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Modification of land‐atmosphere interactions by CO 2 effects: Implications for summer dryness and heat wave amplitude
Author(s) -
Lemordant Léo,
Gentine Pierre,
Stéfa Marc,
Drobinski Philippe,
Fatichi Simone
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2016gl069896
Subject(s) - dryness , environmental science , atmosphere (unit) , atmospheric sciences , sensible heat , climatology , transpiration , climate change , growing season , water vapor , climate model , water cycle , heat wave , meteorology , agronomy , ecology , geography , photosynthesis , chemistry , geology , medicine , biochemistry , surgery , biology
Plant stomata couple the energy, water, and carbon cycles. We use the framework of Regional Climate Modeling to simulate the 2003 European heat wave and assess how higher levels of surface CO 2 may affect such an extreme event through land‐atmosphere interactions. Increased CO 2 modifies the seasonality of the water cycle through stomatal regulation and increased leaf area. As a result, the water saved during the growing season through higher water use efficiency mitigates summer dryness and the heat wave impact. Land‐atmosphere interactions and CO 2 fertilization together synergistically contribute to increased summer transpiration. This, in turn, alters the surface energy budget and decreases sensible heat flux, mitigating air temperature rise. Accurate representation of the response to higher CO 2 levels and of the coupling between the carbon and water cycles is therefore critical to forecasting seasonal climate, water cycle dynamics, and to enhance the accuracy of extreme event prediction under future climate.