William P. Kustas M. S. Moran P. J. Pinter Jr. R. D. Jackson P.W. Brown W. D. Nichols L. W. Gay C.S.T. Daughtry 1990 <p><span>Conventional methods of measuring surface energy balance are point measurements and represent only a small area. Remote sensing offers a potential means of measuring outgoing fluxes over large areas at the spatial resolution of the sensor. The objective of this study was to estimate net radiation (R</span>_n<span>) and soil heat flux (G) using remotely sensed multispectral data acquired from an aircraft over large agricultural fields. Ground-based instruments measured R</span>_n<span>&nbsp;and G at nine locations along the flight lines. Incoming fluxes were also measured by ground-based instruments. Outgoing fluxes were estimated using remotely sensed data. Remote R</span>_n<span>, estimated as the algebraic sum of incoming and outgoing fluxes, slightly underestimated R</span>_n<span>&nbsp;measured by the ground-based net radiometers. The mean absolute errors for remote R</span>_n<span>&nbsp;minus measured R</span>_n<span>&nbsp;were less than 7%. Remote G, estimated as a function of a spectral vegetation index and remote R</span>_n<span>, slightly overestimated measured G; however, the mean absolute error for remote G was 13%. Some of the differences between measured and remote values of R</span>_n<span>&nbsp;and G are associated with differences in instrument designs and measurement techniques. The root mean square error for available energy (R</span>_n<span>&nbsp;- G) was 12%. Thus, methods using both ground-based and remotely sensed data can provide reliable estimates of the available energy which can be partitioned into sensible and latent heat under nonadvective conditions.</span></p> application/pdf 10.1016/0034-4257(90)90012-B en Elsevier Spectral estimates of net radiation and soil heat flux article