Diagnosing product variability in the soil moisture response to precipitation on the Tibetan Plateau

Meng, X.; Deng, M.; Talib, J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4183-1973; Taylor, C.M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0120-3198; Wu, P.; Lyu, S.; Chen, H.; Li, Z.; Zhao, L.. 2023 Diagnosing product variability in the soil moisture response to precipitation on the Tibetan Plateau. Journal of Hydrometeorology, 24 (4). 625-639. https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-22-0181.1

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-22-0181.1

Abstract/Summary

Previous studies show that some soil moisture products have a good agreement with in situ measurements on the Tibetan Plateau (TP). However, the soil moisture response to precipitation variability in different products is yet to be assessed. In this study, we focus on the soil moisture response to precipitation variability across weekly to decadal time scales in satellite observations and reanalyses. The response of soil moisture to precipitation variability differs between products, with large uncertainties observed for variations in weekly-accumulated precipitation. Using June 2009 as an example, weekly-mean anomalous soil moisture varies by up to 25% between products. Across decadal timescales, soil moisture trends vary spatially and across different products. In light of the soil moisture response to precipitation at different timescales, we conclude that remote sensing products developed as part of the European Space Agency (ESA)’s Water Cycle Multi-mission Observation Strategy and Soil Moisture Climate Change Initiative projects (CCI) are the most reliable, followed by the Global Land Evaporation Amsterdam Model (GLEAM) dataset. Even products that strongly agree with in situ observations on daily timescales, such as the Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) show inconsistent soil moisture responses to decadal precipitation trends. European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECWMF) reanalysis products have a relatively poor agreement with in situ observations compared to satellite observations and land-only reanalysis datasets. Unsurprisingly, products which show a consistent soil moisture response to precipitation variability are those mostly aligned to observations or describe the physical relationship between soil moisture and precipitation well.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-22-0181.1
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	Hydro-climate Risks (Science Area 2017-)
ISSN:	1525-755X
Additional Keywords:	soil moisture, hydrometeorology, satellite observations, trends, precipitation
NORA Subject Terms:	Earth Sciences
Date made live:	18 Apr 2023 16:55 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/533905

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-22-0181.1

UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:

Hydro-climate Risks (Science Area 2017-)

ISSN:

1525-755X

Additional Keywords:

soil moisture, hydrometeorology, satellite observations, trends, precipitation

NORA Subject Terms:

Earth Sciences