Daily and sub-daily hydrometeorological and soil moisture data (2013-2024) [COSMOS-UK]

https://doi.org/10.5285/2dce161d-2fab-47bb-9fe6-38e7ed1ae18a

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This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence

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This dataset contains daily and sub-daily hydrometeorological and soil moisture observations from the COSMOS-UK (cosmic-ray soil moisture) monitoring network from October 2013 to the end of 2024 . These data are from 51 sites across the UK recording a range of hydrometeorological and soil variables.

Each site in the network records the following hydrometeorological and soil data at 30-minute resolution: Radiation (short wave, long wave, and net), precipitation, atmospheric pressure, air temperature, wind speed and direction, humidity, soil heat flux, and soil temperature and volumetric water content (VWC), measured by point sensors at various depths.

Each site hosts a cosmic-ray sensing probe; a novel sensor technology which counts fast neutrons in the surrounding atmosphere. In combination with the recorded hydrometeorological data, neutron counts are used to derive VWC over a field scale (COSMOS VWC), provide at daily resolution.

The presence of snow leads to erroneously high measurements of COSMOS VWC due to all the extra water in the surrounding area. Included in the daily data are indications of snow days, on which, the COSMOS VWC are adjusted, and the snow water equivalent (SWE) is given.

The potential evapotranspiration (PE), derived from recorded hydrometeorological and soil are also included at daily resolution.

Two levels of quality control are carried out, firstly data is run through a series of automated checks, such as range tests and spike tests, and then all data is manually inspected each week where any other faults are picked up, including sensor faults or connection issues. Quality control flags are provided for all recorded (30 minute) data , indicating the reason for any missing data.

This work was supported by the Natural Environment Research Council award number NE/Y006208/1 as part of the UKCEH NC-UK programme delivering National Capability.

Publication date: 2025-06-24

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Format

Comma-separated values (CSV)

Spatial information

Study area

Spatial representation type

Tabular (text)

Spatial reference system

WGS 84

Temporal information

Temporal extent

2013-01-01 to 2024-12-31

Temporal resolution

30m, 1d

Provenance & quality

Hydrometeorological and soil observations are recorded at sites around the UK using an array of sensors. Every hour, the raw data collected is sent to UKCEH in Wallingford, where it is subject to quality control. Soil volumetric water content data are derived from 30-minute hydrometeorological data and data from the cosmic-ray sensing probe by Python scripts run every hour. The data are calculated using the method outlined in Evans et al. 2016. Snow water equivalents are derived by Python scripts at the end of the day from the hydrometeorological data according to Wallbank et al., 2020. Potential evapotranspiration data are derived by Python scripts at the end of the day from the hydrometeorological data according to the Penman-Monteith method, (FAO Crop evapotranspiration - Guidelines for computing crop water requirements - FAO Irrigation and drainage paper 56). All data (including raw, quality controlled and derived) is saved in an Oracle database.

Licensing and constraints

This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence

Cite this dataset as:

Stanley, S.; Antoniou, V.; Askquith-Ellis, A.; Ball, L.; Bennett, E.S.; Blake, J.R.; Boorman, D.B.; Brookes, M.; Clarke, M.A.; Cooper, H.M.; Cowan, N.J.; Cumming, A.; Evans, J.G.; Farrand, P.; Fry, M.; Harvey, D.; Houghton-Carr, H.; Howson, T.; Jiménez-Arranz, G.; Keen, Y.; Khamis, D.; Leeson, S.; Lord, W.D.; Morrison, R.; Nash, G.V.; O'Callaghan, F.; Retter, A.; Rylett, D.; Scarlett, P.M.; Smith, R.J.; St Quintin, P.; Swain, O.; Szczykulska, M.; Teagle, S.; Thornton, J.L.; Trill, E.J.; Vincent, P.; Ward, H.C.; Warwick, A.C.; Winterbourn, J.B. (2025). Daily and sub-daily hydrometeorological and soil moisture data (2013-2024) [COSMOS-UK]. NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/2dce161d-2fab-47bb-9fe6-38e7ed1ae18a

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