Sensitivity analysis of a Penman–Monteith type equation to estimate reference evapotranspiration in southern Spain

Sensitivity analysis is crucial in assessing the impact of climatic variables on reference evapotranspiration estimations. The sensitivity of the standardized ASCE–Penman–Monteith evapotranspiration equation for daily estimations to climatic variables has not yet been studied in Spain. Andalusia is located in southern Spain where almost 1 million ha are irrigated under quite different conditions; it has a high inter‐annual variability in rainfall. In this study, sensitivity analyses for this equation were carried out for temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation and wind speed data from 87 automatic weather stations, including coastal and inland locations, from 1999 to 2006. Topography and Mediterranean climate characterize the heterogeneous landscape and vegetation of this region. Simulated random and systematic errors have been added to meteorological data to obtain ET₀ deviations and sensitivity coefficients for different time periods. BIAS and SEE (standard error of estimate) have been used to evaluate the effect of both types of errors. The results showed a large degree of daily and seasonal variability, especially for temperature and relative humidity. In general, the effect on ET₀ values of introduced random errors was larger than that of systematic errors. ET₀ overestimations were produced using positive errors in temperature, solar radiation and wind speed data, while these errors in relative humidity resulted in ET₀ underestimations. The sensitivity of ET₀ to the same climatic variables showed significant differences among locations. The geographical distribution of sensitivity coefficients across this region was also studied. As an example, during spring months, ET₀ equation was more sensitive to temperature in stations located along the Guadalquivir Valley. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Water balance modeling over variable time scales based on the Budyko framework – Model development and testing

Partitioning of precipitation into evapotranspiration and runoff is controlled by climate and catchment characteristics. The degree of control exerted by these factors varies with the spatial and temporal scales of processes modeled. The Budyko framework or the “limits” concept was used to model water balance at four temporal scales (mean annual, annual, monthly and daily). The method represents a top-down approach to hydrologic modeling and is expected to achieve parsimony of model parameters. Daily precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, and streamflow from 265 catchments in Australia were used. On a mean annual basis, the index of dryness defined as the ratio of potential evapotranspiration to precipitation was confirmed to be a dominant factor in determining the water balance with one model parameter. Analysis of the data, however, suggested increased model complexity is necessary on finer time scale such as monthly. In response, the Budyko framework for mean annual water balance was extended to include additional factors and this resulted in a parsimonious lumped conceptual model on shorter-time scale. The model was calibrated and tested against measured streamflow at variable time scales and showed promising results. The strengths of the model are consistent water balance relationships across different time scales, and model parsimony and robustness. As result, the model has the potential to be used to predict streamflow for ungauged catchments.     

Seasonal climate patterns and their influence on calibration of the Hargreaves-Samani equation

Abstract

Annual patterns in climate parameters were studied to evaluate how these influence the quality of reference evapotranspiration (ETo) estimates obtained from the Hargreaves-Samani (HS) equation, since the method only uses the measured temperature directly. The work evaluates how these patterns can be used to improve the HS ETo estimates. Ten-year moving averages from a set of California Irrigation Management Information System (CIMIS) stations were used to evaluate the relationships between solar radiation (R_s), temperature (T) and ETo. The results indicate that T treads behind solar radiation and its value peaks some 25 days later. Thus, the main irrigation season in the Mediterranean climate (1 May–30 September) can be divided into three phases: increasing R_s and T; decreasing R_s with increasing T; and decreasing R_s and T. Non-univocal annual cycles were observed between R_s and T, ETo and R_s, and ETo and T. These annual patterns result in important seasonal changes in the ratio between the HS and Penman-Monteith (FAO PM) ETo estimates. The changes are particularly important during the irrigation season, where the FAO PM initially calculates greater ETo values than the HS methodology, and from the end of May to early September, where the HS equation overestimates the ETo values (by 17 mm, or 3%). These patterns obtained from 2000–2009 data were used to calibrate and improve HS ETo estimates at new sites for the 2010–2011 period. Calibration based on the proposed seasonal region-wide FAO PM/HS ETo ratios improved both the bias (decreased from 0.40 to 0.36 mm d^-1) and r² (increased from 0.67 to 0.87) of the ETo estimates for the irrigation season. The proposed methodology can be easily applied to other regions, even when the existing weather stations are sparse.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz     

Assessment of the MODIS global evapotranspiration algorithm using eddy covariance measurements and hydrological modelling in the Rio Grande basin

Abstract

Remote sensing is considered the most effective tool for estimating evapotranspiration (ET) over large spatial scales. Global terrestrial ET estimates over vegetated land surfaces are now operationally produced at 1-km spatial resolution using data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and the MOD16 algorithm. To evaluate the accuracy of this product, ground-based measurements of energy fluxes obtained from eddy covariance sites installed in tropical biomes and from a hydrological model (MGB-IPH) were used to validate MOD16 products at local and regional scales. We examined the accuracy of the MOD16 algorithm at two sites in the Rio Grande basin, Brazil, one characterized by a sugar-cane plantation (USE), the other covered by natural savannah vegetation (PDG) for the year 2001. Inter-comparison between 8-day average MOD16 ET estimates and flux tower measurements yielded correlations of 0.78 to 0.81, with root mean square errors (RMSE) of 0.78 and 0.46 mm d^-1, at PDG and USE, respectively. At the PDG site, the annual ET estimate derived by the MOD16 algorithm was 19% higher than the measured amount. For the average annual ET at the basin-wide scale (over an area of 145 000 km²), MOD16 estimates were 21% lower than those from the hydrological model MGB-IPH. Misclassification of land use and land cover was identified as the largest contributor to the error from the MOD16 algorithm. These estimates improve significantly when results are integrated into monthly or annual time intervals, suggesting that the algorithm has a potential for spatial and temporal monitoring of the ET process, continuously and systematically, through the use of remote sensing data.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor T. Wagener

Citation Ruhoff, A.L., Paz, A.R., Aragao, L.E.O.C., Mu, Q., Malhi, Y., Collischonn, W., Rocha, H.R., and Running, S.W., 2013. Assessment of the MODIS global evapotranspiration algorithm using eddy covariance measurements and hydrological modelling in the Rio Grande basin. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 58 (8), 1658–1676.     

Irrigation impact on annual water balance of the oases in Tarim Basin,Northwest China

By taking the sum of annual precipitation and lateral water input (in which irrigation water withdrawal is the main component) for water availability, the Budyko hypothesis and Fu's formula derived from it was extended to the study of oases in the Tarim Basin, Northwest China. For both long‐term (multi‐year) and annual values on water balances in the 26 oases subregions, the extended Fu's formula was confirmed. Regional patterns on water balance on the 26 oases subregions were related to change in land‐use types due to increased area for irrigation. Moreover, an empirical formula for the parameter was established to reflect the influences of change in land use on water balance. The extended Budyko framework was employed to evaluate the impact of irrigation variability on annual water balance. According to the multi‐year mean timescale, variabilities in actual evapotranspiration in the oases were mainly controlled by variability in irrigation water withdrawal rather than potential evapotranspiration. The influences of variability on potential evapotranspiration became increasingly apparent together with increases in irrigation water withdrawal. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimation of potential evapotranspiration in the mountainous Panama Canal watershed

Spatially distributed hydrometeorological and plant information within the mountainous tropical Panama Canal watershed is used to estimate parameters of the Penman–Monteith evapotranspiration formulation. Hydrometeorological data from a few surface climate stations located at low elevations in the watershed are complemented by (a) typical wet‐ and dry‐season fields of temperature, wind, water vapour and pressure produced by a mesoscale atmospheric model with a 3 × 3 km² spatial and hourly temporal resolution, and (b) leaf area index fields estimated over the watershed during a few years using satellite data with two different spatial and temporal resolutions. The mesoscale model estimates of spatially distributed surface hydrometeorological variables provide the basis for the extrapolation of the surface climate station data to produce input for the Penman–Monteith equation. The satellite information and existing digital spatial databases of land use and land cover form the basis for the estimation of Penman–Monteith spatially distributed parameter values. Spatially distributed 3 × 3 km² potential evapotranspiration estimates are obtained for the 3300 km² Panama Canal watershed. Estimates for Gatun Lake within the watershed are found to reproduce well the monthly and annual lake evaporation obtained from submerged pans. Sensitivity analysis results of potential evapotranspiration estimates with respect to cloud cover, dew formation, leaf area index distribution and mesoscale model estimates of surface climate are presented and discussed. The main conclusion is that even the limited spatially distributed hydrometeorological and plant information used in this study contributes significantly toward explaining the substantial spatial variability of potential evapotranspiration in the watershed. These results also allow the determination of key locations within the watershed where additional surface stations may be profitably placed. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of trends in reference evapotranspiration data in a humid climate

Abstract

Statistically significant FAO-56 Penman-Monteith (FAO-56 PM) and adjusted Hargreaves (AHARG) reference evapotranspiration (ET₀) trends at monthly, seasonal and annual time scales were analysed by using linear regression, Mann-Kendall and Spearman’s Rho tests at the 1 and 5% significance levels. Meteorological data were used from 12 meteorological stations in Serbia, which has a humid climate, for the period 1980–2010. Web-based software for conducting the trend analyses was developed. All of the trends significant at the 1 and 5% significance levels were increasing. The FAO-56 PM ET₀ trends were almost similar to the AHARG trends. On the seasonal time scale, for the majority of stations significant increasing trends occurred in summer, while no significant positive or negative trends were detected by the trend tests in autumn for the AHARG series. Moreover, 70% of the stations were characterized by significant increasing trends for both annual ET₀ series.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz; Associate editor S. Grimaldi

Citation Gocic, M. and Trajkovic, S., 2013. Analysis of trends in reference evapotranspiration data in a humid climate. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 59 (1), 165–180.     

Water balance of the Sudanese savannah woodland region

Abstract

The annual water balance for 39 grid cells covering the savannah woodland region of Sudan (10–16°N; 21–36°E) was determined and regional maps produced. Long-term (1961–1990) mean monthly climate data, National Forest Inventory data and Harmonized World Soil Database data for arenosols and vertisols, the two dominant soil types in the region, were used. Model validation was performed using daily data from a site in one of the grid cells and inter-annual (1961–1990) variation examined for another grid cell. Rainfall varied from 147 to 732 mm and only exceeded evapotranspiration for 18 of the grid cells, resulting in a small increase in soil moisture and runoff. Evapotranspiration accounted for, on average, 96% of rainfall and there was little difference between soil types. Drainage only occurred from AR soils and for four of the grid cells. Runoff varied from 0 to 89 mm for arenosols and from 0 to 109 mm for vertisols. The study provided useful insights into the spatial variability in water balance components across the region.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor D. Gerten     

Impact of bushfire and climate variability on streamflow from forested catchments in southeast Australia

Abstract

This paper quantifies the impacts of bushfire and climate variability on streamflow from three southeast Australian catchments where bushfires occurred in February 1983. Three hydrological models (AWRA-L, Xinanjiang and GR4J) were first calibrated against streamflow data from the pre-bushfire period and then used to simulate runoff for the post-bushfire period with the calibrated parameters. The difference in simulated streamflow between pre- and post-bushfire periods provides an estimate of the impact of climate variability on streamflow. The impact of bushfire on streamflow is quantified by removing the climate variability impact from the difference in mean annual observed streamflow between post- and pre-bushfire periods. For the first 15 years after the 1983 bushfires, the results from hydrological models for the three catchments indicate that there is a substantial increase in streamflow; this is attributed to initial decreases in evapotranspiration and soil infiltration rates resulting from the fires, followed by logging activity. After 15 years, streamflow dynamics are more heavily influenced by climate effects, although some impact from fire and logging regeneration may still occur. The results show that hydrological models provide reasonably consistent estimates of bushfire and climate impacts on streamflow for the three catchments. The models can be used to quantify relative contributions of forest disturbance (bushfire, logging and other forest management) and climate variability. The results presented can also help forest managers understand the relationship between bushfire and climate variability impacts on water yield in the context of climate variability.     

Quantifying the impact of climate variables on reference evapotranspiration in Pearl River Basin,China

ABSTRACT

The impact of climate variables on monthly reference evapotranspiration (ET_o) is a critical issue in water resources management and irrigation planning. The spatio-temporal contribution of climate variables to ET_o in the Pearl River Basin (PRB), China, from 1960 to 2016 were calculated based on sensitivity and relative change of each climatic variable. The results show that annual ET_o total decreased by 1.64% and diminished in magnitude from the southeast to the northwest. Sunshine duration, wind speed and relative humidity decreased by 15.5%, 7.4%, and 4.0%, respectively, while average temperature increased by 4.25%. The ET_o showed a positive sensitivity to all variables except relative humidity, which showed a negative sensitivity. Sunshine duration had the highest contribution of ?4.26%, and the overall decrease in ET_o was mainly caused by the declines in sunshine duration and wind speed, which offset the positive impact of rises in average temperature and reduction in relative humidity.     

Assessing the effect of climate change on mean annual runoff in the Songhua River basin,China

Influences of climatic change on the components of global hydrological cycle, including runoff and evapotranspiration are significant in the mid‐ and high‐latitude basins. In this paper, the effect of climatic change on annual runoff is evaluated in a large basin—Songhua River basin which is located in the northeast of China. A method based on Budyko‐type equation is applied to separate the contributions of climatic factors to changes in annual runoff from 1960 to 2008, which are computed by multiplying their partial derivatives by the slopes of trends in climate factors. Furthermore, annual runoff changes are predicted under IPCC SRES A2 and B2 scenarios with projections from five GCMs. The results showed that contribution of annual precipitation to annual runoff change was more significant than that of annual potential evapotranspiration in the Songhua River basin; and the factors contributing to annual potential evapotranspiration change were ranked as temperature, wind speed, vapour pressure, and sunshine duration. In the 2020s, 2050s, and 2080s, changes in annual runoff estimated with the GCM projections exhibited noticeable difference and ranged from ? 8·4 to ? 16·8 mm a^?1 (?5·77 to ? 11·53% of mean annual runoff). Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimation of annual actual evapotranspiration from nonsaturated land surfaces with conventional meteorological data

Land surface evapotranspiration is an important component both in earth surface heat and water bal-ance, on whose budgets weather and climate depend, to a great extent, for their changes are responsible for the formation and variation of vegetation features on the globe. Besides, the evapotranspiration is an im-portant topic of short-term flood forecasting and the estimation of runoff from mountainous sides. As a result, the problem as to the evapotranspiration has been one of the concerns in …     

Climate changes and their impacts on water resources in semiarid regions: a case study of the Wei River basin,China

Understanding the impacts of climate change and human activity on the hydrological processes in river basins is important for maintaining ecosystem integrity and sustaining local economic development. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of climate variability and human activity on mean annual flow in the Wei River, the largest tributary of the Yellow River. The nonparametric Mann–Kendall test and wavelet transform were applied to detect the variations of hydrometeorological variables in the semiarid Wei River basin in the northwestern China. The identifications were based on streamflow records from 1958 to 2008 at four hydrological stations as well as precipitation and potential evapotranspiration (PET) data from 21 climate stations. A simple method based on Budyko curve was used to evaluate potential impacts of climate change and human activities on mean annual flow. The results show that annual streamflow decreased because of the reduced precipitation and increased PET at most stations. Both annual and seasonal precipitation and PET demonstrated mixed trends of decreasing and increasing, although significant trends (P < 0.05) were consistently detected in spring and autumn at most stations. Significant periodicities of 0.5 and 1 year (P < 0.05) were examined in all the time series. The spectrum of streamflow at the Huaxian station shows insignificant annual cycle during 1971–1975, 1986–1993 and 1996–2008, which is probably resulted from human activities. Climate variability greatly affected water resources in the Beiluo River, whereas human activities (including soil and water conservation, irrigation, reservoirs construction, etc.) accounted more for the changes of streamflow in the area near the Huaxian station during different periods. The results from this article can be used as a reference for water resources planning and management in the semiarid Wei River basin. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Understanding hydrological trends by combining the Budyko hypothesis and a stochastic soil moisture model

Abstract

The actual evapotranspiration and runoff trends of five major basins in China from 1956 to 2000 are investigated by combining the Budyko hypothesis and a stochastic soil moisture model. Based on the equations of Choudhury and Porporato, the actual evapotranspiration trends and the runoff trends are attributed to changes in precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, rainfall depth and water storage capacity which depends on the soil water holding capacity and the root depth. It was found that the rainfall depth increased significantly in China during the past 50 years, especially in southern basins. Contributions from changes in the water storage capacity were significant in basins where land surface characteristics have changed substantially due to human activities. It was also observed that the actual evapotranspiration trends are more sensitive to precipitation trends in water-limited basins, but more sensitive to potential evapotranspiration trends in energy-limited basins.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor A. Porporato     

Comparison of the Penman‐Monteith method and regional calibration of the Hargreaves equation for actual evapotranspiration using SWAT-simulated results in the Seolma-cheon basin,South Korea

ABSTRACT

The Hargreaves method provides reference evapotranspiration (ET_o) estimates when only air temperature data are available, although it requires previous local calibration for an acceptable performance. This method was evaluated using the data from 71 meteorological stations in the Seolma-cheon basin (8.48 km²), South Korea, comparing daily estimates against those from the Penman‐Monteith (PM) method, which was used as the standard. To estimate reference ET_o more exactly, considering the climatological characteristics in South Korea, parameter regionalization of the Hargreaves equation is carried out. First, the modified Hargreaves equation is presented after an analysis of the relationship between solar radiation and temperature. Second, parameter (K_ET) optimization of the regional calibration of the Hargreaves equation (RCH) is performed using the PM method and the modified equation at 71 meteorological stations. Next, an application was carried out to evaluate the evapotranspiration methods (PM, original Hargreaves and RCH) in the SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tool) model by comparing these with the measured actual evapotranspiration (AET) in the basin. The SWAT model was calibrated using 3 years (2007–2009) of daily streamflow at the watershed outlet and 3 years (2007–2009) of daily AET measured at a mixed forest. The model was validated with 3 years (2010‐2012) of streamflow and AET. RCH will contribute to a better understanding of evapotranspiration of an ungauged watershed in areas where meteorological information is scarce.

EDITOR D. Koutsoyiannis ASSOCIATE EDITOR Not assigned     

Evapotranspiration in the Mekong and Yellow river basins / Evapotranspiration dans les bassins du Mekong et du Fleuve Jaune

Abstract

Estimates of potential evapotranspiration (PET) and reference evapotranspiration (RET) were compared over the Mekong and Yellow river basins, representing humid and semi-arid Asian monsoon regions. Multiple regression relationships between monthly RET, PET, LAI (leaf area index) and climatic variables were explored for different vegetation types. Over the Mekong River basin, the spatial average of RET is only 1.7% lower than PET; however, RET is 140% higher than PET over parts of the Tibetan Plateau, due to the short and sparse grassland, and 30% lower than PET in parts of the lower basin due to the tall and well-developed forests. Over the Yellow River basin, RET is estimated to be higher than PET, on average about 50% higher across the whole basin, due to the generally sparse vegetation. A close linear relationship between annual RET and PET allows the establishment of a regional regression to predict monthly PET from monthly RET, climatic variables and/or vegetation LAI. However, the large prediction errors indicate that the Shuttleworth-Wallace (S-W) model, although it is more complex, should be recommended due to its more robust physical basis and because it successfully accounts for the effect of changing land surface conditions on PET. The limited available field data suggest that the S-W estimate may be more realistic. It was also found that vegetation conditions in summer are primarily controlled by the regional antecedent precipitation in the cold and dry seasons over the Loess Plateau in the middle reaches of the Yellow River.     

AN EVALUATION OF ACTUAL EVAPOTRANSPIRATION IN TROPICAL EAST AFRICA

Monthly actual evapotranspiration (AET) for four humid catchments in Kenya, East Africa was evaluated using the Morton and Grindley models. The area of each catchment was less then 100 km² and all catchments lie around the equator. Three of the catchments are chiefly vegetated with pasture, annual and perennial crops, whereas one is largely under forest. The AET estimates from the aforementioned models were compared with those based on a water balance analysis. A total of 34 data years for daily rainfall and run off for all the catchments were used for analysis. The results indicated that both models tended to overestimate AET in relation to the water balance-based values. The Grindley model (AET_G) overestimated such that the estimates were either equal or close to the Penman potential evapotranspiration (PET) values in all the catchments. The Morton model (AET_M) performed better, and AET estimates by this method, although marginally higher, were closer to the water balance-based estimates. The overall overprediction by the Grindley model on a monthly basis was of the order of 32% whereas by the Morton model it was only 8%. Although the mean values from the Morton model are only 8% higher than the water balance values on a monthly basis, values of the RMSE (root mean square error) range between 25 and 47 mm. The additional merit of the Morton model lies in its ability to provide estimates of AET based solely on meteorological data, which are readily available in Kenya, East Africa. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimating stream solute loads from fixed frequency sampling regimes: the importance of considering multiple solutes and seasonal fluxes in the design of long‐term stream monitoring networks

Reduced sampling frequency is known to increase the error associated with estimates of stream solute load. However, the extent to which the magnitude of error differs among commonly measured solutes and across seasons is unclear. In this study, a high sampling frequency data set from two forested streams (one upland‐draining and one wetland‐draining stream) in south‐central Ontario was systematically sub‐sampled to simulate weekly, fortnightly and monthly fixed frequency sampling regimes for 12 stream solutes. We found that solutes which had a higher degree of temporal variation in concentration (i.e. higher %RSD) had poorer precision (C_v) in estimates of annual load relative to solutes with a lower %RSD. In addition, the magnitude and direction of bias varied considerably among solutes and were related to differences in spring concentration‐discharge relationships (m_{[spring Q vs C]}) among the 12 solutes. Solutes which decreased in concentration with increases in spring flow (i.e. m_{[spring Q vs C]} <0) exhibited positive bias in annual load while solutes which increased in concentration with increases in spring flow (i.e. m_{[spring Q vs C]} >0) were negatively biased. In terms of differences between seasonal and annual load errors, precision was generally lower for estimates of seasonal load relative to annual load while bias varied in both magnitude and direction among seasons. When the root mean square error (RMSE) of load estimates was compared to a threshold of acceptable error (<15%), the proportion of solutes attaining acceptable levels of uncertainty ranged from 11/12 for annual load estimates at a weekly sampling frequency to only 4/12 at a monthly frequency when both annual and seasonal loads were considered. Our results demonstrate that commonly measured solutes do not behave uniformly in response to changes in sampling frequency and that estimates of seasonal loads are often less accurate than estimates of annual load. These findings provide important insights into the design of stream monitoring programs and the evaluation of existing long‐term data sets. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Response of water and energy exchange to the environmental variable in a desert‐oasis wetland of Northwest China

A case study on a desert‐oasis wetland ecosystem in the arid region of Northwest China measured the seasonal and interannual variation in energy partitioning and evapotranspiration to analyse the response of water and energy exchange on soil moisture, groundwater, and environmental variables. Energy partitioning showed a clear seasonal and interannual variability, and the process of water and energy exchange differed significantly in the monthly and interannual scales. The net radiation was 7.31 MJ m^?2· day^?1, and sensible heat flux accounted for 50.42% of net radiation in energy fluxes, 40.56% for latent heat flux, and 9.02% for ground heat flux. The parameters in energy fluxes were best described by a unimodal curve, whereas sensible heat flux followed a bimodal curve. Variations in the daily evapotranspiration and crop evapotranspiration also exhibited a single peak curve with annual values of 569.84 and 644.47 mm, respectively. Canopy conductance averaged 20.77 ± 13.75 mm s^?1 and varied from 0.16 to 83.96 mm s^?1 during the two hydrological years. The variation in water and energy exchange reflected environmental conditions and depended primarily on vapour pressure deficit, net radiation, soil moisture, and water depth. Although the effects of precipitation on evapotranspiration showed that the response of this ecosystem to climate changes was not obvious, the variation of air temperatures had a strong influence on evapotranspiration, resulting in a significant increase in evapotranspiration (R = 0.730; P < 0.01). Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Solar radiation,longwave radiation and emergent wetland evapotranspiration estimates from satellite data in Florida,USA / Estimations à partir de données satellitales du rayonnement solaire,du rayonnement de grande longueur d’onde et de l’évapotranspiration d’une zone humide de Floride (EUA)

Abstract

Abstract Routine estimates of daily incoming solar radiation from the GOES-8 satellite were compared to locally measured values in Florida. Longwave radiation estimates corrected using GOES-derived cloud amount and cloud top temperature products improved net radiation estimates as compared to a clear sky longwave approach. The Penman-Monteith, Turc, Hargreaves and Makkink models were applied using GOES-derived estimates of solar radiation and net radiation to predict daily evapotranspiration and were compared to evapotranspiration measured with an eddy-correlation system in an emergent wetland experimental site in north-central Florida under unstressed conditions. While the Penman-Monteith model provided the best estimates of evapotranspiration (R ² = 0.92), the empirical Makkink method demonstrated nearly comparable agreement (R ² = 0.90) using only the GOES solar radiation and measured temperature. The results show that it is possible to generate spatially distributed daily potential evapotranspiration estimates using GOES-derived solar radiation and net radiation with limited additional surface measurements.