Using data from the first airborne measurements of water levels, NASA scientists estimated that the drought has left California with a water deficit of 11 trillion gallons.
The current three-year drought in California has left water storage facilities in the Sacramento and San Joaquin river basins significantly lower than normal seasonal levels.
Using data from the first airborne measurements of water levels, NASA scientists estimated that the drought has left California with a water deficit of 11 trillion gallons.
Water storage levels have decreased by around 4 trillion gallons each year over the past three years, which is more than the amount used annually by citizens and industries in California.
Two thirds of the water level decrease is reportedly caused by the loss of groundwater in the Central Valley of California.
Data from the NASA study also showed that on top of the decrease in groundwater, the snow pack in the Sierra Nevada mountain range was also significantly lower than estimates predicted.
Airborne Snow Observatory principal investigator Tom Painter of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory is quoted as saying: “The 2014 snowpack was one of the three lowest on record and the worst since 1977, when California's population was half what it is now.”
Experts say that since it took years to reach this level of drought, it will take years of heavy precipitation to replenish the water supply.
