Observation and simulation of evaporation from water surfaces (lakes and oceans) are challenging at all space-time scales. This session calls for contributions on recent advances in understanding, measuring and modeling water surface evaporation. Topics of special interest include but not limited to (1) diurnal and seasonal cycles of the energy budgets over water surfaces, (2) turbulent transport of water and/or heat within water and atmospheric boundary layer and across water-air interface, (3) new technology of direct in-situ measurement of water surface evaporation, (4) innovative remote sensing methods for measuring water surface evaporation and related hydro-meteorological variables (e.g. solar radiation, water/air temperature, wind speed, etc.), (5) physically based parameter parsimonious models of water surface evaporation, (6) improved regional evaporation models using combined in-situ and remote sensing data.