In northern Saudi Arabia, GRACE detected a dramatic decrease
in fresh water stored in aquifers. Images taken by NASA’s
Landsat program show a rapid increase in irrigated cropland,
supported by water pumped from those aquifers.
Most of that water is non-renewable on human timescales, but in 2014
the Saudi government ended a domestic wheat farming program, and GRACE data
suggest that aquifer levels may be stabilizing.