooding. Flooding is > In 2002, damage in the Elbe estimated to be the most costly natural disaster in the EU. basin cost € 20 billion alone Copernicus initiatives represent a concerted effort to combine ground- and space-based observations to develop an integrated flood monitoring service to support national civil protection agencies.

Satellite images combined with other information, such as that related to population density, geography, infrastructure and terrain characteristics, help to build risk maps. These maps highlight areas that would be Benefits prone to damage and risk casualties in event of inundation. Satellite-based flood During a crisis, optical and radar satellites in particular can provide timely images of the changing flood waters. products generated within After a flood event, these satellite images support flood damage assessment and allow for the comparison the Copernicus Emergency of before and after an event. While optical data is more accurate, the advantage of radar data is that it can be Response Service acquired both day and night and in all weather, also in the cloudy conditions that tend to prevail during rainfall and flood events. > support the generation of risk maps for areas prone to flooding > provide reliable information for flood damage assessments > provide near real-time support for flood crisis management teams

Policy Objectives

> EU Flood Directive > Water Information System for Europe (WISE) Heavy rainfall and snow melt in the beginning of February 2012 caused the overflow of several dams in southeastern Bulgaria > Global Disaster Alert and along the river Maritsa, the longest river that runs, solely, in the interior of the Balkans. One dam even broke owing to the severe Coordination System weather as can be seen in the comparison of the pre– and post-disaster radar images. The maps are based on Radarsat-2 and TerraSAR-X radar data, and optical SPOT-5 data. Source: ZKI DLR

www.esa.int/copernicus • http://copernicus.eu/ ISSUE 22 / SEPTEMBER 2013

COPERNICUSCopernicus servicesACTIVITIES Sentinel contribution Next steps

The Copernicus Emergency Management A synergy of Copernicus Sentinel-1 (radar) > Build archives of satellite-based flood risk Service use satellite data to provide timely and Sentinel–2 (optical) will improve the maps to support damage assessment and accurate geo-spatial information current capacity of Earth observation to and overall decision-making for all flood before, during and after disasters, thereby detect and monitor flooded areas by the management actors supporting those managing natural and provision of: > Improve early warning systems for flash manmade disasters and emergencies. > global, all-weather, day-and-night radar floods by using near real-time satellite Example products: images data > Rapid mapping reference maps > enhanced continuity of high-spatial > Improve operational Earth observation resolution optical SPOT- and Landsat-type mapping capacities and allow for the data > Delineation and grading maps data to be integrated in hydrological models > Pre- and post- disaster situation maps > rapid delivery of maps during a crisis and > Consolidate and train users interested in > Flash flood risk analysis and early as a reference for damage assessment satellite-based flood mapping services warning to support preparedness

SPOT-5 Precise tracking of flood waters from space

High spatial-resolution optical data as obtained from the Copernicus contributing mission SPOT (Système Pour l'Observation de la Terre) allows for precise flood extent and impact mapping.

SPOT-5, with its spatial resolution of 2.5 to 5 m and 60 km wide-area coverage, has proved very effective in supporting flood mapping. Another key feature of SPOT-5 is ESA´s SMOS mission shows a precise image of the unprecedented acquisition capability of the soil moisture conditions over Europe and the stereo pair images that allow for 3D terrain world every three days. The example here shows modelling, a key requirement for mapping values for November 2010. Information such as flood-prone areas. this is crucial for monitoring water scarcity from local to regional scales. In September 2012, the SPOT-6 satellite was Source: ESA launched. This satellite provides continuity of SPOT-5, having a similar swath width but In mid of July 2010 heavy rainfalls have caused extensive floodings in Bulgaria. The floods affected especially the an improved spatial resolution of down to 1.5 Pazardzhik district in central southern Bulgaria. The map shows the flood situation on 28 July 2010 around the m. SPOT-6 will be accompanied by its twin town of Gelemenovo. The water extent was derived from semi-automatic image analysis of GeoEye-1 and from satellite, SPOT-7, expected ready for launch SPOT-5 data. in 2014. Source: ZKI DLR