## 4 Example from the Heihe Station  
The Heihe River Basin (HRB) is a typical inland river basin in the northwestern arid and semi-arid regions of China. Two simultaneous airborne, satellite-borne, and ground-based remote sensing experiments have been designed and performed in the HRB since 2007. The Watershed Allied Telemetry Experimental Research (WATER) project was conducted during 2007 and 2008 [22]. The remote sensing experimental areas and observation system were constructed preliminarily in the HRB, which is the foundation for the establishment of the Heihe Station. A new experiment, the Heihe Watershed Allied Telemetry Experimental Research (HiWATER), has been ongoing in the HRB since 2012 and is expected to continue into 2015 [23]. The Heihe Station was founded in 2009 by the Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute (CAREERI), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), based on the WATER and HiWATER projects. Heihe Station has adopted three levels of observation: A research base, pixel-scale validation sites, and regional coverage. The research base of the station is located in the Ganzhou District, Zhangye City (100.48 E, 38.83 N) in the middle reaches of the HRB and is surrounded by artificial oasis, low-mountain desert, Gobi desert, and wetland landscapes. The research baseis convenient for it is situated next to the Zhangye Airport, the Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway, and the Lianyungang-Horgas Highway. The controlled experimental site has been constructed at the base, and ground-based remote sensing experiments with multiple bands, angles, and polarizations can be conducted for remote sensing mechanism studies in the cold and arid regions of China. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{p{42.7 pt} p{113.8 pt} p{113.8 pt} p{113.8 pt} p{113.8 pt} p{113.8 pt}} \hline \hline
**Station Name** & **Core Site (Science Network)** & **Location** & **Meteorology** & **Land Cover** & **Scientific Aims** \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Hualial Station} & Guanting reservoir (RSON) & Prov.: Hebei; Long.: 115.740; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 2 km\(\times\)2 km & Precip.: 650; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 475 & Type: Water; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 475 & Ecological protection; water resource utilization \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Jingyuetan} & Taipingpu controlled experimental site (RSON) & Prov.: Jilin; Long.: 125.401; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.398; Ele.: 211 & Precip.: 520; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 475 & Type: Cropland; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 48 & Radiative transfer theory; soil freezing process; scale \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Jingyuetan} & Dehui corn(RSON) & Prov.: Jilin; Long.: 125.360; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 207 & Precip.: 604; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 48 & Validation; water balance; crop simulation growth model \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Hulunber Station} & _Stipa bacialensis_ site (CERN) & Prov.: Inner Mongolia; Long.: 120.087; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 642 & Precip.: 380; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 642 & Type: Temperate meadow steppe; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 25 & Validation; grassland ecosystem process model \\ \hline \multirow{3}{*}{Hulunber Station} & Cropland site (CERN) & Prov.: Inner Mongolia; Long.: 120.034; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 638 & Precip.: 380; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 638 & Type: Cropland; Lanzhou-Xinjiang High-speed Railway 40.352; Ele.: 642 & Validation; crop simulation growth model \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}  
* Precip.: Precipitation (mm); Temp.: Temperature ( C); Prov.: Province; Long.: Longitude ( E); Lat.: Latitude ( N); Ele.: Elevation (m).  
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