Estimation of Forest Water Potential from Ground-Based L-band Radiometry

Monitoring the water status of forests is paramount for assessing vegetation health, particularly in the context of increasing duration and intensity of droughts. In this study, a methodology was developed for estimating forest water potential at the canopy scale from ground-based L-band radiometry. The study uses radiometer data from a tower-based experiment of the SMAPVEX 19-21 campaign from April to October 2019 at Harvard Forest, MA, USA. The gravimetric and the relative water content of the forest stand was retrieved from radiometer-based vegetation optical depth. A model-based methodology was adapted and assessed to transform the relative water content estimates into values of forest water potential. A comparison and validation of the retrieved forest water potential was conducted with in situ measurements of leaf and xylem water potential to understand the limitations and potentials of the proposed approach for diurnal, weekly and monthly time scales. The radiometer-based water potential estimates of the forest stand were found to be consistent in time with r_Pearson correlations up to 0.6 and similar in value, down to RMSE = 0.14 [MPa], compared to their in situ measurements from individual trees in the radiometer footprint, showing encouraging retrieval capabilities. However, a major challenge was the bias between the radiometer-based estimates and the in situ measurements over longer times (weeks & months). Here, an approach using either air temperature or soil moisture to update the minimum water potential of the forest stand (FWP_min) was developed to adjust the mismatch. These results showcase the potential of microwave radiometry for continuous monitoring of plant water status at different spatial and temporal scales, which has long been awaited by forest ecologists and tree physiologists.