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Statistical and Scaling Properties of Remotely-Sensed Soil Moisture in Two Contrasting Domains in the North American Monsoon RegionCharacterizing soil moisture (theta) variability is important for inferring high-resolution information from coarse estimates provided by remote sensors. In this study, we analyze the spatial variability and scale invariance of high-resolution theta estimates collected in two contrasting semiarid areas, Arizona (AZ) and Sonora (SON), during the Soil Moisture Experiment - North American Monsoon in 2004 (SMEX04- NAME). Results reveal that as the mean theta condition () becomes drier, the spatial standard deviation becomes smaller in both domains. The coefficient of variation of theta decreases with in SON, but does not display a clear tendency with in AZ. We also found the presence of scale invariance and multifractality in the range of support scales from 51.2 km to 0.8 km for all soil moisture fields in the two regions. The multifractal properties of theta are clearly linked to in SON, while the relation is affected by more dispersion in AZ. We argue this is due to differences in the dynamic (rainfall) and static (vegetation) controls on theta in the two domains.
Document ID
20110015948
Acquisition Source
Glenn Research Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Mascaro, Giuseppe
(Cagliari Univ. Italy)
Vivoni, Enrique
(Arizona State Univ. Tempe, AZ, United States)
Date Acquired
August 25, 2013
Publication Date
October 13, 2009
Publication Information
Publication: Journal of Arid Environments
Volume: 74
Subject Category
Earth Resources And Remote Sensing
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNX09AD45G
CONTRACT_GRANT: NSF OISE 0553852
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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