Advances of space geodesy over the past decade have enabled transformative research progress in hydroclimatic change sciences with direct observations of basin, regional and global scale water storage/flux changes, glacier/ice cap/ice sheet mass balance, sea level change, permafrost/cold region hydrology, and contributing to applications, such as water resources and disaster management related to floods and droughts. Satellite gravimetry (e.g., GRACE and GOCE) has revolutionized our understanding of the Earth’s gravity field changes, and the inferred mass transport and redistribution. This research should be greatly enhanced with the upcoming launch of the GRACE-FO mission in early 2018. Other space geodetic technologies, such as GNSS and InSAR, complement satellite gravimetry by providing high spatial and temporal resolution measurement of crustal deformation, resulting from hydrological mass loading or groundwater depletion. Satellite altimetry (e.g., radar/laser/SAR altimetry) contributes to new measurements and understanding of water level/storage variations in rivers, lakes, and reservoirs, river runoff, as well as crustal deformation measurements over flat terrain. In addition, efforts improving data products from ongoing radiometric remote sensing measurements (MODIS, ASTER, TRMM, GPM, SMAP, etc.), now bring new insights into various water flux/storage components (e.g., precipitation, evaporation, runoff, soil water, etc.), and provide forcing data and important constraints on hydrological modeling via data assimilation. The entry of GNSS reflectometry (GNSS-R) completes the portfolio by providing new technologies for measuring changes in ice roughness, soil moisture, and vegetation conditions, and water level changes in water bodies and wetlands with proposed satellite missions having more accurate payloads, e.g., dual-frequency GNSS-R receivers.

In summary, various space, airborne, and surface geodetic and remote sensing observations at different spatiotemporal scales collectively have advanced our understanding of global and regional water cycling and climate extremes/change. These technologies are now pushing the boundary of research into hitherto un-imagined territories, such as food security etc. The workshop solicits papers, including but not limited to, cross-disciplinary hydrologic science and applications using one or more satellite data sets, and data processing methodologies which would enhance spatiotemporal resolutions and isolates the hydrologic signals of interest.

The workshop follows the IAG Workshop: Satellite Geodesy for Climate Studies in 2017, Bonn, Germany and two prior successful annual national academic Forums on Satellite Gravity and Hydrology in Beijing, China (2016 at Capital Normal University and 2017 at Tsinghua University). In 2018, the workshop aims to bring together international geodesists, hydrologists, and researchers in Earth sciences who work with multiple geodetic observations and remote sensing technologies in hydrological research related to global change.