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Abstract
Flood is a natural disaster which worsens when it is triggered by man-made constructions. This paper discusses one such flood event which occurred because of breach of a levee in the upper reach of the Kosi River in 2008, when floodwater spread over a large portion of the low-lying Ganga Plain of North Bihar, India. Here we have analysed a suite of space-based observations from radar altimetry, Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) images, and Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) precipitation data, together with in situ monthly precipitation data, with a main emphasis on the results from altimetry and MODIS data. A methodology to calculate water levels, using MODIS data and Envisat data together, is also discussed. Our analyses suggest a rise in water level of 1.0–1.4 m in the flooded region during the flood event and a maximum extent for the flooded area of around 2900 km2. Analyses of TRMM precipitation data do not indicate any influence of high precipitation in the upper catchment of the Kosi Basin on river water feeding into the plain area after breaching of dam. However, heavy and prolonged precipitation was found downstream of the dam over the flooded area during the flood period.
Acknowledgements
The study was supported under project number 4000-W1 by CEFIPRA for a collaborative project between LEGOS, Toulouse-France, and CSIR-NGRI, Hyderabad, India. TRMM data used in this study were derived from the Giovanni online data system, developed and maintained by NASA GES DISC. The altimetry data were downloaded from the Centre de Topographie des Océans et de l’Hydrosphère (CTOH) of LEGOS. The Modis data were downloaded from the WIST data centre: Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS). 2009. Earth Observing System Clearing House (ECHO)/Warehouse Inventory Search Tool (WIST) Version 10.X [online application]. Greenbelt, MD: EOSDIS, Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). URL: https://wist.echo.nasa.gov/api/.
