Toward a statistical description of methane emissions from arctic wetlands

Summary, in English

Methane (CH₄) emissions from arctic tundra typically follow relations with soil temperature and water table depth, but these process-based descriptions can be difficult to apply to areas where no measurements exist. We formulated a description of the broader temporal flux pattern in the growing season based on two distinct CH₄ source components from slow and fast-turnover carbon. We used automatic closed chamber flux measurements from NE Greenland (74°N), W Greenland (64°N), and Svalbard (78°N) to identify and discuss these components. The temporal separation was well-suited in NE Greenland, where the hypothesized slow-turnover carbon peaked at a time significantly related to the timing of snowmelt. The temporally wider component from fast-turnover carbon dominated the emissions in W Greenland and Svalbard. Altogether, we found no dependence of the total seasonal CH₄ budget to the timing of snowmelt, and warmer sites and years tended to yield higher CH₄ emissions.

• Author: Norbert Pirk; Mikhail Mastepanov; Efrén López-Blanco; Louise H. Christensen; Hanne Christiansen; Birger Ulf Hansen; Magnus Lund; Frans Jan W Parmentier; Kirstine Skov; Torben R. Christensen
• Department/s: Dept of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science; MERGE: ModElling the Regional and Global Earth system; BECC: Biodiversity and Ecosystem services in a Changing Climate
• Publishing year: 2017-02-01
• Language: English
• Pages: 70-80
• Publication/Series: Ambio: a Journal of Human Environment
• Volume: 46
• Links: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13280-016-0893-3
• Document type: Journal article
• Publisher: Springer
• Topic: Climate Research
• Keywords: Emission; Greenland; Methane; Svalbard; Tundra
• Status: Published
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISSN: 0044-7447