Temperature maps from space would 'boost crop production'

[nitpicker]

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-48527188

Temperature maps from space would 'boost crop production'

By Pallab Ghosh
Science correspondent, BBC News

7 June 2019

Scientists are developing a satellite system to record the temperatures of individual fields of crops. The aim is to survey land temperatures to estimate water-use by plants and to show how they transfer that water back to the atmosphere. The data will also help monitor how much water is available to grow crops and how they are responding to drought.

The new system is being considered for inclusion in the EU's Earth observation programme, Copernicus. It would be an addition to the Union's ever-growing number of satellites it calls the Sentinels.

A team led by Prof Martin Wooster at King's College London, UK, is exploring options for the next phase of the EU and European Space Agency-coordinated programme.
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Prof Wooster's research is part of the development of a satellite concept called the Land Surface Temperature Monitoring (LSTM) mission. The system would be able to identify the temperatures of individual fields of about 40 square km, 10 times more detailed than is currently possible.

The increased precision would make land temperature much more useful for agriculture. LSTM would enable researchers to calculate in real time how much water different plants required in different areas, and how often those plants needed to be irrigated. It could also be used to help computer models predict drought conditions.
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