Soilmoisture
Field of action:
Wilderness and Protected Areas
(Sub)contractor:
LUP GmbH
Relevance of the indicator in the context of the ANK:
Soil moisture and climate protection are closely interrelated. Soils play an important role as carbon sinks by storing organic material and slowing down the decomposition of biomass, which helps to reduce CO₂ emissions. They therefore play a crucial role in combating climate change. A dynamic soil water regime also supports the stability of ecosystems and increases their resilience to extreme climatic events, such as droughts or heavy rainfall, which are becoming more frequent as a result of climate change. In addition, evaporation from moist soils influences the regional water and energy balance, which can lead to cooling of the local environment.
Description of the Service:
The planned remote sensing-based service will differ significantly from existing soil moisture simulation methods, as many of these only record soil layers close to the surface. Since these data do not include deeper soil layers, they are not sufficient for climate-relevant soil moisture monitoring. The planned service is based on modelling that compensates for potential errors caused by vegetation areas and simulates the soil moisture of the deeper layers (up to 1.8 metres) in order to enable a better assessment of the amount of water stored and the carbon storage capacity. A target resolution of 500 metres is being worked towards.
