Evaluation of satellite-based evapotranspiration estimates in China

Lei Huang; Zhe Li; Qiuhong Tang; Xuejun Zhang; Xingcai Liu; Huijuan Cui

doi:10.1117/1.JRS.11.026019

24 May 2017 Evaluation of satellite-based evapotranspiration estimates in China

Lei Huang, Zhe Li, Qiuhong Tang, Xuejun Zhang, Xingcai Liu, Huijuan Cui

Author Affiliations +

Journal of Applied Remote Sensing, Vol. 11, Issue 2, 026019 (May 2017). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JRS.11.026019

Abstract

Accurate and continuous estimation of evapotranspiration (ET) is crucial for effective water resource management. We used the moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) standard ET algorithm forced by the MODIS land products and the three-hourly solar radiation datasets to estimate daily actual evapotranspiration of China (ET_MOD) for the years 2001 to 2015. From the point scale validations using seven eddy covariance tower sites, the results showed that the agreement of ET_MOD estimates and observations was higher for monthly and daily values than that of instantaneous values. Under the major river basin and subbasin levels’ comparisons with the variable infiltration capacity hydrological model estimates, the ET_MOD exhibited a slight overestimation in northern China and underestimation in southern China. The mean annual ET_MOD estimates agreed favorably with the hydrological model with coefficients of determination (R2) of 0.93 and 0.83 at major river basin and subbasin scale, respectively. At national scale, the spatiotemporal variations of ET_MOD estimates matched well with those ET estimates from various sources. However, ET_MOD estimates were generally lower than the other estimates in the Tibetan Plateau. This underestimation may be attributed to the plateau climate along with low air temperature and sparsely vegetated surface on the Tibetan Plateau.

Citation Download Citation

Lei Huang, Zhe Li, Qiuhong Tang, Xuejun Zhang, Xingcai Liu, and Huijuan Cui "Evaluation of satellite-based evapotranspiration estimates in China," Journal of Applied Remote Sensing 11(2), 026019 (24 May 2017). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JRS.11.026019

Received: 13 February 2017; Accepted: 26 April 2017; Published: 24 May 2017

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available