Earth Observation for Water–Food Nexus Laboratory: EOWFNex Lab 

Research Focus: Satellite Earth Observation for SMART Water Resource Management and Food Security 

The overall research focuses on developing SMART water monitoring systems that enhance the resilience, sustainability, and efficiency of water resources management by integrating multi-source satellite observations, process-based simulation modeling, In-situ measurements and data-driven/data assimilation/AI/IoT techniques.The core objective is to monitor and analyze the spatiotemporal dynamics of key geophysical and biophysical variables at field to regional scales, including surface water, soil moisture, evapotranspiration, crop growth & yield, as well as key soil hydraulic parameters.

My research has involved developing microwave remote sensing-based algorithms for high-resolution soil moisture retrieval (100–200 m and 1–3 km) using satellite missions from NASA , ESA, and ISRO along with extensive calibration and validation (Cal/Val) using field-based measurements through IoT based sensor networks design to improve the accuracy and reliability of satellite-derived products. I also investigate surface–groundwater flux dynamics using observations from the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission to better understand water storage and hydrological interactions.

Currently, my research focuses on developing high-resolution soil moisture retrieval algorithms using synergistic microwave observations from the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission and the NASA–ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission, while establishing Cal/Val sites for present and future satellite missions. In addition, I aim to integrate satellite-derived geophysical and biophysical variables into simple data-driven models and coupled hydrological–crop modeling frameworks to improve the nowcasting and forecasting of hydrological variables (surface water level, runoff, and root-zone soil moisture), drought conditions, plant health, and crop yield.

Ultimately, my goal is Satellite-AI Integration to develop SMART geospatial decision-support tools (web-based dashboards and mobile applications), that can provide timely, accessible, and actionable information for stakeholders (e.g., farmers, water managers, policymakers, agricultural planners) to improve Water-use Efficiency, Irrigation Management, and Climate-resilient Agriculture.