We invite presentations concerning soil moisture estimation, including remote sensing, field experiments, land surface modelling and data assimilation. The technique of microwave remote sensing has made much progress toward its high potential to retrieve surface soil moisture at different scales. From local to landscape scales several field or aircraft experiments (e.g. SMAPex) have been organised to improve our understanding of active and passive microwave soil moisture sensing, including the effects of soil roughness, vegetation, spatial heterogeneities, and topography. At continental scales a series of several passive and active microwave space sensors, including SMMR (1978-1987), AMSR(2002-), ERS/SCAT (1992-2000) provided information on surface soil moisture. Current investigations in L-band passive microwave with SMOS (2009-) and the new SMAP mission (Q1 2015) and in active microwave with Metop/Ascat series (2006-) open new possibilities in the quantification of the soil moisture at regional and global scales. Comparison between soil moisture simulated by land surface models, in situ observations, and remotely sensed soil moisture is also relevant to characterisation of regional and continental scale soil moisture dynamic (e.g., ALMIP2, GSWP3).

We encourage presentations related to soil moisture remote sensing, including:
- Field experiment, theoretical advances in microwave modelling and calibration/validation activities.
- Root zone soil moisture retrieval and soil moisture assimilation in land surface models as well as in Numerical Weather Prediction models.
- Inter-comparison and inter-validation between land surface models, remote sensing approaches and in-situ validation networks.
- Evaluation and trend analysis of soil moisture data record products such as the soil moisture CCI product or soil moisture re-analysis products (e.g. MERRA-Land, ERA-Land).

Solicited speakers:

Rolf Reichle (NASA/GSFC), "Assimilation of SMOS Brightness Temperature Observations in the NASA GEOS-5 Land Data Assimilation System"

Mehrez Zribi (CESBIO), "Multi-frequency SAR data for soil surface moisture estimation over agricultural fields"