SAFARI 2000: Top-of-Canopy Albedo and Radiation Fluxes in Southern Africa

SAFARI 2000 provides top-of-the-canopy broadband albedo and radiation flux measurements from two flux tower sites in southern Africa from March 2000 through December 2002. Data were collected at a 30 m tower in the Kataba Local Forest near Mongu, Zambia, and a 20 m tower in Kruger National Park, South Africa, using Kipp and Zonen albedometers and a pyrgeometer. The dataset includes mean shortwave, near-infrared, and longwave radiation values at 15- or 30-minute intervals, enabling calculation of photosynthetically active radiation.

Use Cases

• Modeling surface energy balance based on measured shortwave, near-infrared, and longwave radiation fluxes.
• Analyzing seasonal and diurnal albedo variations in a savanna woodland from 15-minute interval data.
• Calculating photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) for vegetation studies using the provided broadband measurements.
• Comparing radiative flux regimes between two distinct southern African sites (Mongu and Skukuza) over a three-year period.
• Validating satellite-derived albedo and radiation products with ground-based tower measurements.

Strengths

• Provides multi-year, continuous time-series data from 2000-2002 at two distinct field sites.
• Includes measurements across multiple wavebands (shortwave, near-infrared, thermal infrared) for a comprehensive radiation budget.
• Data collection used standardized instrumentation (Kipp and Zonen albedometers, pyrgeometer) deployed on dedicated flux towers.

Limitations

• Temporal resolution differs between sites (15-minute intervals at Mongu, 30-minute at Skukuza) and longwave data is only available for 2001-2002.
• Specific column names and row counts are not provided in the available metadata, limiting precise understanding of data structure.
• A conflict exists in the 'last updated' metadata, with one source showing a future date (2026-04-09) and another the end of the data collection period (2002-12 31).

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Collection Method

Instrumentation deployed on 30 m (Mongu) and 20 m (Skukuza) flux towers collecting mean radiation values at fixed intervals.

Time Range

March 2000 through December 2002

Freshness

2002-12-31 23:59:59.999000

Geography

Kataba Local Forest near Mongu, Zambia, and Skukuza tower site in Kruger National Park, South Africa.