TRACERSOIL

TRACER - Soil Moisture

15 April 2021 - 20 October 2022

Lead Scientist: Michael Young

Observatory: AMF

Soil type, moisture, and temperature are key input parameters used for meteorological models that replicate land-surface energy exchange, which is important for convective cloud formation and vertical mixing. In biogenic emission models, soil moisture and temperature are used to estimate nitrogen oxide emissions from soils and constrain volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from vegetation. To support the Tracking Aerosol Convection interactions ExpeRiment (TRACER), a field campaign of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), we will sample soil properties including soil type, moisture content, temperature, and others at three sites to be constructed in the Houston area, all co-located with other ARM support systems. Each station will be equipped with sensors to measure soil water content and temperature at four depths, as well as precipitation, wind speed, wind direction, temperature, relative humidity, and incident solar radiation, all at 2-m height. Soil moisture data collected by the Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD) will be evaluated for improving calibration methods. The project will also analyze the feasibility of estimating soil moisture from reflected global navigation satellite systems (GNSS-R) using the University of Houston-operated GPS network known as HoustonNet. Data collected may also improve photochemical modeling through more accurate meteorological and biogenic emission modeling. All data collected during the intensive operational phase of the TRACER project will be made available to DOE and ARM.