The objective of this study was to determine the daily actual evapotranspiration (ETr) of the tamarisk vegetation using micrometeorological data and SEBAL model. Data originating from the Bowen ratio method were used, besides the SEBAL model applied to TM Landsat 5 image for obtaining the daily ETr of the tamarisk vegetation of Lower Colorado River, CA/USA. For obtaining the reference evapotranspiration (ET0) the FAO/Penman-Monteith method was used. The results show characteristics of strong air advection and that the solar radiation has the largest influence in obtaining ET0, as well as, that the tamarisk vegetation has high water demand and its fast expansion can bring negative impacts for the rivers of the area. The estimates of ETr through the SEBAL model are similar to the measured values on the micrometeorological tower by the Bowen ratio method, demonstrating the applicability of the SEBAL model to obtain the spatial distribution of the daily actual evapotranspiration.
Evapotranspiration; energy balance; micrometeorology; TM Landsat 5
