Estimation of the evapotranspiration using surface and satellite data

Abstract

A method to derive evapotranspiration from a combination of satellite and conventional data is investigated. For this purpose NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) AVHRR (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer) infrared images on clear days of various seasons are used to derive surface temperatures over France. These temperatures are then compared to the shelter-height temperatures collected at the WMO (World Meteorological Organization) standard meteorological stations at the time of satellite overpass. The difference between the two temperatures varies both with season and latitude. To analyse those results we use a model of the soil-vegetation interface, forced by a reconstruction of the surface fluxes derived from the WMO data. The model simulates reasonably well the diurnal and seasonal variations in the difference between satellite surface temperature and surface-air temperature. The corresponding latitudinal variations which occur in summer may be interpreted in terms of evapotranspiration. The limitations of this method are determined by a model sensitivity study; in particular they are due to the role played by tall vegetation.