Optimal interpolation approach for groundwater depth estimation.

In arid and semi-arid regions where surface water resources are scarce, groundwater is crucial. Accurate mapping of groundwater depth is vital for sustainable management practices. This study evaluated the performance of three spatial interpolation techniques - inverse distance weighting (IDW), ordinary kriging (OK), and radial basis functions (RBF) - in predicting groundwater depth distribution across Dire Dawa City, Ethiopia. The results demonstrated the superiority of the RBF method, exhibiting the lowest RMSE (3.21 m), MAE (0.16 m), and the highest R (0.99) compared to IDW and OK. The IDW method emerged as the next best performer (RMSE = 4.68 m, MAE = 0.16 m, R= 0.97), followed by OK (RMSE = 5.32 m, MAE = 0.42 m, R= 0.95). The RBF's superior accuracy aligns with findings from other semi-arid regions, underscoring its suitability for data-scarce areas like Dire Dawa. This comparative evaluation provides valuable insights for selecting the optimal interpolation method for groundwater depth mapping, supporting informed decision-making in local water resource management. The methodological approach comprised:•Implementation of three interpolation techniques, namely, inverse distance weighting (IDW), ordinary kriging (OK), and radial basis functions (RBF), utilizing 56 groundwater depth measurements from locations dispersed throughout the study area.•Cross-validation through randomly withholding 20 % of the data for validation purposes.•Comparison of the techniques based on statistical measures of accuracy, including root mean square error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), and the coefficient of determination (R).