Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer Land Surface Temperature Products Research Articles

Offset of MODIS land surface temperatures from in situ air temperatures in the upper Kaskawulsh Glacier region (St. Elias Mountains) indicates near-surface temperature inversions

Abstract. Remote sensing data are a crucial tool for monitoring climatological changes and glacier response in areas inaccessible for in situ measurements. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land surface temperature (LST) product provides temperature data for remote glaciated areas where air temperature measurements from weather stations are sparse or absent, such as the St. Elias Mountains (Yukon, Canada). However, MODIS LSTs in the St. Elias Mountains have been found in prior studies to show an offset from available weather station measurements, the source of which is unknown. Here, we show that the MODIS offset likely results from the occurrence of near-surface temperature inversions rather than from the MODIS sensor’s large footprint size or from poorly constrained snow emissivity values used in LST calculations. We find that an offset in remote sensing temperatures is present not only in MODIS LST products but also in Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emissions Radiometer (ASTER) and Landsat temperature products, both of which have a much smaller footprint (90–120 m) than MODIS (1 km). In all three datasets, the offset was most pronounced in the winter (mean offset >8 ∘C) and least pronounced in the spring and summer (mean offset <2 ∘C). We also find this enhanced seasonal offset in MODIS brightness temperatures, before the incorporation of snow surface emissivity into the LST calculation. Finally, we find the MODIS LST offset to be consistent in magnitude and seasonal distribution with modeled temperature inversions and to be most pronounced under conditions that facilitate near-surface inversions, namely low incoming solar radiation and wind speeds, at study sites Icefield Divide (60.68∘N, 139.78∘ W; 2,603 m a.s.l) and Eclipse Icefield (60.84∘ N, 139.84∘ W; 3017 m a.s.l.). Although these results do not preclude errors in the MODIS sensor or LST algorithm, they demonstrate that efforts to convert MODIS LSTs to an air temperature measurement should focus on understanding near-surface physical processes. In the absence of a conversion from surface to air temperature based on physical principles, we apply a statistical conversion, enabling the use of mean annual MODIS LSTs to qualitatively and quantitatively examine temperatures in the St. Elias Mountains and their relationship to melt and mass balance.

MODIS Land Surface Temperature Product Reconstruction Based on the SSA-BiLSTM Model

Land surface temperature (LST) is an important parameter indispensable for studying the substance and energy exchanges between the land surface and the atmosphere, climate changes, and other related aspects. However, due to cloud cover, there are many null values in MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) LST data, which prevents such data from being widely used. Therefore, an LST reconstruction method is proposed by combining data decomposition with data prediction—SSA (Singular Spectrum Analysis) and BiLSTM (Bidirectional Long Short-Term Memory). This method consists of two major processes, namely, rough LST reconstruction based on the SSA model and refined LST reconstruction based on the BiLSTM model. The accuracy of the proposed method is verified through “removal–reconstruction–comparison” using remote sensing data and measured data. The verification results show that when the rate of original missing values in the LST time series for the study area is lower than 10%, the RMSE is smaller than 1.1 K, and the correlation coefficient is more significant than 0.98. Even when the rate of missing data is 40% and 50%, the proposed method remains accurate, the values of RMSE are 1.8331 K and 2.2929 K, and the importance of R2 are 0.9856 and 0.9800, respectively. The proposed method is compared with other existing LST reconstruction methods. The results of the comparative analysis indicate that the proposed method is superior to other methods in terms of reconstruction accuracy and stability. Moreover, the LST data reconstructed using the proposed method are highly consistent with the measured data, which further proves the accuracy of this method in LST reconstruction. The research findings provide a new technique and idea for accurate LST reconstruction.

An Operational Land Surface Temperature Retrieval Methodology for Chinese Second-Generation Huanjing Disaster Monitoring Satellite Data

The Chinese second-generationHuanjing disaster monitoring satellite (HJ-2A) was launched on September 27, 2020, and underutilized due to the lack of accurate operational methodologies for land surface temperature (LST) retrieval.In this article, an operational LST retrieval method is proposed to retrieve LSTs from HJ-2A thermal infrared observations. The LST retrieval methodology involves two main steps. The land surface emissivities (LSEs) over all land cover types are obtained with the improved normalized difference vegetation index-based threshold method, and then the LST is retrieved operationally from the adjacent infrared bands.The algorithm coefficients for LST retrieval are from regression analysis of radiative transfer simulations, and LSTs could be retrieved based on thermal images without any additional auxiliary data. The simulation results demonstrated that the root-mean-square errors (RMSEs) of LST retrieval were less than 2.4 K in all subranges, and the minimum RMSE for the two emissivity groups (high- (low-) emissivity group) was 0.16 K (0.20 K) and appeared in the tractable subrange with water vapor content (WVC) varying from 0 to 1.5 g/cm² and view zenith angle (VZA) being 0°. Furthermore, an error analysis was performed, the results showed that the LSE, NEΔT, and atmospheric water vapor uncertainty of 1%, 0.2 K, and 20% caused the LST retrieval errors with 0.88–1.21 K (0.84–1.19 K), 0.1 K (0.09 K), and 0.006 K (0.008 K) for the high- (low-) emissivity group, respectively, with WVC∊[0–1.5] g/cm² and VZA = 0°. Finally, the retrieved LSTs were applied to seven images of the Wuhai, Geermu, Dunhuang, and Baotou sites from January to March and cross validated by the moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) LST products. From the cross-validated results, it can be found that the RMSEs of the retrieved LSTs and the MODIS LST products were between 2.3 and 3.7 K, and the mean RMSE value was 2.89 K.

Estimation of all-sky 1 km land surface temperature over the conterminous United States

Land surface temperature (LST) is a crucial parameter for hydrology, climate monitoring, and ecological and environmental research. LST products from thermal infrared (TIR) satellite data have been widely used for that. However, TIR information cannot provide LST data under cloudy-sky conditions. All-sky LST can be estimated from microwave measurements, but their coarse spatial resolution, narrow swaths, and short temporal range make it impossible to generate a long-term, high-resolution, accurate global all-sky LST global. This study proposes a methodology for generating the all-sky LST product by combining multiple data from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), reanalysis, and ground in situ measurements using a random forest. Field measurements from the AmeriFlux and Surface Radiation Budget (SURFRAD) networks were used for model training and validation. Cloudy-sky and clear-sky LST models were developed separately. To further improve the accuracy of the cloudy-sky LST model, the conventional RF model was extended to incorporate temporal information. The models were validated using in situ LST measurements from 2010, 2011, and 2017 that were not used for the model training. For the cloudy-sky and clear-sky models, root-mean-square-error (RMSE) = 2.767 and 2.756 K, R2 = 0.943 and 0.963, and bias = −0.143 and − 0.138 K, respectively. The same validation samples were used to validate both the MODIS LST product under clear-sky conditions and all-sky Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) LST product at 0.25° spatial resolution, with RMSE = 3.033 and 4.157 K, bias = −0.362 and − 0.224 K, and R2 = 0.904 and 0.955, respectively. Additionally, the 10-fold cross-validation results using all the training datasets further indicate the model stability. The models were applied to generate the all-sky LST product from 2000 to 2015 over the conterminous United States (CONUS). Our product shows similar spatial patterns to the MODIS and GLDAS LST products, but it is more accurate. Both validation and product comparisons demonstrated the robustness of our proposed models in generating the all-sky LST product.

8-Day and Daily Maximum and Minimum Air Temperature Estimation via Machine Learning Method on a Climate Zone to Global Scale

Air temperature (Ta) is a required input in a wide range of applications, e.g., agriculture. Land Surface Temperature (LST) products from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) are widely used to estimate Ta. Previous studies of these products in Ta estimation, however, were generally applied in small areas and with a small number of meteorological stations. This study designed both temporal and spatial experiments to estimate 8-day and daily maximum and minimum Ta (Tmax and Tmin) on three spatial scales: climate zone, continental and global scales from 2009 to 2018, using the Random Forest (RF) method based on MODIS LST products and other auxiliary data. Factors contributing to the relation between LST and Ta were determined based on physical models and equations. Temporal and spatial experiments were defined by the rules of dividing the training and validation datasets for the RF method, in which the stations selected in the training dataset were all included or not in the validation dataset. The RF model was first trained and validated on each spatial scale, respectively. On a global scale, model accuracy with a determination coefficient (R2) > 0.96 and root mean square error (RMSE) < 1.96 °C and R2 > 0.95 and RMSE < 2.55 °C was achieved for 8-day and daily Ta estimations, respectively, in both temporal and spatial experiments. Then the model was trained and cross-validated on each spatial scale. The results showed that the data size and station distribution of the study area were the main factors influencing the model performance at different spatial scales. Finally, the spatial patterns of the model performance and variable importance were analyzed. Both daytime and nighttime LST had a significant contribution in the 8-day Tmax estimation on all the three spatial scales; while their contribution in daily Tmax estimation varied over different continents or climate zones. This study was expected to improve our understanding of Ta estimation in terms of accuracy variations and influencing variables on different spatial and temporal scales. The future work mainly includes identifying underlying mechanisms of estimation errors and the uncertainty sources of Ta estimation from a local to a global scale.

Analyzing Changes in Frozen Soil in the Source Region of the Yellow River Using the MODIS Land Surface Temperature Products

The degradation of the frozen soil in the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau (QTP) caused by climate warming has attracted extensive worldwide attention due to its significant effects on the ecosystem and hydrological processes. In this study, we propose an effective approach to estimate the spatial distribution and changes in the frozen soil using the moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) land surface temperature products as inputs. A comparison with in-situ observations suggests that this method can accurately estimate the mean daily land surface temperature, the spatial distribution of the permafrost, and the maximum thickness of the seasonally-frozen ground in the source region of the Yellow River, located in the northeastern area of the QTP. The results of The Temperature at the Top of the Permafrost model indicates that the area of permafrost in the source region of the Yellow River decreased by 4.82% in the period from 2003 to 2019, with an increase in the areal mean air temperature of 0.35 °C/10 years. A high spatial heterogeneity in the frozen soil changes was revealed. The basin-averaged active layer thickness of the permafrost increased at a rate of 5.46 cm/10 years, and the basin-averaged maximum thickness of the seasonally-frozen ground decreased at a rate of 3.66 cm/10 years. The uncertainties in calculating the mean daily land surface temperature and the soil’s thermal conductivity were likely to influence the accuracy of the estimation of the spatial distribution of the permafrost and the maximum thickness of the seasonally-frozen ground, which highlight the importance of the better integration of field observations and multi-source remote sensing data in order to improve the modelling of frozen soil in the future. Overall, the approach proposed in this study may contribute to the improvement of the application of the MODIS land surface temperature data in the study of frozen soil changes in large catchments with limited in-situ observations in the QTP.

A High-Temperature Risk Assessment Model for Maize Based on MODIS LST

Currently, high-temperature risk assessments of crops at the regional scale are usually conducted by comparing the observed air temperature at ground stations or via the remote sensing inversion of canopy temperature (such as MODIS (moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer) land surface temperature (LST)) with the threshold temperature of the crop. Since this threshold is based on the absolute temperature value, it is difficult to account for changes in environmental conditions and crop canopy information between different regions and different years in the evaluation model. In this study, MODIS LST products were used to establish an evaluation model (spatiotemporal deviation mean (STDM)) and a classification method to determine maize-growing areas at risk of high temperatures at the regional scale. The study area was the Huang-Huai-Hai River plain of China where maize is grown and high temperatures occur frequently. The spatiotemporal distribution of the high-temperature risk of summer maize was determined in the study area from 2003 to 2018. The results demonstrate the applicability of the model at the regional scale. The distribution of high-temperature risk in the Huang-Huai-Hai region was consistent with the actual temperature measurements. The temperatures in the northwestern, southwestern, and southern parts were relatively high and the area was classified as a stable zone. Shijiazhuang, Jiaozuo, Weinan, Xi’an, and Xianyang city were located in a zone of increasing high temperatures. The regions with a stable high-temperature risk were Xiangfan, Yuncheng, and Luoyang city. Areas of decreasing high temperatures were Handan, Xingtai, Bozhou, Fuyang, Nanyang, Linfen, and Pingdingshan city. Areas that need to focus on preventing high-temperature risks include Luoyang, Yuncheng, Xianyang, Weinan, and Xi’an city. This study provides a new method for the detailed evaluation of regional high-temperature risk and data support.

Estimation of Climatologies of Average Monthly Air Temperature over Mongolia Using MODIS Land Surface Temperature (LST) Time Series and Machine Learning Techniques

The objective of this research was to develop a robust statistical model to estimate climatologies (2002–2017) of monthly average near-surface air temperature (Ta) over Mongolia using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land surface temperature (LST) time series products and terrain parameters. Two regression models were analyzed in this study linking automatic weather station data (Ta) with Earth observation (EO) images: Partial least squares (PLS) and random forest (RF). Both models were trained to predict Ta climatologies for each of the twelve months, using up to 17 variables as predictors. The models were applied to the entire land surface of Mongolia, the eighteenth largest but most sparsely populated country in the world. Twelve of the predictor variables were derived from the LST time series products of the Terra MODIS satellite. The LST MOD11A2 (collection 6) products provided thermal information at a spatial resolution of 1 km and with 8-day temporal resolution from 2002 to 2017. Three terrain variables, namely, elevation, slope, and aspect, were extracted using a Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) digital elevation model (DEM), and two variables describing the geographical location of weather stations were extracted from vector data. For training, a total of 8544 meteorological data points from 63 automatic weather stations were used covering the same period as MODIS LST products. The PLS regression resulted in a coefficient of determination (R2) between 0.74 and 0.87 and a root-mean-square error (RMSE) from 1.20 °C to 2.19 °C between measured and estimated monthly Ta. The non-linear RF regression yielded even more accurate results with R2 in the range from 0.82 to 0.95 and RMSE from 0.84 °C to 1.93 °C. Using RF, the two best modeled months were July and August and the two worst months were January and February. The four most predictive variables were day/nighttime LST, elevation, and latitude. Using the developed RF models, spatial maps of the monthly average Ta at a spatial resolution of 1 km were generated for Mongolia (~1566 × 106 km2). This spatial dataset might be useful for various environmental applications. The method is transparent and relatively easy to implement.

A Split Window Algorithm for Retrieving Land Surface Temperature from FY-3D MERSI-2 Data

The thermal infrared (TIR) data from the Medium Resolution Spectral Imager II (MERSI-2) on the Chinese meteorological satellite FY-3D have high spatiotemporal resolution. Although the MERSI-2 land surface temperature (LST) products have good application prospects, there are some deviations in the TIR band radiance from MERSI-2. To accurately retrieve LSTs from MERSI-2, a method based on a cross-calibration model and split window (SW) algorithm is proposed. The method is divided into two parts: cross-calibration and LST retrieval. First, the MODTRAN program is used to simulate the radiation transfer process to obtain MERSI-2 and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) simulation data, establish a cross-calibration model, and then calculate the actual brightness temperature (BT) of the MERSI-2 image. Second, according to the characteristics of the near-infrared (NIR) bands, the atmospheric water vapor content (WVC) is retrieved, and the atmospheric transmittance is calculated. The land surface emissivity is estimated by the NDVI-based threshold method, which ensures that both parameters (transmittance and emissivity) can be acquired simultaneously. The validation shows the following: 1) The average accuracy of our algorithm is 0.42 K when using simulation data; 2) the relative error of our algorithm is 1.37 K when compared with the MODIS LST product (MYD11A1); 3) when compared with ground-measured data, the accuracy of our algorithm is 1.23 K. Sensitivity analysis shows that the SW algorithm is not sensitive to the two main parameters (WVC and emissivity), which also proves that the estimation of LST from MERSI-2 data is feasible. In general, our algorithm exhibits good accuracy and applicability, but it still requires further improvement.

Comparison of Diurnal Variation of Land Surface Temperature From GOES-16 ABI and MODIS Instruments

Land surface temperature (LST) and its diurnal variation are the critical factors in many aspects of climate study, surface energy balance, and environmental applications. Several satellite-based LST products are available for retrievals from regional to a global scale. However, due to the differences in sensor configurations and retrieval algorithms, these products may not necessarily be consistent. In this letter, the consistency of spatial and temporal skin temperature variations from two infrared satellite platforms has been evaluated over the contiguous United States (CONUS). Comparisons are made between the LST products from the newly launched Geostationary Operation Environmental Satellite R Series (GOES-R) advanced baseline imager (ABI) and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on both Aqua and Terra satellites which are polar orbiting. Overall, both products show a general agreement in their diurnal variations with differences mostly under 2 K. However, a temperature-dependent inconsistency has been detected. The MODIS LST product seems to estimate higher temperatures in the summer months while the GOES product estimates higher temperatures during the winter months. Moreover, the maximum observed diurnal differences could reach up to 10 K in mountainous regions. The results suggest that the corresponding temperature differences should be accounted for when LST diurnal variations are compared or generated from satellite observations.

A new thermal infrared channel configuration for accurate land surface temperature retrieval from satellite data

Land surface temperature (LST) is an important parameter in many research fields. Many algorithms have been developed to retrieve LST from satellite thermal infrared (TIR) measurements; of these, the most widely used are the split window (SW) and temperature–emissivity separation (TES) methods. However, the performance of the SW and TES methods can be limited by the difficulty in obtaining sufficiently accurate prior knowledge—specifically, input land surface emissivity (LSE) for the SW method and atmospheric parameters for the TES method. In this study, a procedure was proposed for selecting specific channel pairs in the TIR spectral region to accurately retrieve ground brightness temperatures without prior atmospheric knowledge, using a method similar to the SW method. Subsequently, the TES method is applied to the retrieved ground brightness temperatures to separate the LST and LSE. In numerical simulations, the three ground brightness temperatures corresponding to 8.6 μm, 9.0 μm, and 10.4 μm are acquired with an accuracy of about 0.65 K by using five channels centered at 8.6 μm, 9.0 μm, 10.4 μm, 11.3 μm, and 12.5 μm, each with a width of 0.1 μm. When inputting the three retrieved ground brightness temperatures into TES method, LST could be recovered with an accuracy of 0.87 K. Sensitivity analysis shows that LST retrieval accuracy is less affected by channel width and atmospheric downwelling radiance than by the channel center locations and channel noise. Finally, the proposed method is preliminarily applied to actual satellite data from the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) and the retrieved results are compared with the pixel-aggregated Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) LST product. For the study area of Australia, discrepancies between our result and the MODIS LST product appear to be about 1.6 K during the day and 1.0 K at night, indicating that the new channel configuration can be used to retrieve accurate LST from satellite measurements.

Normalization of the temporal effect on the MODIS land surface temperature product using random forest regression

Information about land surface temperature (LST) acquired from remote sensing satellite observations is very important to monitor surface energy and water exchange processes at the land-atmosphere interface. However, the wide-view of the popularly used polar-orbiting satellites (Terra and Aqua) face the challenge from the temporal effect on their LST products induced by the big temporal differences along the scan line. To generate a time-consistent LST product, a practical normalization method is proposed in this study based on random forest regression for LST observations from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor onboard Terra satellite. A linking model is constructed to express LST as a function of various surface variables including vegetation indices, leaf area index, surface albedo, water index, solar radiation factor, and surface elevation. Under the assumption that the temporal effect is induced primarily by the differences in incident solar radiation, the temporal effect normalization is conducted by deriving a temporally consistent solar radiation factor which is used to drive the linking model and obtain the normalized LST. The proposed method is applied to the central Iberian Peninsula on the day of year 170 and 181, 2015. Results show that the areas with positive complement in solar radiation factor generally exhibit a positive increase in LST. An obvious improvement can be observed in the spatial pattern of the normalized LST data with the disappearance of the temperature boundary due to the big difference of satellite observation time. The Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) LST data which have the observations at the same local solar time is used for quantitative validation. The evaluation shows that the normalized LST data is more coincident with the MSG LST data than the original MODIS LST data, with significant improvements in the root mean squared deviation and bias with the MSG LST data (1.23 K and 1.66 K, respectively). Unlike previous normalization methods, the proposed method is conducted based on only satellite observations without other ancillary data. Therefore, the method demonstrates good potential for normalizing the temporal effect of the wide-view polar-orbiting satellite observations.

Inter-comparing and improving land surface temperature estimates from passive microwaves over the Jiangsu province of the People’s Republic of China

ABSTRACTIn the recent years, the FengYun-3B passive microwave observations (FY3B) have been used to study global and regional soil moisture estimates, and land surface temperature (LST) has been an important input in the retrieval model. Previous studies proposed a linear model to derive LST from Ka-band brightness temperatures (H09 approach) which were routinely masked based on open water data. This study aimed to further understand microwave emission under such challenging open water conditions and developed the first data-driven approach to correct for such open water conditions. The H09 was first applied to the FY3B observations, and then inter-compared against MODIS (Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectro-radiometer), MERRA (Modern Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications) and ground observations over the Jiangsu province in the People’s Republic of China. Several freshwater bodies are located within this region, and the Pacific Ocean bounds at the east, this makes it an excellent region for the study of open water impact on the passive microwave observations. As in previous studies, the quality of the FY3B LST based on the H09 approach dropped over the regions with high open water. While the MERRA and MODIS LST products maintained an average correlation of about 0.95, the FY3B LST product had an average correlation of 0.85 with drops to about 0.65 over the open water regions. Additional comparisons also revealed biases over the open water regions within the passive microwave product. An open water metric, which is based on the percentage of a pixel and its surrounding pixels covered by water was developed to quantify the impact of open water. Based on a pixel-wise linear relationship between the MERRA LST and FY3B Ka-band brightness temperature, spatially variable slopes and intercepts were obtained as a function of open water to produce a correction for open water in the H09 which leads to the HG18 approach. Validations with both the MODIS LST product and the ground observations showed that there was a significant reduction in both the absolute bias (MODIS: 2 K, in situ: 10 K) and the standard errors (MODIS: 0.8 K, in situ: 1 K) using the HG18 approach. This opens up a new window towards further improving and understanding LST retrievals from passive microwave products.

Evaluation of MODIS land surface temperature products for daily air surface temperature estimation in northwest Vietnam

ABSTRACTRecently, the MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land surface temperature (LST) is considered one of the most suitable ways to retrieve air surface temperature (Ta) – one of the most important and widely used climate variables for a wide range of applications. In fact, many successful studies have been reported in many regions of the world. Each day, four MODIS LST data are available; from two sensors (Terra and Aqua) at two local overpass times (daytime and night-time). However, due to their different overpass times, most studies have used LST daytime and night-time for daily maximum (Tmax) and minimum (Tmin) air surface temperature estimation, respectively. Therefore, the performance of each individual LST data, the effect of the dynamic combination of these four LST data, the effect of land surface characteristics, and the effect of LST quality on the same estimation in the same region on the accuracy of estimated Ta remains unclear. In this study, we evaluated and tested all individual LST data as well as all possible combinations of the four MODIS LST data from two separate stations with distinct land surface characteristics in northwest Vietnam for 10 years (from 2004 to 2013) under two sky conditions (all clear sky conditions and only good data – i.e. Quality Control (QC) value of 0) for daily Ta (Tmax, Tmin, and Tmean) estimations. In addition, the mixed data of the two stations were also evaluated. Our results showed that Terra LST data have a higher correlation with Ta than Aqua LST; which is consistent for both stations and both quality conditions (all clear sky and only good data). A closer overpass time with Tmax or Tmin occurrence time did not guarantee a higher accuracy of Ta estimation. Using only good LST data produced a higher accuracy of Ta estimation than using all clear sky data. However, if the percentage of good data is low (i.e. less than 30%), then the all clear sky data will provide better results for Tmax estimation. Comparing the performance of the different combinations when using the single station and mixed station data, combinations including at least one night-time LST produced stable and high accuracy Tmin and Tmean estimates, while the combinations with only daytime LST produced very low accuracy results. For Tmax estimation, the results were less impacted by LST quality; however, they were strongly impacted by different combinations and land surface characteristics.

Improving the disaggregation of MODIS land surface temperatures in an urban environment: a statistical downscaling approach using high-resolution emissivity

ABSTRACTSpatially and temporally dense land surface temperature (LST) data are necessary to capture the high variability of the urban thermal environment. Sensors on board satellites with high revisit time cannot provide adequately detailed spatial information; thus, the downscaling of LST is recognized as being an important and inevitable intermediate process. In this paper, improvement in the downscaled LST accuracy is investigated, employing the statistical downscaling methodology in an urban setting. A new approach is proposed, where thermal radiances are disaggregated using multiple regression analysis and are then combined with emissivity values derived from a high-resolution image classification. Predictors include reflectance values, built-up and vegetation indices, and topographic data. Surface classification is performed utilizing machine learning techniques and fusing Sentinel-2 imagery with ancillary data. Thermal data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor are downscaled from their original resolution to 100 m in the city of Athens, Greece. Validation of sharpened temperatures is performed using the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) surface temperature product and in-situ measurements. It is demonstrated that the proposed downscaling framework using ridge regression has the potential to produce reliable, high temporal LST estimates with an average error of fewer than 2 K, while consistently having a better accuracy than the reference, single-predictor downscaling of the MODIS LST product.

A radiance-based split-window algorithm for land surface temperature retrieval: Theory and application to MODIS data

The split-window algorithm is the most commonly used method for land surface temperature (LST) retrieval from satellite data. Simplification of the Planck’s function, as an important step in developing the SWA, allows us to directly relate the radiance to the temperature toward solving the radiative transfer equation (RTE) set. In this study, Planck’s radiance relationship between two adjacent thermal infrared channels was modeled to solve the RTE set instead of simplification of the Planck’s function. A radiance-based split-window algorithm (RBSWA) was developed and applied to Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data. The performance of the RBSWA was assessed and compared with three most common brightness temperature-based split-window algorithms (BTBSWAs) by using the simulated data and satellite measurements. Simulation analysis showed that the LST retrieval using RBSWA had a Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 0.5 K and achieved an improvement of 0.3 K compared with three BTBSWAs, and the LST retrieval accuracy using RBSWA was better than 1.5 K considering uncertainties in input parameters based on the sensitivity analysis. For application of RBSWA to MODIS data, the results showed that: 1) comparison between LST from MODIS LST product and LST retrieved using RBSWA showed a mean RMSE of 1.33 K for 108 groups of MODIS image covering continental US, which indicates RBSWA is reliable and robust; 2) when using the measurements from US surface radiation budget network as real values the RMSE of the RBSWA algorithm was 2.55 K and was slightly better than MODIS LST product; and 3) through the cross validation using Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer LST product, the RMSE of the RBSWA algorithm was 2.23 K and was 0.28 K less than that of MODIS LST product. We conclude that the RBSWA for LST retrieval from MODIS data can attain a better accuracy than the BTBSWA.

Evaluation of Collection-6 MODIS Land Surface Temperature Product Using Multi-Year Ground Measurements in an Arid Area of Northwest China

Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land surface temperature (LST) products are widely used in ecology, hydrology, vegetation monitoring, and global circulation models. Compared to the collection-5 (C5) LST products, the newly released collection-6 (C6) LST products have been refined over bare soil pixels. This study aims to evaluate the C6 MODIS 1-km LST product using multi-year in situ data covering barren surfaces. Evaluation using all in situ data shows that the MODIS C6 LSTs are underestimated with a root-mean-square error (RMSE) of 2.59 K for the site in the Gobi area, 3.05 K for the site in the sand desert area, and 2.86 K for the site in the desert steppe area at daytime. For nighttime LSTs, the RMSEs are 2.01 K, 2.88 K, and 1.80 K for the three sites, respectively. Both biases and RMSEs also show strong seasonal signals. Compared to the error of C5 1-km LSTs, the RMSE of C6 1-km LST product is smaller, especially for daytime LSTs, with a value of 2.24 K compared to 3.51 K. The large errors in the sand desert region are presumably due to the lack of global representativeness of the magnitude of emissivity adjustment and misclassification for the barren surface causing error in emissivities. It indicates that the accuracy of the MODIS C6 LST product might be further improved through emissivity adjustment with globally representative magnitude and accurate land cover classification. From this study, the MODIS C6 1-km LST product is recommended for applications.

Simulation of the land surface temperature from moon-based Earth observations

The land surface temperature (LST) is a key parameter for the Earth’s energy balance. As a natural satellite of the Earth, the orbital of the moon differs from that of current Earth observation satellites. It is a new way to measure the land surface temperature from the moon and has many advantages compared with artificial satellites. In this paper, we present a new method for simulating the LST measured by moon-based Earth observations. Firstly, a modified land-surface diurnal temperature cycle (DTC) method is applied to obtain the global LST at the same coordinated universal time (UTC) using the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) LST products. The lunar elevation angles calculated using the ephemeris data (DE405) from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) were then applied to simulate the Earth coverage observed from the moon. At the same time, the modified DTC model was validated using in situ data, MODIS LST products, and the FengYun-2F (FY-2F) LST, respectively. The results show that the fitting accuracy (root-mean-square error, RMSE) of the modified DTC model is not greater than 0.72 °C for eight in situ stations with different land cover types, and the maximum fitting RMSE of the modified model is smaller than that of current DTC models. By the comparison of the simulated LST with MODIS and FY-2F LST products, the errors of the results were feasible and accredited, and the simulated global LST has a reasonable spatiotemporal distribution and change trend. The simulated LST data can therefore be used as base datasets to simulate the thermal infrared imagery from moon-based Earth observations in future research.

Gap-Filling of MODIS Time Series Land Surface Temperature (LST) Products Using Singular Spectrum Analysis (SSA)

Land surface temperature (LST) is a basic parameter in energy exchange between the land and the atmosphere, and is frequently used in many sciences such as climatology, hydrology, agriculture, ecology, etc. Time series of satellite LST data have usually deficient, missing, and unacceptable data caused by the presence of clouds in images, the presence of dust in the atmosphere, and sensor failure. In this study, the singular spectrum analysis (SSA) algorithm was used to resolve the problem of missing and outlier data caused by cloud cover. The region studied in the present research included an image frame of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) with horizontal number 22 and vertical number 05 (h22v05). This image involved a large part of Iran, Turkmenistan, and the Caspian Sea. In this study, MODIS LST products (MOD11A1) were used during 2015 with approximately 1 km × 1 km spatial resolution and day/night LST data (daily temporal resolution). On average, the data have 36.37% gaps in each pixel profile with 730 day/night LST data. The results of the SSA algorithm in the reconstruction of LST images indicated a root mean square error (RMSE) of 2.95 Kelvin (K) between the original and reconstructed LST time series data in the study region. In general, the findings showed that the SSA algorithm using spatio-temporal interpolation can be effectively used to resolve the problem of missing data caused by cloud cover.

A comprehensive data set of lake surface water temperature over the Tibetan Plateau derived from MODIS LST products 2001\u20132015

Lake surface water temperature (LSWT) is sensitive to long-term changes in thermal structure of lakes and regional air temperature. In the context of global climate change, recent studies showed a significant warming trend of LSWT based on investigating 291 lakes (71% are large lakes, ≥50 km2 each) globally. However, further efforts are needed to examine variation in LSWT at finer regional spatial and temporal scales. The Tibetan Plateau (TP), known as ‘the Roof of the World’ and ‘Asia’s water towers’, exerts large influences on and is sensitive to regional and even global climates. Aiming to examine detailed changing patterns and potential driven mechanisms for temperature variations of lakes across the TP region, this paper presents the first comprehensive data set of 15-year (2001–2015) nighttime and daytime LSWT for 374 lakes (≥10 km2 each), using MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) Land Surface Temperature (LST) products as well as four lake boundary shapefiles (i.e., 2002, 2005, 2009, and 2014) derived from Landsat/CBERS/GaoFen-1 satellite images. The data set itself reveals significant information on LSWT and its changes over the TP and is an indispensable variable for numerous applications related to climate change, water budget analysis (particularly lake evaporation), water storage changes, glacier melting and permafrost degradation, etc.