Hydrology and Earth System Sciences www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net 1027-5606 1607-7938 13 5 2009 10.5194/hess-13-629-2009 http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/13/629/2009/ http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/13/629/2009/hess-13-629-2009.html http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/13/629/2009/hess-13-629-2009.pdf 629 637 2009-05-20 Estimating spatially distributed monthly evapotranspiration rates by linear transformations of MODIS daytime land surface temperature data J. Szilagyi jszilagyi1@unl.edu J. Jozsa Budapest University of Technology and Economics, 1111 Muegyetem Rkp. 3–9, Budapest, Hungary University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Holdrege St. 3310, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA Under simplifying conditions catchment-scale vapor pressure at the drying land surface can be calculated as a function of its watershed-representative temperature (<Ts>) by the wet-surface equation (WSE, similar to the wet-bulb equation in meteorology for calculating the dry-bulb thermometer vapor pressure) of the Complementary Relationship of evaporation. The corresponding watershed ET rate, <ET>, is obtained from the Bowen ratio with the help of air temperature, humidity and percent possible sunshine data. The resulting (<Ts>,<ET>) pair together with the wet-environment surface temperature (<Tws>) and ET rate (ETw), obtained by the Priestley-Taylor equation, define a linear transformation on a monthly basis by which spatially distributed ET rates can be estimated as a sole function of MODIS daytime land surface temperature, Ts, values within the watershed. The linear transformation preserves the mean which is highly desirable. <Tws>, in the lack of significant open water surfaces within the study watershed (Elkhorn, Nebraska), was obtained as the mean of the smallest MODIS Ts values each month. The resulting period-averaged (2000–2007) catchment-scale ET rate of 624 mm/yr is very close to the water-balance derived ET rate of about 617 mm/yr. The latter is a somewhat uncertain value due to the effects of (a) observed groundwater depletion of about 1m over the study period caused by extensive irrigation, and; (b) the uncertain rate of net regional groundwater supply toward the watershed. 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