Autonomous Moisture Continuum Sensing Network: Intelligent and Energy Efficient in Situ Wireless Sensor Networks in Support of Remote Sensing Missions

We report on recent technology advancements and developments in in situ soil moisture wireless sensor networks (WSN) in support of Earth science microwave remote sensing missions. Specifically, we discuss new hardware features, known as Wakeup-on-Radio (WoR), that enable sensor networks to respond rapidly to short-lived micrometeorological events and record measurements which may typically be lost in-between sampling periods. Additionally, we outline strategies towards WSN autonomy with the goal of enabling an in-situ sensor to "learn" soil moisture dynamics and surrounding ecohydrological processes, to then determine its optimum sampling schedule.