AlpLakes: Advancing Lake Research and Management through Integrative Remote Sensing and Hydrodynamic Models

Water quality remote sensing is increasingly used in an operational context, and several studies in the perialpine lakes showed how the integration of satellite Earth observation, hydrodynamic modeling, and in situ measurements can improve the utility of each individual tool. AlpLakes, a project in the ESA Regional Initiative for the Alpine Region, provides a new, integrated implementation of satellite Earth observation, hydrodynamic modeling, and in situ measurements. In this webinar, the structure and features of AlpLakes with an emphasis on integrating remote sensing transparency products into a 3D hydrodynamic model and tracking of observed satellite TSM/Chl-a patterns with the developed tools will be demonstrated. Hindcasting, real-time, and forecasting model functionalities are integrated with satellite imagery in an open access web-based platform (www.alplakes.eawag.ch). This operational platform provides a common tool for scientists, decision makers and the broader public, and aims at improving the management of lakes in the Alpine region as well as the public perception of environmental processes in their immediate living space. As an example of potential use-cases, unravelling the biophysical processes causing an unprecedented algal bloom in Lake Geneva (Switzerland/France) will be presented. It will be shown that a specific sequence of meteorological conditions triggered this rare algal bloom: (i) heavy rainfall promoting excessive organic matter and nutrients loading, (ii) followed by wind-induced coastal upwelling, and (iii) a prolonged period of warm and calm weather