Airborne

Remote Sensing of Soil

Moisture in the San Joaquin
Experimental Range
Patrick Montuori, State University of New York, PlaDsburgh
Dr. Susan UsGn, University of California, Davis,
Shane Grigsby, University of Colorado, Boulder,
Dr. Mike WhiGng University of California, Davis

IntroducGon
Measuring Soil Moisture
Water and energy balance models
Drought and ood predicGon
Crop yield distribuGon
Volumetric Water Content (VWC)
Direct Gravimetric
Indirect
e.g. Dialectric Sensors

Remote Sensing of Soil Moisture

Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite
35 km resoluGon
Soil Moisture AcGve Passive (SMAP) satellite
9 km resoluGon
Airborne Remote Sensing
Expand extent of ground measurements
Improve spaGal and
temporal resoluGon

PredicGng Soil Moisture from Airborne Imagery

ObjecGve: Predict VWC measurements using
hyperspectral (AVIRIS Next GeneraGon) and
mulGspectral (MASTER) short wave infrared (SWIR, 1-2.5
) airborne imagery.
Water absorpGon
features in SWIR range

San Joaquin Experimental Range and

the Providence Creek Catchment

SJER
37 6 9 N
119 43 36 W

Providence Creek
37 4 2 N
119 12 0 W

Providence Creek Probe

Sites

Lower Probe Sites

Reectance to VWC Regression

2.1055 m

0.9433 m

0.9884 m
2.3860 m

MulGvariate Regression Results

R2 = 0.673
Wavelength ()

Variable

Coecient

P-Value

Constant

0.1579

0.000

0.9433

AVIRIS Band 113 0.0003

0.001

0.9884

AVIRIS Band 122 -0.0003

0.000

2.1055

AVIRIS Band 345 0.0004

0.006

2.3860

AVIRIS Band 401 -0.0005

0.014

VWC 30cm = 0.1579 + (0.0003 * b113) (0.0003 * b122) + (0.0004 * b345) (0.0005 * b401)

Texture and Soil Moisture

CalibraGon requires bare soil pixels over probes.
SWIR is not absorbed past soil surface.
Water absorpGon a
funcGon of soil texture.
Soil texture related to
soil water capacity.
Correlate SWIR to textural
variaGons between probes.

Soil Series at Probe Sites

Providence Creek AVIRIS Images

True Color

Soil Moisture

SJER AVIRIS Images

True Color

Soil Moisture

SJER AVIRIS Images

NDVI

Soil Moisture

SJER AVIRIS Images

True Color

Soil Moisture

SJER MASTER Images

True Color

Soil Moisture

Conclusions
PredicGon is not a direct correlaGon between
SWIR and VWC of soil.
Using relaGonship between SWIR and vegetaGon
water content.
Hyperspectral imagery with high spaGal
resoluGon best for predicGng water content.
AVIRIS Next GeneraGon imagery from the
correlaGon appears to show relaGve distribuGon
of moisture equally well in both Providence Creek
Catchment and San Joaquin Experimental Range.

Acknowledgments
The SARP Land Group
SARP 2015
Dr. Emil Schaller
Rick SheDer
NSERC
Randy Albertson
Dr. Jack Kaye
NASA Airborne Science
Program

Dr. Michael Goulden

Southern Sierra CriGcal Zone
Observatory

Dr. Elsa Abbot
Dr. Glynn Hulley
Dr. Nick Vance

QuesGons?

SJER

San Joaquin Experimental Range

Drainage Basin

Methods
Test models ability to predict VWC in AVIRIS
scenes.
Use MASTER bands at similar wavelengths to
bands used in AVIRIS model to predict VWC in
2015 scenes over SJER.
Compare predicted values to:
Expected values
True Color Imagery
Normalized Dierence VegetaGon Index

Providence Creek AVIRIS Images

NDVI

Soil Moisture

San Joaquin Experimental Range and

the Providence Creek Catchment
SJER
130 520 m elevaGon
Mean annual temperature
18C
486 mm mean annual
precipitaGon
Well drained graniGc soils

Providence Creek

1660 2100 m elevaGon

Mean annual temperature
8C
1200 mm mean annual
precipitaGon
Well drained graniGc soils

Results
Assessing Predicted VWC values: Providence Creek

Probe
P301_1

P301_2

P301_3

P301_4

Line Start Time

(GMT)

Ground Reading (cm3

water/cm3 soil)
at 30 cm
PredicGon

% Dierence

Apparent Cover

11:22:39

0.045

0.0664

47.56

VegetaGon

11:38:10

0.045

0.1131

151.33

VegetaGon

11:22:39

0.029

0.1366

371.03

VegetaGon

11:38:10

0.029

0.0971

234.83

VegetaGon

11:22:39

0.036

0.0124

65.56

VegetaGon

11:38:10

0.036

-0.0082

122.78

VegetaGon

11:22:39

0.045

0.0424

5.78

Bare Soil/Liginin

11:38:10

0.045

0.0322

28.44

Bare Soil/Liginin

Results
Probe

Ground Reading
Line Start Time (cm3 water/cm3
soil)
(GMT)
PredicGon

% Dierence Apparent Cover

North_1

11:31:22

0.07

0.0844

14.79

Bare Soil/Lignin

North_2

11:31:22

0.16

0.0899

44.99

Bare Soil/Lignin

North_3

11:31:22

0.15

0.1137

24.16

VegetaGon

North_4

11:31:22

0.12

0.1487

19.79

VegetaGon

South_1

11:31:22

0.16

0.1703

9.57

VegetaGon

South_2

11:31:22

0.18

0.1354

22.73

VegetaGon

South_3

11:31:22

0.14

0.1425

4.15

VegetaGon

South_4

11:31:22

0.15

0.0763

50.66

VegetaGon

South_5

11:31:22

0.11

0.1354

21.04

VegetaGon

Spectral ResoluGon
AVIRIS Next GeneraGon

MASTER

AVIRIS-MASTER TransiGon

AVIRIS Band

Wavelength ()

MASTER
Band

Wavelength ()

113

0.9433

10

0.9120

122

0.9884

11

0.9520

345

2.1055

20

2.0760

401

2.3860

25

2.3880

Goulden Labs Probes

SJER
June 13, 2 PM
VWC: 0.021 0.030

Goulden Labs Probes

Site P301
June 12, 11AM
VWC: 0.029 0.045

CZO Probes
0.5
0.45
0.4
0.35

VWC 30 cm

North Facing
Probes
June 12, 11AM
VWC : 0.073 - 0.163

0.3

VWC_acuc30

0.25

VWC_acde30

0.2

VWC_cdde30

0.15

VWC_open30

0.1
0.05
0
October 2012 October 2013
0.5
0.45
0.4
0.35

VWC 30cm

South Facing Probes

June 12, 11AM
VWC: 0.111 0.175

VWC_cdde30

0.3

VWC_cduc30

0.25

VWC_open30

0.2

VWC_ppde30

0.15

VWC_ppuc30

0.1
0.05
0
October 2012 October 2013