SMEX02 Airborne Microwave Sensor Measurements for Soil Moisture

Calibrated sensor measurements were acquired by the Passive and Active L- and S-band (PALS) airborne microwave sensor during the Soil Moisture Experiment 2002 (SMEX02). The dataset is provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Data collection occurred in 2002, with metadata updates recorded as recently as 2026.

Use Cases

• Calibrating and validating satellite-derived soil moisture products using airborne brightness temperature measurements.
• Analyzing radar backscatter coefficients to study surface roughness and vegetation effects on microwave signals.
• Investigating the relationship between L- and S-band microwave observations and in-situ soil moisture conditions.

Strengths

• Data is calibrated, indicating processed sensor measurements ready for scientific analysis.
• Sourced from a major space agency (NASA), suggesting standardized collection and processing protocols.
• Cross-platform presence on Data.gov and NASA EarthData signals established importance and curation.

Limitations

• Critical details are missing: row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the 'last updated' date: NASA EarthData lists 2002-07-08, while Data.gov lists 2026-03-12 (likely a metadata update, not data revision).
• The license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without explicit terms.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Acquired by the Passive and Active L- and S-band (PALS) airborne microwave sensor.

Time Range

2002

Freshness

2026-03-12 21:21:12.218519

Geography

Soil Moisture Experiment 2002 (SMEX02) region, specific location not detailed in provided sources.