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Session

📌Poster Session and Networking Aperitivo 🍷
Location: Lower Lobby

Presentation 24

Potential of P-band BIOMASS data to estimate subsurface soil moisture in a semi-arid region of the southern Mediterranean

Nadia Ouaadi¹, Emna Ayari², Hamza Ouatiki¹

1: CRSA, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Ben Guerir, Morocco; 2: VPE, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden

Water scarcity is a growing problem in the southern Mediterranean region, identified as a climate change hotspot. The agricultural sector is most threatened by water scarcity, as it is the largest consumer of freshwater, mainly extracted from groundwater. Morocco is an illustrative example of such a problem where groundwater resources are under anthropogenic and climatic pressures: overexploitation due to water pumping and lack of precipitation and long periods of drought.

The subsurface is a critical zone where water exchanges between the surface and underground layers take place. This is why considerable efforts have been devoted to monitoring underground soil moisture using in situ measurements. Despite their high accuracy, in situ measurements cannot cover the high spatial and temporal variability of soil moisture. Remote sensing data are used as an alternative to estimate underground moisture on a large spatial scale, as in the case of GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) data or synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data in the C or L bands.

Due to the limited penetration of C-band or L-band signals into scatters, the P-band is used for estimating subsurface soil moisture. In this context, this project aims to explore the potential of P-band radar data for estimating subsurface water content using the first and exclusive BIOMASS satellite acquisitions in P-band in two of Morocco's most important watersheds (Oum Er-Rbia and Tensift). These watersheds are equipped with time-domain reflectivity sensors and piezometers that provide a vast dataset for monitoring soil moisture at different depths and water levels, respectively. The in situ measurements will be collected at the same time as BIOMASS acquisitions and will be used to analyze tomographic (TomSAR) and interferometric (InSAR) data sensitivity to the dynamics of subsurface soil water content. The sensitivity of P-band data will be compared to that of C-band radar data. The detection and mapping of groundwater content are among the objectives pursued using TomSAR and InSAR data, through different models. The results of this project will help stakeholders make informed decisions based on subsurface soil water content monitoring in order to effectively govern the risk of water resource depletion and, consequently, ensure sustainable water management.