Abstract

TAPIA-SILVA, Felipe Omar; SILVAN-CARDENAS, José Luis  and  ROSALES-ARRIAGA, Edgar. Spatial analysis to improve the use of field and satellite data to support better decision-making regarding water and the environment. Tecnol. cienc. agua [online]. 2013, vol.4, n.1, pp.149-166. ISSN 2007-2422.

Climate, soil and water availability information in Mexico -determined through point measurments at ground stations- do not adequately meet the criteria for representativeness for the purpose of generating data, information and knowledge to improve decision-making. Remote sensors (airborne and satellite) are potentially an excellent resource of information to complement ground point measurements. Nevertheless, the information obtained must be validated and complemented by field measurements. In addition, worth mentioning among the limitations of this information resource is its temporal and spatial resolution and the high sensitivity to weather conditions at the moment the data are taken, in the case of the more commonly used and available satelites (optical). Spatial analysis techniques enable improving the spatial representativity of data derived from field and satellites by making mapping possible based on the information available as well as additional information. The techniques described in this article, which are applied to the interpolation of data for practical cases exemplify this. Research about these methods and their implementation have not been sufficient in terms of the process to disseminate basic geospatial information in Mexico. It is therefore crucial to demonstrate the practical usefulness of this type of study in order to generate better information and basic knowledge for decision-making about water and the environment in general.

Keywords : spatial analysis; interpolation; kriging; remote sensing; field measurements; water.

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