Keck HydroWatch Center will dramatically expand the observations of all aspects of the water cycle by developing cost-effective, rapid-response, and accurate sensors and techniques to monitor water quality, quantity, and pathways. The center is initiating a prototype deployment of intensive environmental monitoring networks, resulting in the acquisition, synthesis, and analysis of new, large volumes of data. The first deployments will take place at two small (~10-102 km2), hydrologically different sites within the UC Natural Reserve System: the Angelo Coast Range Reserve and the Sagehen Creek Field Station.

One goal of the HydroWatch project is to create a model of the entire hydrologic system that integrates the atmospheric, surface, and below-ground variations of water. This model will allow researchers to address a number of long-standing questions about how the water cycle functions and how it may change.