Eye in space to help gauge deep moisture in farm soils
[ UniNews Vol. 15, No. 22
27 November - 11 December 2006 ] By Rebecca Scott
Australian farmers will soon be able to measure paddock soil moisture from data collected by a space satellite under a University of Melbourne, NASA and European Space Agency (ESA) experiment.
The project – the National Airborne Field Experiment – led by the University’s Dr Jeff Walker (Civil and Environmental Engineering) will test and enhance satellite technology to measure moisture levels up to a metre deep in Australian farm soils.
“Using the space technology, farmers will be able to obtain predictions about soil moisture and crop yield out to seven days and three months,” says Dr Walker. “This will help them to make critical decisions about what to plant and when, and their likely crop yield.”
“Our vision is that via the internet, farmers will be able to download key information about current and future soil moisture in their paddocks, which has been generated from a combination of model predictions and satellite observations.”
Using a small aircraft fitted with remote sensing equipment similar to that on the satellite, the research team aims to measure soil moisture up to one metre underground. Current satellite-borne remote sensing technology measures only five centimetres below the earth’s surface.
While the team’s aircraft makes flights over their test paddocks, researchers on foot take direct soil moisture readings to help validate measurements made from the aircraft.
The experiments are expected to lead to development of the first dedicated soil moisture satellite (SMOS – Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity) to be launched by the ESA next year.
“Water management for irrigation is a critical issue for farmers in Australia and the world,” says Dr Walker.
“Enhanced satellite technology will enable farmers to forecast crop yield, politicians to make drought declarations and monitor global climate change, and organisations like the Bureau of Meteorology to conduct flood forecasting and weather prediction.”
The experiment, at Narrandera, 100km west of Wagga, New South Wales, is the second in a series of experiments to be conducted in Australia.
International collaborators include: in the USA – NASA, the US Department of Agriculture and University of South Carolina); Canada – Environment Canada and Guelph University; France – CESBIO; the Netherlands – Wageningen University; and Australia – the University of Melbourne, University of Newcastle, Flinders University, CSIRO, Charles Sturt University, NSW Department of Primary Industries and NSW Department of Natural Resources.
|
|
