Evapotranspiration monitoring

Abstract

One of the most important components of the earth's surface water balance is evapotranspiration, which regulates the exchange of energy between ground and atmosphere. The effects of global warming intensify the water demand and therefore, the potential scarcity of water could affect several landscapes and agricultural systems. Therefore, it is essential to monitor evapotranspiration in order to assess water use efficiency and drought risks. There are a several methods to estimate and monitor evapotranspiration (ET), which differ in accuracy, cost and complexity. In this article, we present a general background of ET concepts, then, direct, empirical and remote sensing-based methods to estimate it and finally we conclude with some recent ET applications in Chile.