Soil moisture updating and microwave remote sensing for hydrological simulation / La remise à jour de l'état d'humidité des sols en vue de la simulation hydrologique

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Abstract
Research has shown that it is possible to measure the soil moisture of the upper soil layer using microwave remote sensing. This type of areal measurement, if obtained on a routine basis from a space platform, could have value in hydrological simulations for stream-flow forecasting, irrigation scheduling, and drought monitoring. Possible applications of these data in modelling include parameter calibration and system updating. Conventional point measurements of soil properties and precipitation do not always represent the areal distribution. Periodic measurements of areal soil moisture could be used to correct errors in model simulations of state variables caused by parameter estimates and input data. The possibility of using remotely sensed estimates of soil moisture was tested in an experiment conducted on several small basins located in Oklahoma using the USDA Hydrograph Laboratory Model of watershed hydrology. Periodic soil moisture samples obtained using conventional methods were used to represent the type of data remote sensing could provide. These data were used to evaluate the utility of periodic soil moisture measurements for system updating. Analyses indicated the potential value of the data and supported its evaluation on a larger scale.