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In this paper, we present a velocity analysis technique using ground-penetrating radar (GPR) data to estimate near-surface soil-water content affected by topography and solar radiation on a mountain peak, mountain mid-slope, and alluvial plain sites in a semi-arid climate area in central Asia. By making precise measurements of reflected EM wave velocity, the water content in the near-surface soil was determined. The GPR experiments at several frequencies were carried out in two sequential phases (comprising common-offset and multi-offset methods) to obtain the soil-water content and illustrate the subsurface structure. We then tried to determine the relationship between near-surface moisture content and permafrost thawing. Therefore, we used several different methods including time-domain reflectometry and a resistivity survey. We also confirmed via the GPR data that vegetation cover indicates soil-water content in the near-surface soil. The results evaluated in this study provide meaningful information about soil water as well as subsurface structures. The GPR data acquired at the survey sites indicated a large range of near-surface water content due to the topography of the survey lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]