Method of flood mapping and its applications for climate change, computations and GIS

Remote sensing data allow one to obtain the spatial characteristics of floods such as a map of flooding, total boundary of the flooded lands (floodplain boundaries), area volume and period of flooding. The first Russian Casebook has been prepared at the State Hydrological Institute on the assessment of floodplain overflow on the basis of satellite data (1982). The aim of this paper to advance the existing approach in the following directions: - to improve and develop a method for flood mapping on the basis of satellite data and give its assessment; - to use this method for restoration of long-term time series of spatial flood characteristics and for assessment of the modern climate change impact in time series of spatial flood characteristics; - to give the practical suggestions of satellite data application in the structure of GIS for flood forecasting and flood computations