Estimation of cold pool areas and chilling hours through satellite-derived surface temperatures

A methodology is proposed to identify the coldest areas of the island of Mallorca through satellite-derived surface temperatures. Land-surface temperatures from the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG-LST) just before sunrise for 1 year starting on September 1, 2007, were used. Fields for situations with clear skies and weak wind nights were selected, corresponding to 173 days of the year under study. Under these conditions, cold pools were generated in the centre of the three main basins of the island, in agreement with previous numerical and climatological studies. Maps of minimum air temperature and chilling hours, averaged over a season or annually, were obtained from the MSG-LST fields. These maps were then associated with the requirements of actual crop distributions.