EO·Atlas
Soil moisture
Soil moisture work retrieves near-surface soil water so agriculture, drought, flood, weather, climate, and water-cycle users can track wetness, anomalies, and freeze-thaw state.[1][2] NASA SMAP measures water in the top layer of soil and freeze-thaw state, with global soil-moisture mapping every 2-3 days.[1] SMAP uses L-band microwave measurements; its radar failed after early operation while its radiometer continues extended operations.[1][3] Soil-moisture outputs commonly include surface retrievals, anomaly layers, freeze-thaw status, and trend products for field-context to global hydrology monitoring.[1][2] Passive microwave retrieval is central to broad-area monitoring, while radar backscatter, GNSS reflectometry, and fused optical, SAR, meteorological, and vegetation context support higher-resolution interpretation and gap-filled products.[1][3][2]
What's available today
3 data products, 1 service and 39 sensors. Start with the most-used; switch to Filter for the full catalogue.
- [1]NASA/JPL SMAP mission descriptionagency doc2026-05-27
- [2]NASA/JPL SMAP instrument descriptionagency doc2026-05-27
- [3]NASA Science: A decade of SMAP water-cycle monitoringagency doc2026-05-27
How to cite this page
Plain text
Soil moisture. EO-Atlas, SpectraWorks B.V., last reviewed 2026-05-27. https://eo-atlas.org/topics/soil-moisture (CC BY 4.0)
BibTeX
@misc{eoatlas:topics:soil-moisture,
title = {Soil moisture},
author = {{EO-Atlas}},
publisher = {SpectraWorks B.V.},
year = {2026},
note = {Last reviewed 2026-05-27. CC BY 4.0},
url = {https://eo-atlas.org/topics/soil-moisture}
}