Long-term comparison of energy flux calculation methods over an agricultural field

Abstract

Since March 1990 micrometeorological measurements were carried out over an agricultural field with varying land use (wheat, barley, sunflowers, mustard) using a profile mast and an energy balance mast with an eddy correlation system for the sensible heat flux. Soil temperature, soil heat flux, soil moisture and precipitation were measured as well. Long-term measurements allow statistical analysis of the energy fluxes and comparisons of different methods for their calculation (eddy correlation, flux profile, Bowen ratio and the residual method). For the sensible heat flux a good agreement was found using these different methods after applying all necessary corrections. The latent heat flux shows greater deviations in the daily cycle between the flux profile method and the residual method due to the shape of the humidity profiles which often and especially at night show a maximum at heights between 1 m and 4 m, even if the soil is free of vegetation. This could be a consequence of the patchiness of the agricultural area, the position of the station on top of a hillock or high water absorption of the soil, respectively. The residual method seems to give more reliable results for the actual evapotranspiration than the flux profile method or the Bowen ratio method if an eddy correlation system is used to determine the sensible heat flux. Differences in the soil heat flux measured with heat flux plates and determined using the profiles of soil temperature and soil moisture can be explained by the heat flux plates being a disturbance to the soil matrix.