ESTIMATION OF LAND SURFACE ENERGY FLUXES: AN APPLICATION OF SATELLITE REMOTE SENSING PROCEDURE

摘要

Surface energy fluxes, including sensible heat, latent heat, net radiation, and soil heat flux, playcrucial role in surface energy dynamics of any terrain or landscapes. Estimation or measurement ofthese energy fluxes is critical for completing the water balance in terrestrial ecosystems, and thereforeaccurately predicting the effects of global climate and land use change. There are various methodsavailable for ET estimation. Bowen ratio energy balance and eddy correlation techniques offerpowerful alternatives for measuring land surface energy fluxes. In spite of the elegance, high accuracyand theoretical attractions of these techniques for measuring ET, their practical use over large areascan be limited. These techniques provide measurements at a point scale and may not be practicalwhen quantifying water use over large areas due to the number of measurement sites needed and theoperational expense of such a dense network. Application of ET mapping from satellite measurementscan overcome aforementioned limitations. The objective of this study is to assess the performance ofthe METRICtm (Mapping Evapotranspiration at high Resolution using Internalized Calibration) modelfor estimating land surface energy fluxes to improve our understanding of processes that govern wateruse in managed and native ecosystems in south-central Nebraska.