Remote sensing of surface roughness and top soil moisture of bare tilled soil with an X-band radar.

Abstract

Using a ground-based radar with a single frequency in the X-band (3 cm wavelength), the feasibility of mapping soil surface roughness and top soil moisture content was investigated. In order to cover the broad range of bare-soil appearances which occur in agricultural practice, the field treatment included a number of tillage types, several degrees of soil structure change which normally occur after tillage, and different soil moisture content. Different angles between the ray beam and the irradiated land (grazing angles) were used. The shape of radar return ( gamma )-grazing angle curves were entirely determined by soil surface roughness, while their positions depended on moisture content. Although this type of radar had limited discrimination ability, mapping of roughness and moisture may be possible under certain conditions. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission)