Scientists from the Center for Hydrologic Modeling of the University of California (Irvine) have developed a new project based on the identification of all of the changes in water storages on planet Earth (e.g. ice, snow, soil moisture, surface and ground water) that will help towards coping with issues related to changes in climate and water use.

The research is based on the interplay of two nine-year-old twin satellites that monitor each other while orbiting the Earth, thereby producing some of the most precise data ever collected on the planet's gravitational variations. The results are redefining the field of hydrology, which itself has grown more critical as climate change and population growth draw down on the world's fresh water supplies.

Moreover, within the center of Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, known as Grace, these scientists are using small variations in the Earth's gravity to identify trouble spots around the globe where people are making unsustainable demands on groundwater, one of the planet's main sources of fresh water.

The application of this new technology permitted the identification of water stress processes occurring in North Africa, northern India, northeastern China and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley in California.