Abstract

Flooding is a global problem that impacts people, communities, and governments every year. Better understanding of flooding in an area can enable improved emergency response before a flood hits. Flood maps are a crucial tool to translate what for most is an abstract flow, into a more understandable and actionable representation of who and what are at risk. Satellite based flood maps are a useful tool that has potentially global applications. We developed methods to determine which areas are suitable for generating satellite-based synthetic flood maps. For our processes we used Forecasting Inundation Extents using REOF analysis (FIER): a data-driven method of synthesizing flood maps by correlating extracted spatial and temporal patterns from satellite imagery with historical hydrological variables. To overcome the limitation of only using places where gauges are installed, we used large scale hydrological models, namely the National Water Model (NWM), and the GEOGLOWS Streamflow Model provide simulated retrospective streamflow data to train our model. We evaluated locations where both optical and radar imagery would be suitable for creating these models. The procedures we developed, and results that we obtained are potentially transferable to many satellite data sources and methods of model generation.

Degree

MS

College and Department

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering; Civil and Environmental Engineering

Rights

https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2024-12-16

Document Type

Thesis

Keywords

satellites, flood inundation mapping, hydrologic models, FIER

Language

english

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Engineering Commons

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