Satellite Imagery Applications for Hydrogeology

Friday, November 8, 2013: 8:30 a.m.
Errol L. Montgomery, Ph.D. , Errol L Montgomery & Associates Inc., Tucson, AZ

Information from space–based sensing and imaging systems has been widely available in digital format from the mid-1970s. The systems for processing and viewing digital image data became more readily available in the 1980s. This information has been used for such diverse hydrologic purposes as analysis of distribution of hydrogeologic units; estimation of areal extent, depth, and sediment content of water in lakes and streams; distribution, health, and abundance of riparian and phreatophytic vegetation; establishment of environmental baselines; estimation of ocean temperatures; and investigations for occurrence of water on other planets. Much of the preliminary analysis is now automated using commercially available processing software. Processed images can be used to describe hydrologic features and may require calibration through ground truthing. Time series images from earliest availability to the present provide information for numerical analysis of changes in hydrologic features.

Errol L. Montgomery, Ph.D., Errol L Montgomery & Associates Inc., Tucson, AZ
Errol “Monte” Montgomery, founder of Montgomery and Associates, is currently an expert in Arizona hydrogeology. A former professor of geology at Northern Arizona University, he has published more than 45 technical papers and consulted extensively on hydrogeologic issues in the United States, Latin America, and Europe. Montgomery also often provides litigation support and technical review services for water rights and environmental projects. He has a B.S. in geology from Oregon State University, an M.S. in hydrogeology from the University of Arizona, and a Ph.D. in hydrogeology/geophysics from the University of Arizona. Throughout his 50 years of experience Montgomery has received numerous awards including a National Defense Act Fellowship, a Fulbright Fellowship, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Arizona Hydrological Society.