Yap et al. (2026) Retrieving root-zone soil moisture from land surface modelling and GRACE/-FO and validating its dynamics with in-situ data over West Africa

Identification

• Journal: Hydrology and earth system sciences
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-11
• Authors: Loudi Yap, Jürgen Kusche, Bamidele Oloruntoba, Helena Gerdener, Harrie‐Jan Hendricks Franssen
• DOI: 10.5194/hess-30-5023-2026

Research Groups

• National Institute of Cartography, Yaoundé, Cameroon
• Institute of Geodesy and Geoinformation (IGG), University of Bonn, Germany
• Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Agrosphere (IBG-3)
• Centre for High-Performance Scientific Computing in Terrestrial Systems, GeoverbundABC/J

Short Summary

This study investigates root-zone soil moisture (RZSM) dynamics across West Africa from 2003 to 2019 using multiple satellite-derived and model-based datasets. The results indicate that ESA CCI exhibits the strongest temporal and spatial alignment with ground measurements.

Objective

• Investigate RZSM dynamics in West Africa using a combination of satellite-derived and model-based datasets.
• Validate the accuracy of GLWS2.0 and WaterGAP models in simulating RZSM compared to in-situ observations.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: West Africa, spanning from 17°W to 17°E and 2°N to 21°N.
• Temporal Scale: 2003-2019

Methodology and Data

• Models used:
  • WaterGAP (version 2.2e)
  • GLWS2.0 (Global Land Water Storage dataset version 2.0)
  • CLM5.0 (Community Land Model, version 5.0)
• Data sources:
  • ESA CCI SM v0.81
  • In-situ observations from the ISMN

Main Results

• GLWS2.0 and WaterGAP models show good agreement with in-situ observations at various depths.
• ESA CCI exhibits the strongest temporal alignment with ground measurements.

Contributions

• This study provides a comprehensive assessment of RZSM dynamics across West Africa using multiple satellite-derived and model-based datasets.
• The results highlight the importance of combining different approaches to improve the accuracy of RZSM estimates.

Funding

• Not specified in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Yap2026Retrieving,
  author = {Yap, Loudi and Kusche, Jürgen and Oloruntoba, Bamidele and Gerdener, Helena and Franssen, Harrie‐Jan Hendricks},
  title = {Retrieving root-zone soil moisture from land surface modelling and GRACE/-FO and validating its dynamics with in-situ data over West Africa},
  journal = {Hydrology and earth system sciences},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.5194/hess-30-5023-2026},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-5023-2026}
}