Earth ID: 31046

Soil Moisture, Salinity and Precipitation

Released on July 15, 2019

This visualization compares weekly soil moisture and sea surface salinity data (over land and water, respectively) from NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive Satellite (SMAP) mission [top map] with a precipitation product called Integrated Multi-satellite Retrievals for GPM, or IMERG [bottom map], from March 31 2015 to March 24, 2019. IMERG is These maps reveal how precipitation amounts influence soil moisture conditions and sea surface salinity. For example, high amounts of precipitation along the equator coincide with relatively moist soil conditions on land (blue shades) and low salinity values in the ocean (green and blue shades). Conversely, areas that receive little or no precipitation, such as the Sahara Desert in northern Africa, coincide with dry soils (dark yellow shades). Scientists can use data from SMAP and IMERG to develop improved flood prediction and drought monitoring capabilities. Societal benefits include improved water-resource management, agricultural productivity, and wildfire and landslide predictions. Data from SMAP also allow us to extend the data record of the highly successful 3-year Aquarius sea surface salinity mission into the future. The images shown here are 8-day averages.

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Credits

Rajat Bindlish (USDA-ARS Hydrology and Remote Sensing Laboratory): Scientist
Simon Yueh (NASA/JPL CalTech): Scientist
Dara Entekhabi (MIT): Scientist
Peggy O'Neill (NASA/GSFC): Scientist
Steven Chan (JPL): Scientist
Jared Entin (NASA/HQ): Scientist
Marit Jentoft-Nilsen: Visualizer

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA

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Data Used:

also referred to as: IMERG

Data Compilation - NASA/GSFC

http://pmm.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/document_files/IMERG_ATBD_V4.4.pdf

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SMAP/Radiometer/Soil Moisture

Observed Data - JPL

Level 3 enhanced daily composite soil moisture

https://smap.jpl.nasa.gov/data/

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SMAP/Radiometer/Sea Surface Salinity also referred to as: Salinity

Observed Data

SMAP Level 3 Sea Surface Salinity Standard Mapped Image 8-Day Running Mean V3.0 70km Validated Dataset

https://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/dataset/SMAP_RSS_L3_SSS_SMI_8DAY-RUNNINGMEAN_V3_70KM?ids=Platform:ProcessingLevel&values=SMAP:*3*

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Note: While we identify the data sets used in these visualizations, we do not store any further details nor the data sets themselves on our site.

Keywords:
SVS >> Water Cycle
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Atmosphere >> Precipitation
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Land Surface >> Soils >> Soil Moisture/Water Content
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Oceans >> Salinity/Density >> Salinity
SVS >> Hyperwall
NASA Science >> Earth
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Human Dimensions >> Natural Hazards >> Droughts
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Human Dimensions >> Natural Hazards >> Floods

GCMD keywords can be found on the Internet with the following citation: Olsen, L.M., G. Major, K. Shein, J. Scialdone, S. Ritz, T. Stevens, M. Morahan, A. Aleman, R. Vogel, S. Leicester, H. Weir, M. Meaux, S. Grebas, C.Solomon, M. Holland, T. Northcutt, R. A. Restrepo, R. Bilodeau, 2013. NASA/Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Earth Science Keywords. Version 8.0.0.0.0