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Mapping Regional Forest Evapotranspiration and Photosynthesis by Coupling Satellite Data with Ecosystem Simulation
Author(s) -
Running Steven W.,
Nemani Ramakrishna R.,
Peterson David L.,
Band Larry E.,
Potts Donald F.,
Pierce Lars L.,
Spanner Michael A.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.144
H-Index - 294
eISSN - 1939-9170
pISSN - 0012-9658
DOI - 10.2307/1941378
Subject(s) - evapotranspiration , microclimate , environmental science , advanced very high resolution radiometer , leaf area index , vegetation (pathology) , satellite , spatial ecology , ecosystem , atmospheric sciences , remote sensing , climatology , geography , ecology , geology , medicine , archaeology , pathology , aerospace engineering , engineering , biology
Annual evapotranspiration (ET) and net photosynthesis (PSN) were estimated for a mountainous 28 x 55 km region of predominantly coniferous forests in western Montana. A simple geographic information system integrated topographic, soils, vegetation, and climate data at a 1.1—km scale defined by the satellite sensor pixel size. Leaf area index (LAI) of the forest was estimated with data from the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR). Daily microclimate of each cell was estimated from ground and satellite data and interpolated using MT—CLIM, a mountain microclimate simulator. A forest ecosystem simulation model, Forest—BGC, was used to calculate ET and PSN daily for each cell. Ranges of estimated LAI (4—15), ET (25—60 cm/yr), and PSN (9—20 Mg°ha — 1 °yr — 1 ) across the landscape follow the trends expected in both magnitude and spatial pattern. These estimates compared well with field measurements of related variables, although absolute validation of these predictions is not possible at large spatial scales.