Soil Moisture Data Improve Weather Forecasts

Measurement flights over the Eifel and the Jülich area

Jülich, 29 April 2013 – Since mid-April, Jülich environmental researchers have been determining soil moisture in the Rur catchment area from an aircraft. The measurements above the Jülich area and the Eifel will record the water content at the soil surface. It influences the exchange of energy and water between the soil and the atmosphere, and is a parameter that will help to improve weather forecasts and flood predictions. The campaign is part of the Helmholtz Association’s long-term nationwide TERENO project (TERrestrial ENvironmental Observatories), which investigates the long-term ramifications of climate change on a regional level.

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