Measuring soil temperature and moisture of arctic tundra based on SMOS and ALOS PALSAR data

In this paper, methods for retrieving soil moisture, roughness, and temperature based on the radar backscatter coefficient (ALOS PALSAR) and brightness temperature (SMOS) data related to a tundra area on the Yamal peninsula were tested. As theoretical models, there were used the semi-empirical backscatter model proposed by Y. Oh et. al and the L-band Microwave Emission of the Biosphere (L-MEB) model proposed by J-P Wigneron et.al. An integral part of these models is a permittivity model of moist soil both thawed and frozen, which links backscatter coefficient and brightness temperature with moisture, temperature, and dry density of the soil as well as the wave frequencies used by the ALOS PALSAR and SMOS. The applied permittivity model was developed based on dielectric measurements conducted for the organic rich soil samples collected at the Vaskiny Dachi weather station located in the area of the radar backscatter and brightness observations. The retrieved temperatures were correlated with the ones measured at the weather station yielding the values of root-mean-square error and determination coefficient of 3.8°C and 0.80, respectively.