Date: Tuesday, 10 March, 2026, 14:30 hrs (IST)  // Webinar Flyer

Topic: Daily Satellite Measurements to Support Smart Irrigation Management

Daily satellite measurements involve using data captured from Earth-orbiting satellites at regular (often daily) intervals to monitor crop conditions, soil moisture, water use, and environmental variables that affect irrigation needs. Modern remote sensing combines imagery with weather and models to provide actionable information for irrigation planning and optimization.

Satellites provide regular optical and thermal data with varying temporal and spatial resolutions that can be processed into daily estimates of key variables relevant to irrigation.

Daily satellite measurements provide a temporal view of crop water demand, allowing irrigation to be timed only when necessary — reducing water waste and optimizing crop growth. It includes Spatial Variability Mapping, Detection of Crop Stress & Water Deficits, and Forecasting and Planning

PRESENTATION

Daily Satellite Measurements to Support Smart Irrigation Management by Prof. Dr. Wim Bastiaanssen PhD, Ambassador Hydrosat, Professor Technical University of Delft

Introduction

Welcome to our webinar on Smart Irrigation Management! In today's world, where water scarcity and climate change are pressing concerns, optimizing irrigation practices is crucial for sustainable agriculture. Smart irrigation management offers a solution by leveraging advanced technologies to deliver the right amount of water at the right time, improving crop yields and reducing waste.

Internet of Things (IoT), smartphone tools, and sensors are technologies that further enable farmers to know the exact status of their field, including soil temperature, amount of water required, weather conditions etc. The use of sensors is also important for farmers to better understand their crops, reduce the environmental impacts and conserve resources. Therefore, by the usage of SMART agriculture, farmers are given the opportunity to produce yields while using fewer resources, such as fertilizers, water, and seeds.

What to Expect from This Webinar

• Overview of Smart Irrigation Systems: We will explore the fundamentals of smart irrigation, including sensors, controllers, and data analytics.
• Benefits of Smart Irrigation: Discover how smart irrigation can improve water use efficiency, increase crop productivity, and promote sustainable agriculture.
• Real-World Applications: We will discuss case studies and examples of successful smart irrigation implementations in various agricultural settings.
• Expert Insights: Our panel of experts will share their knowledge and experiences in smart irrigation management, addressing questions and challenges.

Join the Conversation

We are excited to share knowledge and experiences with you. Let us explore the world of smart irrigation management together and discover how it can transform agriculture for a more sustainable future.

Welcome Address: Dr. R.K. Gupta, Secretary General, ICID

Dr. R.K. Gupta has more than 38 years of extensive experience and specialization in Water Resources Management, Hydraulic Engineering, and River Basin Development. His expertise spans various areas like flood management, water cooperation, planning & design of water resources schemes, including Dam Safety Management. Additionally, he has significant experience in Hydropower Development, including the design and construction of tunnels and other underground works.

He holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) from Delhi College of Engineering, a Master of Technology in Applied Mechanics from IIT Delhi, and both an M.Sc. and PhD in Hydraulics from IHE, Netherlands. Dr. Gupta began his career at the Central Water Commission (CWC), a premier Indian government organization in the water sector, and eventually served as its Chairman, a position equivalent to the Secretary to the Government of India. His extensive experience and academic credentials have established him as a highly respected figure in the Indian water resources management domain.

Opening Remarks: Dr. Marco Arcieri, President, ICID

Dr. Marco Arcieri is presently the Secretary General of the Italian National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage (ITAL-ICID). In his professional career spanning more than 25 years, he has contributed to various studies and research in agricultural water management, land and water resources development, irrigation and drainage, flood prevention, drought monitoring, forecasting and mitigation. With his wide expertise, he has visited around 40 countries in order to implement International research projects and to attend Advanced Professional Specialization Courses. From 1996-2002 he worked as a Researcher with the Department of Crop Yield University of Basilicata, Italy as a researcher, working on aspects connected with Crop Yield and Productivity.  From 2002-2006, he attended the Department of Crop Systems, Forestry and Environmental Sciences of University, Italy, wherein he completed his Ph.D.

His activity has been focused on the study of social and economic characteristics of agriculture in irrigated areas, in order to provide technical assistance to farmers on irrigation, within the framework of Research Projects co-financed by EU, the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Public Works. He has been a member of ICID since 2008 and was elected as Vice President of ITAL-ICID in 2011. He is being appointed by ICID as the Permanent Observer to UN Agencies FAO and IFAD. Since April 2017, he is the representative within the Global Framework on Water Scarcity (GFWS) now WASAG - an International initiative coordinated and fostered by UN FAO to cope with water scarcity under the threat of climate change. He is also a member of the Interim Steering Committee and Focal Point for the Working Group on Sustainable Use of Water Resources of WASAG led by ICID. Dr. Arcieri is also a member of the FAO-WWC driven initiative Water Accounting in Agriculture and Head of the Regional Node for the Mediterranean Area within the International Research Program for Irrigation and Drainage (IRPID) Program of ICID.

In addition to the above, he was Vice President of ICID for the term 2018-2021, and also served as Chair and Member of some of the ICID Working Groups, to name a few, viz. Permanent Finance Committee, Chair of European Regional Working Group, Working Group on Water Food Energy Nexus (WG-WFE-N), Working Group on History of Irrigation, Drainage and Flood Control (WG-HIST), TF-GPP, TF-ILMDM etc. 

SPEAKER

Prof. Dr. Wim Bastiaanssen, IrriWatch Product Ambassador and Professor Earth Observations for Water Resources Management, TU Delft, The Netherlands

Wim Bastiaanssen is an expert in satellite measurements of land, water, and atmospheric processes. He specializes in agricultural water management. His interest is in the computation of bio-physical processes in the crop environment including irrigation scheduling, crop production, and soil carbon processes using satellite measurements. Wim is the original developer of the SEBAL and ETLook energy balance models, and these models are applied globally by academia and the private sector. Wim is currently the IrriWatch Ambassador of Hydrosat, a company that is preparing the launch of a constellation of thermal satellites. IrriWatch is an on-farm advisory service to farmers in 60 countries daily. With PhD students, he is developing a rapid water accounting system for helping discussions and decisions on the allocation of scarce water resources. Wim holds a Ph.D. from Wageningen University in soil physics, geohydrology, and groundwater management. Besides being a Hydrosat leader, Wim is a Visiting Professor at Delft University of Technology.