Project Funding: 2012 - 2015

NRA: 2011 NASA: Terrestrial Ecology   

Funded by NASA

Abstract:
Arctic ecosystems,i.e., boreal forests and tundra, play an important role in the climate system and have been warming in recent decades. Larch dominated forests are an important component of the global circumpolar boreal forest. In Russia, larch forests cover some 278 million ha (42% of forests) with stem volume of more than 25 billion m3. These forests range from the Yenisei ridge on the western edge of Siberia to the Pacific Ocean on the east, and from Lake Baikal on the south to the 73rd parallel in the north. Larch stands comprise the world¿s northern-most forest stands at Ary-Mas (72º28´ N, 102° 15´ E;). Larch dominated forests occupy about 70% of the permafrost areas in Siberia. Larch competes effectively with other tree species due to its higher resistance to harsh climatic conditions. Since larch is deciduous with thick, dense bark this secies is protected from winter desiccation and snow abrasion. Larch surpasses the other tree species in water use efficiency and survives at a semi-desert level of precipitation (<250 mm/yr) typical of the Arctic. Larch forms high closure stands as well as open forests is found mainly over permafrost, where other tree species barely survive. The vast areas of larch-dominant forests is generally considered as a carbon sink"; however, positive long-term temperature trends at higher latitudes are expected to result in an increase of fire frequency e.g.,. This increase, alongside warming-induced permafrost thawing, may convert this area to a source for greenhouse gases. The larch forests are huge and there exists very little quantitative information about them. Careful attention must be paid when developing algorithms for quantifying larch structure. Earlier work by members of this proposal team found GLAS lidar data shows little sensitivity larch biomass. PALSAR L-band radar on the other hand appeared more sensitive to larch cover though biomass relationships were poor. Passive sensors such as hyperspectral and thermal have not been exploited. We propose a study to fully understand and develop the relationships of multisensor instrument data with larch canopies. This study will employ a unique and well-tested instrument package called the Goddard Lidar, Hyperspectral and Thermal (GLiHT) system with imaging waveform lidar, visible and near infrared hyperspectral, and multispectral thermal capabilities. GLiHT is an off-the-shelf portable instrument system suitable for installation on a Russian light aircraft. The system will be flown over portions Arctic Siberia areas where the proposers already have significant ground data. In addition these areas will be revisited by field personnel and additional ground information collected. It is expected that these high resolution data sets combined with additional ground truth of forest stands will lead to improved methods for mapping and monitoring these vast larch forests. These data will be made available to the ecology community and should serve as a basis for advances in satellite remote sensing of these Arctic forests.

Publications:

Kharuk, V. I., Im, S. T., Dvinskaya, M. L., Golukov, A. S., Ranson, K. J. 2015. Climate-induced mortality of spruce stands in Belarus. Environmental Research Letters. 10(12), 125006. DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/10/12/125006

Kharuk, V. I., Im, S. T., Dvinskaya, M. L., Ranson, K. J., Petrov, I. A. 2017. Tree wave migration across an elevation gradient in the Altai Mountains, Siberia. Journal of Mountain Science. 14(3), 442-452. DOI: 10.1007/s11629-016-4286-7

Kharuk, V. I., Im, S. T., Petrov, I. A., Dvinskaya, M. L., Fedotova, E. V., Ranson, K. J. 2016. Fir decline and mortality in the southern Siberian Mountains. Regional Environmental Change. 17(3), 803-812. DOI: 10.1007/s10113-016-1073-5

Kharuk, V. I., Im, S. T., Petrov, I. A., Golyukov, A. S., Ranson, K. J., Yagunov, M. N. 2017. Climate-induced mortality of Siberian pine and fir in the Lake Baikal Watershed, Siberia. Forest Ecology and Management. 384, 191-199. DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2016.10.050

Kharuk, V. I., Im, S. T., Ranson, K. J., Yagunov, M. N. 2017. Climate-Induced Northerly Expansion of Siberian Silkmoth Range. Forests. 8(8), 301. DOI: 10.3390/f8080301

Montesano, P. M., Sun, G., Dubayah, R. O., Ranson, K. J. 2016. Spaceborne potential for examining taiga-tundra ecotone form and vulnerability. Biogeosciences. 13(13), 3847-3861. DOI: 10.5194/bg-13-3847-2016

Ponomarev, E., Kharuk, V., Ranson, K. 2016. Wildfires Dynamics in Siberian Larch Forests. Forests. 7(12), 125. DOI: 10.3390/f7060125

Kharuk, V. I., Dvinskaya, M. L., Petrov, I. A., Im, S. T., Ranson, K. J. 2016. Larch forests of Middle Siberia: long-term trends in fire return intervals. Regional Environmental Change. 16(8), 2389-2397. DOI: 10.1007/s10113-016-0964-9

Kharuk, V. I., Shushpanov, A. S., Im, S. T., Ranson, K. J. 2016. Climate-induced landsliding within the larch dominant permafrost zone of central Siberia. Environmental Research Letters. 11(4), 045004. DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/11/4/045004

Montesano, P. M., Rosette, J., Sun, G., North, P., Nelson, R. F., Dubayah, R. O., Ranson, K. J., Kharuk, V. 2015. The uncertainty of biomass estimates from modeled ICESat-2 returns across a boreal forest gradient. Remote Sensing of Environment. 158, 95-109. DOI: 10.1016/j.rse.2014.10.029

Kharuk, V. I., Ranson, K. J., Im, S. T., Petrov, I. A. 2015. Climate-induced larch growth response within the central Siberian permafrost zone. Environmental Research Letters. 10(12), 125009. DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/10/12/125009

Montesano, P. M., Nelson, R. F., Dubayah, R. O., Sun, G., Cook, B. D., Ranson, K. J. R., Naesset, E., Kharuk, V. 2014. The uncertainty of biomass estimates from LiDAR and SAR across a boreal forest structure gradient. Remote Sensing of Environment. 154, 398-407. DOI: 10.1016/j.rse.2014.01.027

Montesano, P., Sun, G., Dubayah, R., Ranson, K. 2014. The Uncertainty of Plot-Scale Forest Height Estimates from Complementary Spaceborne Observations in the Taiga-Tundra Ecotone. Remote Sensing. 6(10), 10070-10088. DOI: 10.3390/rs61010070

2015 NASA Carbon Cycle & Ecosystems Joint Science Workshop Poster(s)

• Taiga-Tundra Ecotone Structure Studies   --   (Kenneth Jon Ranson, Guoqing Sun, Paul Montesano, Christopher Neigh, Vyacheslav Kharuk)   [abstract]
• G-LiHT: Multi-Sensor Airborne Image Data from Denali to the Yucatan   --   (Bruce Cook, Lawrence A Corp, Douglas Morton, Joel McCorkel)   [abstract]   [poster]

2013 NASA Terrestrial Ecology Science Team Meeting Poster(s)

• Multisensor Airborne and Ground Studies of Siberian Arctic Forests   --   (Kenneth Jon Ranson, Bruce Cook, Ross Nelson, Guoqing Sun)   [abstract]

More details may be found in the following project profile(s):

• NASA Terrestrial Ecology (TE) Project Profile