The ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS) is a scientific mission that collects high spatio-temporal resolution (~70 m, 1-5 days average revisit time) thermal images since its launch on 29 June 2018. As a predecessor of future missions, one of the main objectives of ECOSTRESS is to retrieve and understand the spatio-temporal variations in terrestrial evapotranspiration (ET) and its responses to soil water availability. In the European ECOSTRESS Hub (EEH), by taking advantage of land surface temperature retrievals, we generated ECOSTRESS ET products over Europe and Africa using three structurally contrasting models, namely Surface Energy Balance System (SEBS) and Two Source Energy Balance (TSEB) parametric models, as well as the non-parametric Surface Temperature Initiated Closure (STIC) model. A comprehensive evaluation of the EEH ET products was conducted with respect to flux measurements from 19 eddy covariance sites over 6 different biomes with diverse aridity levels. Results revealed comparable performances of STIC and SEBS (RMSE of ~70 W m-2). However, the relatively complex TSEB model produced a higher RMSE of ~90 W m-2. Comparison between STIC ET estimate and the operational ECOSTRESS ET product from NASA PT-JPL model showed a difference in RMSE between the two ET products around 50 W m-2. Substantial overestimation (>80 W m-2) was noted in PT-JPL ET estimates over shrublands and savannas presumably due to the weak constraint of LST in the model. Overall, the EEH is promising to serve as a support to the Land Surface Temperature Monitoring (LSTM) mission.

Observations of Planet Earth from space are a critical resource for science and society. Satellite measurements represent very large investments and United States (US) agencies organize their effort to maximize the return on that investment. The US National Research Council conducts a survey of earth science and applications to prioritize observations for the coming decade. The most recent survey prioritized a visible to shortwave infrared imaging spectrometer and a multi-spectral thermal infrared imager to meet a range of needs. First, and perhaps, foremost, it will be the premier integrated observatory for observing the emerging impacts of climate change . It will characterize the diversity of plant life by resolving chemical and physiological signatures. It will address wildfire, observing pre-fire risk, fire behavior and post-fire recovery. It will inform responses to hazards and disasters guiding responses to a wide range of events, including oil spills, toxic minerals in minelands, harmful algal blooms, landslides and other geological hazards. The SBG team analyzed needed instrument characteristics (spatial, temporal and spectral resolution, measurement uncertainty) and assessed the cost, mass, power, volume, and risk of different architectures. The Research and Applications team examined available algorithms, calibration and validation and societal applications and used end-to-end modeling to assess uncertainty. The team also identified valuable opportunities for international collaboration to increase the frequency of revisit through data sharing, adding value for all partners. Analysis of the science, applications, architecture and partnerships led to a clear measurement strategy and a well-defined observing system architecture.

The retrival algorithms used for optical remote sensing satellite data to estimate Earth’s geophysical properties have specific requirements for spatial resolution, temporal revisit, spectral range and resolution, and instrument signal to noise ratio (SNR) performance to meet science objectives. Studies to estimate surface properties from hyperspectral data use a range of algorithms sensitive to various sources of spectroscopic uncertainty, which are in turn influenced by mission architecture choices. Retrieval algorithms vary across scientific fields and may be more or less sensitive to mission architecture choices that affect spectral, spatial, or temporal resolutions and spectrometer SNR. We used representative remote sensing algorithms across terrestrial and aquatic study domains to inform aspects of mission design that are most important for impacting accuracy in each scientific area. We simulated the propagation of uncertainties in the retrieval process including the effects of different instrument configuration choices. We found that retrieval accuracy and information content degrade consistently at >10 nm spectral resolution, >30 m spatial resolution, and >8 day revisit. In these studies, the noise reduction associated with lower spatial resolution improved accuracy vis à vis high spatial resolution measurements. The interplay between spatial resolution, temporal revisit and SNR can be quantitatively assessed for imaging spectroscopy missions and used to identify key components of algorithm performance and mission observing criteria.

Mixed pixels are the rule, not the exception, in decameter terrestrial imaging. By definition, the reflectance spectrum of a mixed pixel is a function of more than one generative process. Physically-based surface biology or geology retrievals must therefore isolate the component of interest from a myriad of unrelated processes, heterogenously distributed across hundreds of square meters. Foliar traits, for example, must be isolated from canopy structure and substrate composition which can dominate overall variance of spatially integrated reflectance. We propose a new approach to isolate low-variance spectral signatures. The reflectance of each pixel is modeled assuming linear geographic mixing due to a small library of generic endmembers. The difference between the modeled and observed spectra is deemed the Mixture Residual (MR). The MR, a residual reflectance spectrum that is presumed to carry the subtler and variable signals of interest, is then leveraged as a source of signal. We illustrate the approach using three datasets: synthetic composites computed from field reflectance spectra, NEON AOP airborne image compilations, and DESIS satellite data. The MR discriminates between land cover versus plant trait signals and accentuates subtle absorption features. Mean band-to-band correlations within the visible, NIR, and SWIR wavebands decrease from 0.97, 0.94, and 0.97 to 0.95, 0.04 and 0.31. The number of dimensions required to explain 99% of image variance increases from 4 to 13. We focus on vegetation as an illustrative example, but note that the concept can be extended to other applications and used as an input to other algorithms.

Imaging spectroscopy is a remote-sensing technique that retrieves reflectances across visible to shortwave infrared wavelengths at high spectral resolution (<10 nm). Spectroscopic reflectance data provide novel information on the properties of the Earth’s terrestrial and aquatic surfaces. Until recently, imaging spectroscopy missions were limited spatially and temporally using airborne instruments, such as the Next Generation Airborne Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS-NG), providing the main source of observations. Here, we present a land-surface modeling framework to help support end-to-end traceability of emerging imaging spectroscopy spaceborne missions. The LPJ-wsl dynamic global vegetation model is coupled with the canopy radiative transfer model, PROSAIL, to generate global, gridded, daily visible to shortwave infrared (VSWIR) spectra. LPJ-wsl variables are cross-walked to meet required PROSAIL parameters, which include leaf structure, Chlorophyll a+b, brown pigment, equivalent water thickness, and dry matter content. Simulated spectra are compared to a boreal forest site, a temperate forest, managed grassland, and a tropical forest site using reflectance data from canopy imagers mounted on towers and from air and spaceborne platforms. We find that canopy nitrogen and leaf-area index are the most uncertain variables in translating LPJ-wsl to PROSAIL parameters but at first order, LPJ-PROSAIL successfully simulates surface reflectance dynamics. Future work will optimize functional relationships required for improving PROSAIL parameters and include the development of the LPJ-model to represent improvements in leaf water content and canopy nitrogen. The LPJ-PROSAIL model can support missions such as NASA’s Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) and higher-level modeled products.

High-resolution space-based spectral imaging of the Earth’s surface delivers critical information for monitoring changes in the Earth system as well as resource management and utilization. Orbiting spectrometers are built according to multiple design parameters, including ground sampling distance (GSD), spectral resolution, temporal resolution, and signal-to-noise. The different applications drive divergent instrument designs, so optimization for wide-reaching missions is complex. The Surface Biology and Geology component of NASA’s Earth System Observatory addresses science questions and meets applications needs across diverse fields, including terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, natural disasters, and the cryosphere. The algorithms required to generate the geophysical variables from the observed spectral imagery each have their own inherent dependencies and sensitivities, and weighting these objectively is challenging. Here, we introduce intrinsic dimensionality (ID), a measure of information content, as an applications-agnostic, data-driven metric to quantify performance sensitivity to various design parameters. ID is computed through the analysis of the eigenvalues of the image covariance matrix, and can be thought of as the number of significant principal components. This metric is extremely powerful for quantifying the information content in high-dimensional data, such as spectrally resolved radiances and their changes over space and time. We find that the intrinsic dimensionality decreases for coarser GSD, decreased spectral resolution and range, less frequent acquisitions, and lower signal-to-noise levels. This decrease in information content has implications for all derived products. Intrinsic dimensionality is simple to compute, providing a single quantitative standard to evaluate combinations of design parameters, irrespective of higher-level algorithms, products, applications, or disciplines.