Dear Tolu,

here you can see our study with all the steps applied in order yo identify the flooded areas.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271384768_Assessment_of_food_hazard_and_risk_using_GIS_and_historical_data_case-study_The_Niraj_river_basin_transylvania_depression_Romania

Article Assessment of food hazard and risk using GIS and historical ...

Hi Tolu, 

It depends on what you really want to do.

I am giving you some examples: 

1) You can use precipitation data from The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite in GIS to make flood probability map in the downstream.

http://pmm.nasa.gov/category/keywords/imerg

2) You can use Jason 1, 2 satellite to monitor Lake water level fluctuation.

3) You can use IMERG product from GPM satellite to analyze streamflow or runoff associated with selected flood event.   

4) Analyze flood intensity and inundation at a given location you can use that map for disaster preparedness like emergency rescue operation, distribute relief good to flood affected people in need.

5) After flood water drainage you can identify road and infrastructure damage

In last one year I have done 5 training on remote sensing data application to various fields to Environmental Science including flood forecasting, air quality monitoring offered by NASA's Applied Remote SEnsing Training (ARSET) program. It is completely free. Moreover, you will get certificate of completion if you attend all lecture and submit assignment.   

They regularly offer training in the following four areas:

1) DISASTERS

2) ECO FORECASTING

3) HEALTH & AIR QUALITY

4) WATER RESOURCES 

Here you go NASA's ARSET website: 

http://arset.gsfc.nasa.gov/

University of Maryland uses GPM satellite data in their Global Flood Monitoring System (GFMS) model to prepare real time flood forecasting, inundation map, stream-flow map. You can play with the map by yourself. 

Even you can get time series of a location by one mouse click form Global Flood Monitoring System website. Here you go the web link:

http://flood.umd.edu/

I hope it will help you. 

Thanks

The potential of flooding are best done in the field and with flow data, especially if life or property are involved.  However if you dont have soils mapped with flooding identifiers or floodplain maps, if you can find local individuals that remember flood elevations or heights, you might begin to piece together the flooding history.  Several stream types naturally flood such as Rosgen C, D and E types, and some due to entrenchment or deep channelization as G and F, do not.  Rosgen stream types A and B have narrow flooding as they have steeper gradients.  www.wildlandhydrology.com has the info on the Rosgen stream types with flooding generalities.  A lot depends on your area, rainfall, runoff on what will flood.  Areas that were naturally forested converted to agriculture or urban areas are apt to flood more due to changing runoff or adding impervious surfaces.  Some areas may have indicators that show up on infrared photos on the extent of the riparian area with vegetation changes and suggest potential flood zone, but other areas not. If you have a degrading stream, flooding in decreased due to the entrenchment.  If you have an aggrading stream (ie, filling with sediment), flooding is increased.  If you have a D type braided stream, there is so much sediment and the channel locations are unstable and move, and flooding may be likely over much of the valley in these conditions.  Areas below major landslides may have their channels filled quickly, and flooding increases greatly because the stream width has widened, lost velocity and its ability to move the sediment.  If you can connect field information with remote sensing data for your area you may be in luck, but look to your hydrologists, soils scientists and geologists for a full assessment if you have lives and high value properties involved.

Hi

There so many applications of remote sensing and GIS to flooding and spatial planning.These application can be pre-flooding or post flooding and even during the flooding if you have some sensors providing real time river water level (or dam water level).

Application of GIS before flooding can be in assessing the risk areas (risk management),that might be flooded using some spatial criteria in model builder for example (areas within a x km from the river,alltitude (z) using ,estimation of material loss....)

After flood, using remote sensing in mapping the flooded areas extent by using satellite photo before flooding and after.

During the flood,by using real time water level in order to quickly assess which areas for example need to be evacuated first and also to estimate population in every place and how much is the required reinforcement....

Dear Tolu,

this is a general question. However, you could first look for available RS data for your catchment area. Currently, DEM's (ASTER or SRTM) play a major rule in defining flood risk zones. You can get DEM from different internet sources such as: http://glcfapp.glcf.umd.edu:8080/esdi/

I wrote several papers in Flood risk management using RS and GIS. Below are two manscripts which may help you: 

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282656587_Dam_Site_Selection_Using_Remote_Sensing_Techniques_and_Geographical_Information_System_to_Control_Flood_Events_in_Tabuk_City

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273452025_Evaluation_of_ASTER_Satellite_Imagery_in_Comparison_with_Topographic_Map_and_GPS_Datasets_for_Tracking_Tabuk_City_Digital_Elevation_Model. 

Good luck 

Article Dam Site Selection Using Remote Sensing Techniques and Geogr...

Article Evaluation of ASTER Satellite Imagery in Comparison with Top...

Dear Tolu,

GIS provide several techniques for hydrological modelling while RS provide datasets in order to validate these techniques (and models). So by coupling those two tecnhlologies you are able to do a lot of things. It's up to you what you want to do exactly each time.

Dear Tolu, 

you can follow this article:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/294089869_Assessing_flood_inundation_extent_and_landscape_vulnerability_to_flood_using_geospatial_technology_A_study_of_Malda_district_of_West_Bengal_India

Article Assessing flood inundation extent and landscape vulnerabilit...