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High-Resolution Soil Moisture Data Reveal Complex Multi-Scale Spatial Variability Across the United States

Publication ,  Journal Article
Vergopolan, N; Sheffield, J; Chaney, NW; Pan, M; Beck, HE; Ferguson, CR; Torres-Rojas, L; Eigenbrod, F; Crow, W; Wood, EF
Published in: Geophysical Research Letters
August 16, 2022

Soil moisture (SM) spatiotemporal variability critically influences water resources, agriculture, and climate. However, besides site-specific studies, little is known about how SM varies locally (1–100-m scale). Consequently, quantifying the SM variability and its impact on the Earth system remains a long-standing challenge in hydrology. We reveal the striking variability of local-scale SM across the United States using SMAP-HydroBlocks — a novel satellite-based surface SM data set at 30-m resolution. Results show how the complex interplay of SM with landscape characteristics and hydroclimate is primarily driven by local variations in soil properties. This local-scale complexity yields a remarkable and unique multi-scale behavior at each location. However, very little of this complexity persists across spatial scales. Experiments reveal that on average 48% and up to 80% of the SM spatial information is lost at the 1-km resolution, with complete loss expected at the scale of current state-of-the-art SM monitoring and modeling systems (1–25 km resolution).

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Published In

Geophysical Research Letters

DOI

EISSN

1944-8007

ISSN

0094-8276

Publication Date

August 16, 2022

Volume

49

Issue

15

Related Subject Headings

  • Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences
 

Citation

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Vergopolan, N., Sheffield, J., Chaney, N. W., Pan, M., Beck, H. E., Ferguson, C. R., … Wood, E. F. (2022). High-Resolution Soil Moisture Data Reveal Complex Multi-Scale Spatial Variability Across the United States. Geophysical Research Letters, 49(15). https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL098586
Vergopolan, N., J. Sheffield, N. W. Chaney, M. Pan, H. E. Beck, C. R. Ferguson, L. Torres-Rojas, F. Eigenbrod, W. Crow, and E. F. Wood. “High-Resolution Soil Moisture Data Reveal Complex Multi-Scale Spatial Variability Across the United States.” Geophysical Research Letters 49, no. 15 (August 16, 2022). https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL098586.
Vergopolan N, Sheffield J, Chaney NW, Pan M, Beck HE, Ferguson CR, et al. High-Resolution Soil Moisture Data Reveal Complex Multi-Scale Spatial Variability Across the United States. Geophysical Research Letters. 2022 Aug 16;49(15).
Vergopolan, N., et al. “High-Resolution Soil Moisture Data Reveal Complex Multi-Scale Spatial Variability Across the United States.” Geophysical Research Letters, vol. 49, no. 15, Aug. 2022. Scopus, doi:10.1029/2022GL098586.
Vergopolan N, Sheffield J, Chaney NW, Pan M, Beck HE, Ferguson CR, Torres-Rojas L, Eigenbrod F, Crow W, Wood EF. High-Resolution Soil Moisture Data Reveal Complex Multi-Scale Spatial Variability Across the United States. Geophysical Research Letters. 2022 Aug 16;49(15).
Journal cover image

Published In

Geophysical Research Letters

DOI

EISSN

1944-8007

ISSN

0094-8276

Publication Date

August 16, 2022

Volume

49

Issue

15

Related Subject Headings

  • Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences