Next generation monitoring of surface waTer fRom space (TRACE): monitoring small waterbodies for integrated storage management

The next generation monitoring of surface waTer fRom spACE (TRACE) is a web-based platform developed to address critical data gaps in monitoring of small and medium size surface water bodies that are often unmonitored by conventional systems. These ponds, tanks and small reservoirs, play a crucial role in agricultural productivity and climate resilience, yet their distributed nature and limited in-situ monitoring make their regular assessment challenging. TRACE leverages Earth Observation data from European Space Agency's Sentinel-1 Synthetic Aperture Radar fortnightly estimation of water surface area, water level and storage volume for water bodies larger than 0.5 hectare. TRACE framework integrates machine learning based method for land-water classification and distance-based bathymetric generation to derive volumetric estimates. It facilitates holistic view of hydrological dynamics by incorporating groundwater and terrestrial water storage sourced from national and global sources along with surface water storage. TRACE provides assessment across hydrological boundary (Basin/Sub-basin), administrative boundary (District/Block), and individual waterbody, supporting evidence-based planning for drought management, irrigation scheduling, and long-term water resource governance.