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ABSTRACT: During summer and autumn 2007, we deployed a 11 GHz microwave radiometer in an experimental tree plantation in Sardinilla, Panama, in the vicinity of the Panama Canal. With this instrument, we determined the opacity of the tree canopy. A collocated eddy-covariance flux tower measured water vapor and carbon dioxide fluxes as well as other meteorological variables such as photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and rain. We observed a pronounced diurnal cycle of the opacity during dry periods and a close relation of the opacity to canopy intercepted rain during rainy periods. The diurnal opacity cycle shows a strong correlation with PAR, VPD and the water vapor flux.
Microwave Radiometry and Remote Sensing of the Environment, 2008. MICRORAD 2008; 03/2008
