Stereoscopic observation of rainfall flux in a basin with precious water resources

Stereoscopic observation of rainfall flux in a basin with precious water resources

In locations such as the basin of Lake Gatun, that supports the shipping of the Panama Canal so that the importance of water resources is extremely high, accurate and detailed rainfall measurement is indispensable as a basic requirement for advanced water resource management. Since the tipping bucket rain gauge used for usual rainfall measurement can capture only the vertical flux component, raindrops carried by strong wind, colliding obliquely against inclined ground, or intercepted by hill slope vegetation can neither be measured nor evaluated correctly. In addition, conventional observation systems that require ground facilities such as power supplies and communication cables cannot work sufficiently under harsh conditions such as unmanned areas, oceans, and mountainous areas.