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Physical and Environmental Geography Commons™
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Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Physical and Environmental Geography
Arctic Greening: Characterizing Tundra Vegetation From In-Situ And Remotely Sensed Observations, Shira Ann Ellenson
Arctic Greening: Characterizing Tundra Vegetation From In-Situ And Remotely Sensed Observations, Shira Ann Ellenson
Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers
As the Arctic has warmed at twice the rate of the global average, vegetation productivity has also been increasing. While satellite remote sensing is useful for summarizing Arctic-wide trends, changes in tundra species heights, densities, composition, and distribution can be missed at coarse resolution. Smaller, plot-scale studies are necessary to better understand vegetation dynamics at fine scales occurring on the ground.
In 1995, high-resolution traditional aerial photographs and in-situ measurements of vegetation characteristics were taken at a series of plots established on the Alaskan North Slope. Repeat field surveys in 2021 revealed increases in plant cover for deciduous shrubs and …
Greening Of The Arctic: Plot-Scale Analysis Of Interactions Between Climate, Vegetation, And Permafrost At Toolik Lake, Alaska (1995 - 2017), Brianna Rick
Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers
Air temperatures across the Arctic have increased in recent decades, and through complex feedbacks, vegetation and permafrost (frozen ground) are actively responding as climate warming continues. This study investigates the trends and interactions of observed air, soil-surface temperature (SST), and active-layer thickness (ALT) at Toolik Lake on the Alaskan North Slope between 1995 and 2017, as well as vegetation change over time.
Time series between 1995 and 2017 at CALM site U12B, a 1 ha plot near Toolik Lake, reveal an increase (0.50 °C/decade) in mean summer (Jun-Aug) air temperatures and a decrease (0.23 °C/decade) in mean summer SST. In …