CEOP_AP Mongolia Reference Site MGS Station

To develop and verify algorithms for satellite remotesensing of soil moisture by microwave radiometers "AMSR" and "AMSR-E", soil moisture conditions and related meteorological/hydrological factors are being monitored by automatic stations spread in the Mongolian Plateau, where high quality data are expected to be obtained because of relatively uniform ground-surface-conditions.

Station Operator:

These data are obtained under the framework of JAXA-JRA "Ground Truth for Evaluation of Soil Moisture and Geophysical/Vegetation parameters Related to Ground Surface Conditions with AMSR and GLI in the Mongolian Plateau" (PI : Prof. I. Kaihotsu, Hiroshima Univ.) and is partnership with Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, Ministry of Nature and Environment, Mongolia.

Vegetation and Land Use:

Dominant land cover at the measurement location: 311 Grassland

Canopy height: No information

Density of Canopy: No information.

Land cover within 50 m of site: 311 Glassland (95%), 321 Shlubland (5%) All data were observed in summer of 2002.

Land cover within 500 m of site: 311 Glassland (90%), 321 Shlubland (10%) All data were observed in summer of 2002.

Land cover within 12 km of site: 311 Glassland (90%), 321 Shlubland (10%) All data were observed in summer of 2002.

Seasonal land cover changes: Greening from April to September and dead glassland from October to March

Major changes in land cover at site from October 2002 to December 2004: None.

Slope at the site: Flat.

Other notes: None

Soil Type and Characterization:

Surface soil type: Sand (96%), Silt (4%)

Soil type in deeper layers: at the 1m depth: Sand (96%), Silt (4%)

Surface soil porosity: 37.4%

Soil porosity in deeper layers: 43.7% at 0.4m and 33.9% at 1m.

Soil infiltration rate: No information.

Bulk Dry Density: 1.54(g/cm3) at the 0-5cm depth

Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity: 1.87 x 10-3(cm/sec) at the 0-5cm depth, 4.01 x 10-3(cm/sec) at the 100cm depth All data were obtained by the falling head method in laboratory.

The Soil Reference Group(s) (from World Reference Base for Soil Resources): Catanozem

Climate:

No information.

CEOP Parameters Measured and Instrumentation:

SURFACE METEOROLOGY AND RADIATION INSTRUMENTATION AND DESCRIPTION:

Station pressure - 1.1 m ANALOG BAROMETER PTB101 (Campbell; VAISALA)
Air Temperature - 1.6 m Pt1000
Dew point - 1.6 m derived
Relative humidity - 1.6 m 50Y (VAISALA)
Specific humidity - 1.6 m derived.
Wind speed - 2.5 m WIND-MONITOR 05103-4 (Young)
Wind direction - 2.5 m WIND-MONITOR 05103-4 (Young)
U wind component - 2.5 m derived.
V wind component - 2.5 m derived.
Precipitation - 1.15 m RAIN COLLECTOR II(Davis)
Snow depth - Not measured.
Incoming shortwave radiation - Not measured.
Outgoing shortwave radiation - Not measured.
Incoming longwave radiation - Not measured.
Outgoing longwave radiation - Not measured.
Net radiation - 1.5 m NET RADIOMETER Q7(REBS)
Skin temperature - 0 m 4000.4G (EVEREST)
Incoming Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) - Not measured.
Outgoing Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) - Not measured.
The surface meteorological station at MGS station (click for full resolution):

The surface meteorological station and soil sensor at the MGS station (click for full resolution):

METEOROLOGICAL TOWER INSTRUMENTATION AND DESCRIPTION:

No data of this type available at this station.

FLUX INSTRUMENTATION AND DESCRIPTION:

Sensible heat flux - Not measured.
Latent Heat flux - Not measured.
CO2 Flux - Not measured.
Soil heat flux - 5 cm depth Soil Heat Flux Plate

SOIL INSTRUMENTATION AND DESCRIPTION:

Soil temperature - 3, 10, 20, 40, and 100 cm depths - thermometer
Soil moisture - 3, 10, 40, and 100 cm depths - Trime IT

Example of the soil sensors used at the Mongolia Reference Site (click for full resolution):

Example of a soil profile at the Mongolia Reference Site (click for full resolution):

RADIOSONDE INSTRUMENTATION AND DESCRIPTION:

No data of this type available at this station.

Site References

None provided.

Literature:

Presentations:

MAHASRI (13 March 2007; Washington, DC, USA)
Mongolia Soil Moisture Measurement Accuracy (Word Abstract) (13 March 2007; Washington, DC, USA)
Mongolia Soil Moisture Measurement Accuracy (PDF Poster) (13 March 2007; Washington, DC, USA)
Introduction to CAMP Quality Control Data System (27 February 2006; Paris, France)
GAME/CAMP (10 March 2004; Irvine, California, USA)
GAME/CAMP (02 April 2003; Berlin, Germany)
CAMP Mongolia 31 March 2003; Berlin Germany)
CAMP Mongolia (6 March 2002; Tokyo, Japan)

Data Sets and Documentation: