This one-year pilot project supports PI to test a new soil respiration measurement method and the possibility to manipulate temperature in the Arctic tundra. We warmed the tundra ecosystems with open-top chambers, conducted trenching experiment, and measured soil respiration with the continuous CO2 profile system.

Our preliminary data show that the tundra can be effectively warmed by our designed open-top chambers to an average of 0.3-3.1°C above the control plots. The CO2 sensors buried in soils can be effectively used to measure CO2 concentration and CO2 fluxes in the tundra. Our preliminary results indicated that soil respiration varied between 1.0 and 2.5 μmol m-2s-1 with a distinct diel pattern in the summer. Total ecosystem respiration ranged from 4 to 6 μmol m-2s-1, indicating that aboveground plant respiration (leaf and stem) accounted for more than half of the total respiration. The trenching experiment enables us to examine the difference of soil respiration and its temporal pattern between plots with roots and without root influence. Tang has submitted a renewal proposal to NSF to continue this soil respiration project in the Arctic tundra.

Project Location

Products and Resources Description

Conference Abstracts

Tang, J., and S. Hackley, "Carbon fluxes from soils and plants in Arctic tundra and their responses to warming", ARC LTER Annual Meeting, Woods Hole (2011).

Dates

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Members

Principal Investigator

Jianwu (Jim) Tang
Marine Biological Laboratory

Keywords

changing seasonality in the arctic system
carbon cycle
climate change
soil science
system science
terrestrial ecosystems
tundra