Inter-comparison of hydrological model simulations with time series of SAR-derived soil moisture maps

A comparison between superficial soil moisture content, m(v), values predicted by the DREAM hydrologic model and those retrieved from time-series of ALOS/PALSAR and COSMO-SkyMed SAR data acquired in 2007 and 2010-2011 is presented. The area investigated is part of the Celone at Ponte Foggia-S. Severo river basin, which is a tributary of the Candelaro river, downstream of the S. Giusto Dam, in Puglia (Southern Italy). Results show a good agreement in terms of bias and rmse between the hydrologic modeled and SAR-retrieved m(v)-values, and open new opportunities for the use of SAR-derived m(v)-values to calibrate/validate hydrologic models in semi-arid areas.