Estimation of spatial and temporal evolution of vegetation and surface moisture from ERS2 radar in a semi-arid region

In this paper, a simple model is proposed for retrieving the vegetation cover over soil surfaces from radar signals acquired in semi-arid regions. In Tunisia, vegetation is characterized by the presence of clumps which partially cover the soil surface. The proposed model describes the relationship between the percentage of covered surface and the measured radar signal. Model simulations compared with actual ERS2 radar data show a very good agreement. A map of the whole studied site (in Tunisia) is then derived combining classification approach and previous modeling