Soil Moisture Focus Area Contributions to International Structures
GCOS
GCOS target requirements for soil moisture were set as follows (GCOS-200):
| Variable/Parameter | Horizontal Resolution | Vertical Resolution | Temporal Resolution | Accuracy | Stability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surface Soil Moisture | 1-25 km | 0-5 cm* | Daily | 0.04 m3/m3 | 0.01 m3/m3/yr |
| Root Zone Soil Moisture | 1-25 km | 0-1 m* | Daily | 0.04 m3/m3 | 0.01 m3/m3/yr |
* Vertical resolutions are not standardized, but these are community practices.
LPV Soil Moisture contributions towards action items T15, T16, T17, T18 (IP 2016/GCOS-200).
Soil Moisture Validation Reference Data Sets and Tools
Currently the best comprehensive global in situ reference data base for satellite-derived soil moisture product validation is the International Soil Moisture Network (ISMN), where operational in situ networks contribute thier data for communal use.
A sophisticated service for soil moisture validation of satellite and simulation products is the Quality Assurance for Soil Moisture (QA4SM), which brings together methodologies and protocols used for the validation and quality control of soil moisture data products and provides users with traceable validation results. Similarly, the Python Toolbox for the Evaluation of Soil Moisture Observations (pytesmo), aims to provide a standard library that can be used for the comparison and validation of geospatial time series datasets with focus on soil moisture.
