A new perspective on global vegetation water dynamics from radar satellite data

During this project, we developed an AI-based workflow to improve the understanding of how vegetation regulates land-atmosphere exchanges of water, carbon, and energy. The study utilized data from the Advanced Scatterometer on the MetOp satellite series, which enabled monitoring of radar backscatter as a function of incidence angle, reflecting soil moisture, vegetation structure, and the moisture content of vegetation constituents. For the first time, this information was used to study global vegetation water dynamics.

The study has contributed to the fields of hydrology, water management, and climate science. The satellite radar observations provided unique insights into how water is transferred from the soil to the atmosphere through vegetation and how this process is regulated by vegetation’s physiological response to environmental conditions.