While land–atmosphere transfer models have been pursued for over 30 years, Soil–Vegetation–Atmosphere–Transfer (SVAT) models are gaining attention only recently as the need to better represent the interaction between the soil and atmosphere in atmospheric circulation models becomes more apparent. The Simultaneous Heat and Water (SHAW) model, a detailed physical process model, simulates the effects of a multispecies plant canopy on heat and water transfer at the soil–atmosphere interface. The model was used in this study to simulate the surface energy balance and surface temperature of two vegetation communities using data collected during the Monsoon ’90 multidisciplinary field experiment. The two vegetation communities included a sparse, relatively homogeneous, grass-dominated community and a shrub-dominated site with large bare interspace areas between shrubs. The model mimicked the diurnal variation in the surface energy balance at both sites, while canopy leaf temperatures were simulated some... Abstract While land–atmosphere transfer models have been pursued for over 30 years, Soil–Vegetation–Atmosphere–Transfer (SVAT) models are gaining attention only recently as the need to better represent the interaction between the soil and atmosphere in atmospheric circulation models becomes more apparent. The Simultaneous Heat and Water (SHAW) model, a detailed physical process model, simulates the effects of a multispecies plant canopy on heat and water transfer at the soil–atmosphere interface. The model was used in this study to simulate the surface energy balance and surface temperature of two vegetation communities using data collected during the Monsoon ’90 multidisciplinary field experiment. The two vegetation communities included a sparse, relatively homogeneous, grass-dominated community and a shrub-dominated site with large bare interspace areas between shrubs. The model mimicked the diurnal variation in the surface energy balance at both sites, while canopy leaf temperatures were simulated some...