Parameterization of heat fluxes at heterogeneous surfaces by integrating satellite measurements with surface layer and atmospheric boundary layer observations

The regional heat flux exchange between heterogeneous landscapes and the nearby surface layer (SL) is a key issue in the study of land-atmosphere interactions over arid areas such as the Heihe River basin in northwestern China and in high elevation areas such as the Tibetan Plateau. Based on analysis of the land surface heterogeneity and its effects on the overlying air flow, the use of SL observations, atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) observations, and satellite remote sensing (RS) measurements along with three parameterization methodologies (here, termed as the RS, tile, and blending approaches) have been proposed to estimate the surface heat flux densities over heterogeneous landscapes. The tile and blending approaches have also been implemented during HEIhe basin Field Experiment (HEIFE), the Coordinated Enhanced Observing Period (CEOP) Asia-Australia Monsoon Project on the Tibetan Plateau (CAMP/Tibet), the Arid Environment Comprehensive Monitoring Plan’ 95 (AECMP′95), and the DunHuang Experiment (DHEX). The results showed that these two proposed parameterization methodologies can be accurately used over heterogeneous land surfaces.