Combining observations in the reflective solar and thermal domains for improved mapping of carbon, water and energy fluxes

Rasmus Houborg*, Martha Anderson, Bill Kustas, Matthew Rodell

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

Abstract

This study investigates the utility of integrating remotely sensed estimates of leaf chlorophyll (Cab) into a thermal-based Two-Source Energy Balance (TSEB) model that estimates land-surface CO2 and energy fluxes using an analytical, light-use-efficiency (LUE) based model of canopy resistance. Day to day variations in nominal LUE (LUEn) were assessed for a corn crop field in Maryland U.S.A. through model calibration with CO2 flux tower observations. The optimized daily LUEn values were then compared to estimates of Cab integrated from gridded maps of chlorophyll content weighted over the tower flux source area. Changes in Cab exhibited a curvilinear relationship with corresponding changes in daily calibrated LUEn values derived from the tower flux data, and hourly water, energy and carbon flux estimation accuracies from TSEB were significantly improved when using Cab for delineating spatio-temporal variations in LUEn. The results demonstrate the synergy between thermal infrared and shortwave reflective wavebands in producing valuable remote sensing data for monitoring of carbon and water fluxes.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publication2010 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium, IGARSS 2010
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Pages2648-2651
Number of pages4
ISBN (Print)9781424495658, 9781424495665
DOIs
StatePublished - 2010
Externally publishedYes
Event2010 30th IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium, IGARSS 2010 - Honolulu, HI, United States
Duration: Jul 25 2010Jul 30 2010

Publication series

NameInternational Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS)

Other

Other2010 30th IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium, IGARSS 2010
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityHonolulu, HI
Period07/25/1007/30/10

Keywords

  • Carbon flux
  • Leaf chlorophyll
  • Light use efficiency
  • Reflective shortwave
  • Thermal infrared

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Computer Science Applications
  • General Earth and Planetary Sciences

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