An approach to estimating surface parameters and fluxes using modeling and multispectral remote sensing

Water and energy exchanges at the land-atmosphere interface play a key role in determining patterns of regional and global climate. However, accurate estimation of surface fluxes of sensible and latent heat over arid and semiarid regions is a challenging task. In this study, a scenario for assimilating satellite data in the visible-infrared (AVHRR) and in the microwave (SSM/I) spectral ranges in a hydrological flux model is presented. The aim of this investigation over the HAPEX-Sahel area in West Africa is to show that the use of multispectral remotely sensed data, in conjunction with radiative transfer models and a hydrological flux model, can provide reasonable estimates of the surface fluxes. A discussion of the potentials and limitations of the approach is presented