Simulation of AMSR-E Brightness Temperatures During the 2002 SMEX Experiment

Soil moisture has been shown to play a significant role in the hydrologic cycle as a boundary condition influencing infiltration, heat exchange and biogeochemical cycles. The launch of NASA's Aqua satellite on 4 May, 2002 provided the first opportunity for high temporal and large scale observation of global-wide soil moisture to be observed. The AMSR-E (Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for the Earth Observing System) instrument onboard Aqua improves the spatial resolution and frequency range of earlier generations of passive microwave instruments. Brightness temperatures are simulated in an attempt to analyze heterogeneity effects and moisture retrieval methods for comparison with available observed AMSR-E data. The Ames, IA portion of the 2002 Soil Moisture Experiments (SMEX02) was successful in observing a large-scale rain event over the region. A semi-empirically-based radiative transfer model is used with the addition of surface and atmospheric parameters collected during the study. A description of the model simulation and heterogeneity effects will be given in addition to moisture retrievals and in-situ comparisons.