Geostatistical Estimation of Hydraulic Head Gradients

ABSTRACT This paper describes a technique for estimating gradients of hydraulic head from scattered measurements of head. Gradients of hydraulic head control the flow of ground water in aquifers and their determination is an important part of any ground‐water investigation. A best linear unbiased estimator of hydraulic head is derived which allows direct estimation of head gradients and mean square estimation error. The hydraulic head is broken into continuous and discontinuous components. The discontinuous component, which represents random measurement error and small‐scale variability, is filtered from the measurements. The technique is applied to measurements of head in the Wolfcamp aquifer in northern Texas.