Data and applications for study of the water cycle in Africa

There are a number data set development, data dissemination, and applications activities at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) that contribute to the study of the water cycle in Africa. Some of these stem from global change research initiatives, while others are the result of technical assistance provided to international development and humanitarian assistance projects. Data themes include topography and related hydrological derivatives, land cover, satellite rainfall estimates, and vegetation indices. Some data sets are USGS products, while others originate from cooperating agencies like NASA and NOAA and are distributed secondarily. In Africa, applications include agrometeorological estimates, drought and flood monitoring. Many of the data sets are available to the user community without charge by internet, or at cost of reproduction on CDROM and tape media.