Phenology and associated canopy development exert a strong control over seasonal energy and mass exchanges between the earth's surface and the atmosphere. Satellite measurements are used to assess main phenological stages of the vegetation at the global scale. The authors propose a method to derive the start, the maximum, the end, and the length of the vegetation cycle, based on the analysis of temporal series of weekly vegetation index, at a resolution of 1Њ lat ϫ 1Њ long for year 1986. Global maps of these characteristics of the vegetation are presented, and their zonal distribution is discussed. The start of the vegetation cycle has been related to temperature sums in the case of temperate deciduous forest and to precipitation in the case of savannahs. It is concluded that satellite measurements offer interesting perspectives for global-scale quantitative phenology modeling.

No abstract

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Abstract. Evapotranspiration has been recognized as one of the most uncertain terms in the surface water balance simulated by land surface models. In this study, the SURFEX/ISBA-A-gs (Interaction Sol-BiosphereAtmosphere) simulations of evapotranspiration are assessed at the field scale over a 12-year Mediterranean crop succession. The model is evaluated in its standard implementation which relies on the use of the ISBA pedotransfer estimates of the soil properties. The originality of this work consists in explicitly representing the succession of crop cycles and inter-crop bare soil periods in the simulations and assessing its impact on the dynamics of simulated and measured evapotranspiration over a long period of time. The analysis focuses on key parameters which drive the simulation of ET, namely the rooting depth, the soil moisture at saturation, the soil moisture at field capacity and the soil moisture at wilting point. A sensitivity analysis is first conducted to quantify the relative contribution of each parameter on ET simulation over 12 years. The impact of the estimation method used to retrieve the soil parameters (pedotransfer function, laboratory and field methods) on ET is then analysed. The benefit of representing the variations in time of the rooting depth and wilting point is evaluated. Finally, the propagation of uncertainties in the soil parameters on ET simulations is quantified through a Monte Carlo analysis and compared with the uncertainties triggered by the mesophyll conductance which is a key above-ground driver of the stomatal conductance.This work shows that evapotranspiration mainly results from the soil evaporation when it is continuously simulated over a Mediterranean crop succession. This results in a high sensitivity of simulated evapotranspiration to uncertainties in the soil moisture at field capacity and the soil moisture at saturation, both of which drive the simulation of soil evaporation. Field capacity was proved to be the most influencing parameter on the simulation of evapotranspiration over the crop succession. The evapotranspiration simulated with the standard surface and soil parameters of the model is largely underestimated. The deficit in cumulative evapotranspiration amounts to 24 % over 12 years. The bias in daily daytime evapotranspiration is −0.24 mm day −1 . The ISBA pedotransfer estimates of the soil moisture at saturation and at wilting point are overestimated, which explains most of the evapotranspiration underestimation. The use of field capacity values retrieved from laboratory methods leads to inaccurate simulation of ET due to the lack of representativeness of the soil structure variability at the field scale. The most accurate simulation is achieved with the average values of the soil properties derived from the analysis of field measurements of soil moisture vertical profiles over each crop cycle. The representation of the variations in time of the wilting point and the maximum rooting depth over the crop succession has litPublished by Copernicus Publica...

Models simulating the seasonal growth of vegetation have been recently coupled to soil-vegetation-atmosphere transfer schemes (SVATS). Such coupled vegetation-SVATS models (V-S) account for changes of the vegetation leaf area index (LAI) over time. One problem faced by V-S models is the high number of parameters that are required to simulate different sites or large areas. Therefore, efficient calibration procedures are needed. This study describes an attempt to calibrate a V-S model with satellite [Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR)] data in the shortwave and longwave domains. A V-S model is described using ground data collected over three semiarid grassland sites during the Hydrological Atmospheric Pilot Experiment (HAPEX)-Sahel experiment. The effect of calibrating model parameters with time series of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and thermal infrared (TIR) data is assessed by examining the simulated latent heat flux (LE) and LAI for a suite of calibration experiments. A sensitivity analysis showed that the parameters related to plant growth vigor and to soil evaporative resistance were the best candidates for calibration. The NDVI and TIR time series were used to calibrate these parameters, both independently and simultaneously, to assess their synergy. Ground-based, airborne, and satellite sensor (AVHRR) data were successively investigated. Both airborne and AVHRR NDVI data could be used to constrain the vegetation growth vigor. These calibrations significantly improved the simulation of the LAI and LE (rmse decreased by 21% for LE), and the site-to-site variability was greatly enhanced. The soil resistance could also be calibrated with ground-based TIR data, but the effect on the simulated variables was small. Although both NDVI and ground-based TIR data were suitable to constrain the V-S model, the synergy between the two wavelengths was not clearly established. Last, satellite TIR data from the AVHRR proved unsuitable for model calibration. Indeed, the AVHRR surface temperature values were systematically lower than both ground-based data and model outputs. The authors conclude that the calibration of a vegetation-SVAT model with shortwave AVHRR time series can be used to scale the energy and water fluxes up to the regional scale.

Remote sensing is an interesting tool for monitoring crop production, energy exchanges and mass exchanges between the soil, the biosphere and the atmosphere. The aim of the Alpilles-ReSeDA program was the development of such techniques combining remote sensing data, and soil and vegetation process models. This article focuses on SVAT models (Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere Transfer models) which may be used for monitoring energy and mass exchanges by using assimilation of remote sensing data procedures. As a first step, we decided to implement a model comparison experiment with the aim of analyzing the relationships between the models' complexity, validity and potential for assimilating remote sensing data. This experiment involved the definition of three comparison scenarios with different objectives: (i) test the models' capacity to accurately describe processes using input parameters as measured in the field; (ii) test the portability of the models by using a priori information on input parameters (such as pedotransfer functions), and (iii) test the robustness of the models by a calibration/validation procedure. These 3 scenarios took advantage of the experimental network that was implemented during the Alpilles experiment and which combined measurements on different fields that may be used for calibration of models and their validations on independent data sets. The results showed that the models' performances were close whatever their complexity. The simpler models were less sensitive to the specification of input parameters. Significant improvements in the models' results were achieved when calibrating the models in comparison with the first scenario. remote sensing / modeling /experiment / surface energy fluxes / comparison Résumé-Modélisation du transfert Sol-Végétation-Atmosphère sur l'expérimentation Alpilles-ReSeDA : comparaison des modèles TSVA sur champs de blé. Le programme Alpilles-ReSeDA a été mis en place pour développer des méthodes d'utilisation des données de télédétection en combinaison avec des modèles de fonctionnement du sol ou de la végétation, dans le but d'estimer ou de suivre la production des cultures ou leurs échanges de masse et d'énergie avec le sol et l'atmosphère. Parmi ces modèles, cet article se focalise sur les modèles de transfert Sol-Végétation-Atmosphère qui peuvent être utilisés pour suivre les échanges d'énergie et de masse au moyen de procédures d'assimilation des données de télédétection. Dans une première étape, nous avons mis en place une expérience de comparaison de plusieurs modèles, avec l'objectif d'analyser les relations entre la complexité des modèles, leur validité et leur utilisation potentielle pour assimiler des données de télédétection. Nous avons défini trois scénarios qui répondent à des objectifs différents : (i) tester la capacité des modèles à décrire les processus en utilisant les paramètres d'entrée des modèles tels qu'ils ont été mesurés dans les champs ; (ii) tester la portabilité des modèles en utilisant des informations a priori en entrée (comme des f...

Crop yield can be affected by crop water use and vice versa, so when trying to simulate one or the other, it can be important that both are simulated well. In a prior inter-comparison among maize growth models, evapotranspiration (ET) predictions varied widely, but no observations of actual ET were available for comparison. Therefore, this follow-up study was initiated under the umbrella of AgMIP (Agricultural Model Inter-Comparison and Improvement Project). Observations of daily ET using the eddy covariance technique from an 8-year-long (2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)) experiment conducted at Ames, IA were used as the standard for comparison among models. Simulation results from 29 models are reported herein. In the first "blind" phase for which only weather, soils, phenology, and management information were provided to the modelers, estimates of seasonal ET varied from about 200 to about 700 mm. Subsequent three phases provided (1) leaf area indices for all years, (2) all daily ET and agronomic data for a typical year (2011), and (3) all data for all years, thus allowing the modelers to progressively calibrate their models as more information was provided, but the range among ET estimates still varied by a factor of two or more. Much of the variability among the models was due to differing estimates of potential evapotranspiration, which suggests an avenue for substantial model improvement. Nevertheless, the ensemble median values were generally close to the observations, and the medians were best (had the lowest mean squared deviations from observations, MSD) for several ET categories for inter-comparison, but not all. Further, the medians were best when considering both ET and agronomic parameters together. The best six models with the lowest MSDs were identified for several ET and agronomic categories, and they proved to vary widely in complexity in spite of having similar prediction accuracies. At the same time, other models with apparently similar approaches were not as accurate. The models that are widely used tended to perform better, leading us speculate that a larger number of users testing these models over a wider range of conditions likely has led to improvement. User experience and skill at calibration and dealing with missing input data likely were also a factor in determining the accuracy of model predictions. In several cases different versions of a model within the same family of models were run, and these within-family inter-comparisons identified particular approaches that were better while other factors were held constant. Thus, improvement is needed in many of the models with regard to their ability to simulate ET over a wide range of conditions, and several aspects for progress have been identified, especially in their simulation of potential ET.

The Alpilles-ReSeDA program was initiated to develop and test methods for interpreting remote sensing data that could lead to a better evaluation of soil and vegetation processes. This article presents the experiment that was setup in order to acquire the necessary data to achieve this goal. Intensive measurements were performed for almost one year over a small agricultural region in the South of France (20 kilometers square). To capture the main processes controlling land-atmosphere exchanges, the local climate was fully characterized, and surface energy fluxes, vegetation biomass, vegetation structure, soil moisture profiles, surface soil moisture, surface temperature and soil temperature were monitored. Additional plant physiological measurements and a full characterization of physical soil parameters were also carried out. After presenting the different types of measurements, examples are given in order to illustrate the variability of soils and plant processes in the area in response to the experienced climate. surface energy fluxes / evapotranspiration / soil moisture / soil physical properties / experiment / vegetation characterization Résumé-Suivi des échanges d'énergie et de masse au cours de l'expérimentation Alpilles-ReSeDA. Le programme Alpilles-ReSeDA a été mis en place pour développer et tester des méthodes permettant une meilleure utilisation des données de télédétection pour le suivi du fonctionnement des sols et des cultures. Cet article présente l'expérimentation qui a été réalisée pour acquérir un jeu de données permettant cette analyse. Des mesures intensives ont été réalisées pendant presque une année sur une petite région agricole du Sud de la France (20 kilomètres carrés). De façon à suivre l'ensemble des processus contrôlant les échanges surface-atmosphère, l'ensemble des paramètres climatiques locaux ont été mesurés, ainsi que les flux d'énergie de surface, les caractéristiques de structure de la végétation et du sol, l'humidité et les températures du sol, la température de surface. Des mesures des paramètres physiologiques des plantes et des caractéristiques physiques des sols ont également été entreprises. Après avoir présenté les différents types de mesures réalisées, des exemples présentant la variabilité des couverts végétaux et des sols dans la zone d'étude sont présentés.