Satellite Application Facility (saf) in a nutshell

Satellite Application Facility (SAF) in a nutshell

• Satellite Application Facility (SAF) in a nutshell

• H-SAF overview

• Requirements on satellite soil moisture

• Product characteristics and generation chains

• Large-scale soil moisture
• Small-scale soil moisture
• Assimilated soil moisture

• Recent validation activities and results

• In-situ measurements
• Hydrological model data

• Conclusions

8 SAF: Satellite Application Facility

• 8 SAF: Satellite Application Facility

• Specialization on topics and themes

• Providing products and services to users

• Part of the EUMETSAT application ground segment

• Location: at the Weather Services in EUMETSAT Member and Co-operating States

to guarantee operational provision of high quality level 2/3 satellite-derived products and services for:

• to guarantee operational provision of high quality level 2/3 satellite-derived products and services for:

• PRECIPITATION
• SOIL MOISTURE
• SNOW

• to perform independent product validation and assessment of the usefulness of the consolidated/improved products

• to put in operations new satellite-derived products

Application and users

• Application and users

• (Operational) Hydrology,
• Climate monitoring

• Spatio-temporal resolution

• Near real-time,
• Europe

• Specification

• Standardized file formats: BUFR, GRIB

• Characterisation

• Validation programmes,
• EUMETSAT reviews

Information from multi-incidence angle observations from scatterometers

• Information from multi-incidence angle observations from scatterometers

Large-scale surface soil moisture observed by radar scatterometer (TU-Wien/ZAMG)

• Large-scale surface soil moisture observed by radar scatterometer (TU-Wien/ZAMG)

• Sensor: METOP-ASCAT
• Cycle: 36 hours for full coverage over Europe, available globally over land
• Resolution: 25 km,
• Timeliness: 130 min
• Dissemination: EUMETCast
• Format: BUFR

Small-scale surface soil moisture observed by radar scatterometer (TU-Wien/ZAMG)

• Small-scale surface soil moisture observed by radar scatterometer (TU-Wien/ZAMG)

• Sensor: METOP-ASCAT, together with ENVISAT ASAR
• Cycle: 36 hours for full coverage over Europe
• Resolution: Basic 25 km, sampling to 1 km
• Timeliness: ~130 min
• Format: BUFR
• Concept: Temporal stability of backscatter with ENVISAT ASAR (C-Band)

Volumetric soil moisture (roots region) by assimilation in NWP model (ECMWF)

• Volumetric soil moisture (roots region) by assimilation in NWP model (ECMWF)

• Sensor: METOP-ASCAT
• Format: GRIB (regular reduced Gaussian grid or latitude/longitude grid)
• Content: 4 different soil layers (covering the root zone from the surface to 2.9m)
• Cycle: 24 hours
• Resolution: 16 km (T1279)
• Timeliness: 36 hours

Ground based systems (in-situ)

• Ground based systems (in-situ)

• Single campaign datasets
• Continuous monitoring sites
• e.g. ISMN (International Soil Moisture Network)

• Modelled data

• Hydrological model data
• Soil-vegetation-atmosphere-transfer model

• Inter-comparison with other satellite products

• Active vs. passive microwave products

Continuous rainfall-runoff model (MISDc)

• Continuous rainfall-runoff model (MISDc)

• Upper Tiber River, Italy

• Assimilation improves runoff prediction

SM-OBS-3 (large-scale)

• SM-OBS-3 (large-scale)

• SM-OBS-2 (small-scale)

• SM-DAS-1 (assimilated, now SM-DAS-2)

H-SAF: new satellite soil moisture products for Europe

• H-SAF: new satellite soil moisture products for Europe

• Large-scale soil moisture (surface, relative index, BUFR): 01 May 2009 – now
• Small scale soil moisture (with ENVISAT ASAR, BUFR): 22 Sep 2009 – now
• Assimilated soil moisture (root zone, GRIB): 01 Jul 2008 – 31 Aug 2010

• Validated datasets

• First results with in-situ and hydrological model data comparison
• Further work ongoing with hydrological model data/data assimilation

• Challenges and research needs

• Investigating spatial variability and error characterisation of scaling approaches

• Contact points

• H-SAF project web-page: http://hsaf.meteoam.it
• International Soil Moisture Network: www.ipf.tuwien.ac.at/insitu
• SM-OBS-03; SM-OBS-02: Stefan Hasenauer: [e-mail], www.ipf.tuwien.ac.at/radar
• SM-DAS-02: Patricia de Rosnay: [e-mail]

www.ipf.tuwien.ac.at/insitu

• www.ipf.tuwien.ac.at/insitu

• Freely available, online data viewer

Instrument

• Instrument

• Advanced Scatterometer

• Frequency

• 5.26 GHz (C-Band)

• Polarisation

• VV

• Spatial Resolution

• 25/50 km

• Temporal Resolution

• 8-15 files/day over Europe, full coverage within 1.6 days

• Data format

• BUFR, native EPS

• SM-ASS2:

• Soil Wetness Index in the root zone resulting from assimilation of SM-OBS- in a NWP model.

• It will be characterized by:

• The potential of several observations, co-assimilated with the ASCAT surface soil moisture in the ECMWF Integrated Forecast System (IFS), will be exploited through a multi-variate data assimilation system
• Combined assimilation of precipitation/cloud affected radiances over land with ASCAT soil moisture data => a better consistence between soil moisture and precipitation
• Extension of the EKF for assimilation of H-SAF snow products => improvement of soil moisture products and better consistency of the hydrological cycle variables

ASCAT considered reliable, well reproduced the in-situ‚ observed‘ temporal pattern.

• ASCAT considered reliable, well reproduced the in-situ‚ observed‘ temporal pattern.

• SWI correlation coefficients R >0.90

• RMSE <0.035 m³/m³ (linear rescaled)

Filtered and bias-corrected ASCAT data

• Filtered and bias-corrected ASCAT data

• Bibeschbach-catchment in Luxembourg, 16 probes

• ASCAT has potential to help monitoring how river systems approach critical thresholds, operational perspective