No abstract available

[en] When radiation in a basin is calculated, slope inclination, slope orientation and topography of surroundings have to be taken into account. The method of approximation to topography by triangles proposed by Miura et al. is employed to take slope characteristics and topography of surroundings into account. Authors prepared 360 directions' shades altitudes, i.e. every degree of angle, for each triangle in advance, and used these shades' altitudes to calculate both direct radiation on a slope diffuse radiation taking topography of surroundings into account. And authors show how to estimate hourly direct and diffuse solar radiation from hourly horizontal global radiation and synthesize hourly slope global radiation on slopes

[en] The objective of this study is quantification of the solar radiation in the farmland located in the hilly and mountainous areas, considering the effect of the shelter adjacent to the field, such as the forest (This effect is called as the edge-effect in this study.). To evaluate the edge-effect on the solar radiation environment in the farmland, solar radiations are measured at the center and edge of the study site adjacent to the forest. The simulation model is composed, coupling with the fish-eye projection method and procedure for the separating direct and diffuse solar radiations. Using this model, the diurnal solar radiations are simulated at the center and edge of the study site. The simulation result showed good agreement with the observation. The spatial distribution of the solar radiation in an observational field is quantified by this method, considering the edge-effect. The simulation result indicated that the solar radiation environment on the field surface is affected by the shelter adjacent to the field and the field direction. (author)

[en] The spatial distribution and density of the leaf area within a crop canopy were used to estimate the radiational environment and evapotranspiration. Morphological measurements were pursued on the soybean stands in the early stage of growth when the two-dimensional foliage distribution pattern existed. The rectangular tube model was used to calculate the light absorption by parallel row of crops both short-wave radiation (direct and diffuse solar radiation, and scattered radiation by plant elements) and long-wave radiation (emanated radiation from the sky, ground and leaves). The simulated profiles are in close agreement with the experimentally measured short-wave and net radiation data. The evapotranspiration of a row was calcuated using a simulated net radiation. The model calculation also agreed well with the evapotranspiration estimated by the Bowen ratio method

[en] With the Transmission-type Fast Neutron Moisture Meter, we did some experiments for calibration and the effective range of fast neutron scattering, and observed soil moisture process before and after making artificial rainfall at a lysimeter filled by decomposed granite. A fast neutron source of this meter is ₂₅₂Cf and capacity of 100 μ Ci. The neutron detector is NE-213 liquid scintilator which recovers a little flux of neutron source. For the customary thermal neutron meter, the effective range of neutron scattering is variable by soil moisture values surrounding the observation point, but this fast neutron, insert and transmission-type meter shows soil moisture in small capacity between a source and a detector. Experimental Results; 1) The calibration curve, calculated statistically from the relation of soil moisture and the count ratio in a 200 l drum packed with beads, gravel, sand and Kanto loam, became only one line. The correlation coefficient of this curve was 0.996 and the standard error was 1.94% with volumetric water content. 2) Count ratio started to decrease as observation point approached soil surface from the boundary of 6 cm depth in soil. Volumetric water content increased more than fact with the previous calibration curve. 3) We limited the detectable range to fast neutron, but a little scattering was seen surrounding the soil of a observation point. The effective range of horizontal scattering was a width of 20 cm with the center line connected between a source and a detector, with a circle of 5 cm diameter surrounding the source, and a circle of 10-15 cm diameter surrounding the detector. 4) Soil moisture before and after artificial rainfall was observed with this meter and by the measurement of a 100 cm³ oven dried sampling vessel. Volumetric water content by the latter measurement, was more variable because sampling points were at a distance from the center of observation site and sampling technique was bad. Otherwise soil moisture values with this meter showed the real state of the infiltration process

No abstract available

[en] It is clear that ground conditions have a large effect on the thermal environment. Plant canopies have their own characteristic types of architecture and have a great influence upon the action and reaction processes occurring between plants and their environment through the modification and interception of fluxes of radiation, heat and mass. A numerical experiment was carried out to determine the diurnal changes occurring in soil and air temperatures near the ground surface covered by a plant. The model assumed that a canopy can be mathematically condensed into a single plane and treated as a single ‘big leaf’. The stomatal resistance was estimated by using the rectangular hyperbolic relationship between stomatal resistance and irradiance. Wind velocity, potential temperature and specific humidity values of 3.6m/s, 25°C and 0.0015 were applied respectively at the upper boundary (100 m), and a temperature of 25°C was specified for the lower boundary (-0.5m). All these conditions were kept constant throughout the simulation period. The analysis was performed on the basis of irradiant data obtained in Fukuoka City (latitude 33° 38'N) on 26 th July, 1978. The temperature profiles during daylight were characterized by curves with a maximum in the canopy layer. The temperature range on the soil surface was reduced owing to the effect of shading by the leaves. These phenomena make the formation of the thermal environment on a plant canopy extremely complex. In the case presented in this paper, the type of plant canopy investigated was similar to that of a soybean field with plants 1.00 m high, but the method could easily be adapted to simulate the thermal environment of a tall canopy, such as that in a forest. (author)

No abstract available

[en] It is well known that leaf temperature rises with increased crop water stress. This phenomenon is recognized as having the potential to yield information on irrigation scheduling. In this study, infrared thermometry was used to measure crop temperature remotely. The errors in measurements derived from incoming long-wave radiation and leaf emissivity were experimentally evaluated in relation to the reliability of three types of water stress indices using leaf temperature as the parameter. From consecutive measurements of the crop-air temperature difference, obvious changes in daily pattern could be detected as soil water became limited. This result showed that the crop-air temperature difference, although a simple index, can be used in irrigation timing

[en] Neutron scattering method is advantageous for the in-situ measurement of the water content in soil. In order to utilize fully the efficiency of a neutron moisture meter in field survey, it is necessary to obtain its reliable calibration curves beforehand. The water content in soil in an actual sandy field is in a low moisture range, therefore, it is significant to know whether the linearity in the relation of the count rate to volumetric water content of the calibration curves is valid, and whether the water content in soil estimated by the calibration curves represents the actual water content in a sandy field. In this paper, a method of making the calibration curves for a depth type neutron moisture meter in dune sand is described. In order to compare the accuracy of the calibration curves in two different clearances between a probe and an access tube, the standard error of estimation of each calibration curve was calculated. The smaller clearance mainly effected the higher sensitivity of the calibration curves. The calibration curves for the depths of 15, 30, 45 and 60 cm were determined with the clearance of only 0.5 mm. The semi-theoretical calibration curve as a function of the water content in soil and dry bulk density is described, and compared with the calibration data. From the results of the field experiments, the water content in soil was measured within the error of 1%. (Kako, I.)