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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #315841
Title: SMAP Post-launch Field Campaign Planning

Author
item Jackson, Thomas
item COLLIANDER, ANDREAS - Jet Propulsion Laboratory
item YUEH, S. - Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/2/2015
Publication Date: 10/27/2015
Citation: Jackson, T.J., Colliander, Andreas, Yueh, S. 2015. SMAP Post-launch Field Campaign Planning Soil Misture Active Passive Canadian Science and Validation Workshop. Oct 27-29, 2015, Winnipeg, Canada, 2015 CDROM.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The SMAP post-launch Cal/Val activities are intended both to assess the quality of the mission products and to support analyses that lead to their improvement. A suite of complementary methodologies will be employed that will result in a robust global assessment. Much of the work will occur in the Cal/Val Phase of the mission, starting at the end of the in-orbit checkout (IOC) (launch + 3 months) and continuing for 12 months (launch + 15 months), after which the SMAP team is required to release validated products. However, Cal/Val is an activity that continues throughout the mission life, and it is unlikely that all anomalies can be identified and resolved completely during the Cal/Val phase. As one of the validation methodologies, field campaigns are intended to provide detailed information about targeted Cal/Val sites. It is recognized that only a limited number of field campaigns can be conducted due to their cost and the extensive logistics and human resources required (especially if airborne instruments are involved). It should also be noted that data latency is expected in these campaigns because they are often unique one-of-a-kind efforts. In planning post-launch Cal/Val activities it is important that airborne instruments in field campaigns are linked with objectives that can only be addressed using airborne systems. Over the course of several meetings and workshops consensus and priorities have been developed on what field campaigns can and should address. The following is a list of science issues that can only be addressed using an aircraft-based campaign: a. Validate the entire L2_SM_AP algorithm process; scaling and radiative transfer b. Understand the effects and contribution of heterogeneity on coarser resolution retrievals c. Evaluate the impact of known RFI sources on retrieval d. Correlative analysis of L1 product calibration and heterogeneity effects e. Investigate and resolve anomalous observations and products For SMAPVEX15 the focus will be on item a. It is also expected that it will contribute to items b-d. Identifying anomalous observations will require actual data and it is expected that this will be a focus of SMAPVEX16.