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

Top-of-the-canopy broadband albedo and radiation fluxes were measured at two flux tower sites in southern Africa from March 2000 through December 2002. The dataset includes shortwave, near-infrared, and longwave radiation measurements from towers in the Kataba Local Forest near Mongu, Zambia, and Kruger National Park, South Africa. Mean values are provided at 15-minute intervals for Mongu and 30-minute intervals for Skukuza.

Use Cases

• Modeling surface energy budgets based on measured shortwave, near-infrared, and longwave radiation fluxes.
• Analyzing seasonal and diurnal albedo variations in savanna woodlands from 15- and 30-minute interval data.
• Calculating photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) for vegetation studies using the provided broadband measurements.
• Validating satellite-derived albedo and radiation products with ground-based tower measurements.

Strengths

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

Limitations

• Temporal resolution differs between sites (15-minute vs. 30-minute intervals) and longwave data is only available for 2001-2002.
• Specific column names and the exact row count are not provided in the available metadata.
• There is a conflict in the 'last updated' metadata between platforms (2002 vs. 2026), creating uncertainty about provenance.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Instrumentation deployed on flux towers (30 m in Mongu, 20 m in Skukuza) collecting mean radiation values.

Time Range

2000-03-01 to 2002-12-31

Freshness

2026-04-09 22:47:30.126984

Geography

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