Project Funding: 2008 - 2011

NRA: 2007 NASA: Carbon Cycle Science   

Funded by NASA

Abstract:
The availability of nitrogen represents a key constraint on carbon cycling in terrestrial ecosystems, and it is largely in this capacity that the role of N in the Earth's climate system has been considered. Despite this, few studies have included continuous variation in plant N status as a driver of broad-scale carbon cycle analyses. This is partly because of uncertainties in how leaf-level physiological relationships scale to whole ecosystems and because methods for regional to continental detection of plant %Nitrogen concentrations have yet to be developed. Here, we plan to expand the integration of hyperspectral remote sensing and AmeriFlux research activities conducted under a previous NACP project to address linkages between canopy N, surface reflectance and a wider suite of physiological parameters related to carbon assimilation. Results thus far indicate a significant positive correlation between canopy %Nitrogen and canopy Amax (the maximum rate of net photosynthesis) in U.S. forest ecosystems. Work to be conducted here will extend this approach to address photosynthesis parameters other than (but physiologically related to) Amax, making our results useful to a wider range of carbon cycle and land surface models. Further, a consistent and significant pattern in our data suggests that canopy %Nitrogen is also related to the albedo of vegetation surfaces. We seek the opportunity to extend and clarify the degree to which this pattern applies across North American ecosystems. If these patterns are confirmed and can be shown to exist more broadly, our results would demonstrate an important, but previously unrecognized feedback in the Earth's climate system involving the nitrogen cycle as a moderator of carbon assimilation and surface energy exchange under changing environmental conditions.

Publications:

Ouimette, A. P., Ollinger, S. V., Richardson, A. D., Hollinger, D. Y., Keenan, T. F., Lepine, L. C., Vadeboncoeur, M. A. 2018. Carbon fluxes and interannual drivers in a temperate forest ecosystem assessed through comparison of top-down and bottom-up approaches. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. 256-257, 420-430. DOI: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2018.03.017

Ollinger, S. V., Reich, P. B., Frolking, S., Lepine, L. C., Hollinger, D. Y., Richardson, A. D. 2013. Nitrogen cycling, forest canopy reflectance, and emergent properties of ecosystems. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 110(27). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1304176110

Sullivan, F. B., Ollinger, S. V., Martin, M. E., Ducey, M. J., Lepine, L. C., Wicklein, H. F. 2013. Foliar nitrogen in relation to plant traits and reflectance properties of New Hampshire forests. Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 43(1), 18-27. DOI: 10.1139/cjfr-2012-0324

Wicklein, H. F., Ollinger, S. V., Martin, M. E., Hollinger, D. Y., Lepine, L. C., Day, M. C., Bartlett, M. K., Richardson, A. D., Norby, R. J. 2012. Variation in foliar nitrogen and albedo in response to nitrogen fertilization and elevated CO2. Oecologia. 169(4), 915-925. DOI: 10.1007/s00442-012-2263-6

Hilker, T., Lepine, L., Coops, N. C., Jassal, R. S., Black, T. A., Wulder, M. A., Ollinger, S., Tsui, O., Day, M. 2012. Assessing the impact of N-fertilization on biochemical composition and biomass of a Douglas-fir canopy--A remote sensing approach. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. 153, 124-133. DOI: 10.1016/j.agrformet.2011.03.014

Ollinger, S. V. 2010. Sources of variability in canopy reflectance and the convergent properties of plants. New Phytologist. 189(2), 375-394. DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2010.03536.x

Bartlett, M. K., Ollinger, S. V., Hollinger, D. Y., Wicklein, H. F., Richardson, A. D. 2011. Canopy-scale relationships between foliar nitrogen and albedo are not observed in leaf reflectance and transmittance within temperate deciduous tree species. Botany. 89(7), 491-497. DOI: 10.1139/b11-037

HOLLINGER, D. Y., OLLINGER, S. V., RICHARDSON, A. D., MEYERS, T. P., DAIL, D. B., MARTIN, M. E., SCOTT, N. A., ARKEBAUER, T. J., BALDOCCHI, D. D., CLARK, K. L., CURTIS, P. S., DAVIS, K. J., DESAI, A. R., DRAGONI, D., GOULDEN, M. L., GU, L., KATUL, G. G., PALLARDY, S. G., PAW U, K. T., SCHMID, H. P., STOY, P. C., SUYKER, A. E., VERMA, S. B. 2010. Albedo estimates for land surface models and support for a new paradigm based on foliage nitrogen concentration. Global Change Biology. 16(2), 696-710. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2009.02028.x

Bradford, J. B., Weishampel, P., Smith, M., Kolka, R., Birdsey, R. A., Ollinger, S. V., Ryan, M. G. 2010. Carbon pools and fluxes in small temperate forest landscapes: Variability and implications for sampling design. Forest Ecology and Management. 259(7), 1245-1254. DOI: 10.1016/j.foreco.2009.04.009

Ollinger, S., Frolking, S., Richardson, A., Martin, M., Hollinger, D., Reich, P., Plourde, L. 2009. Reply to Fisher: Nitrogen-albedo relationship in forests remains robust and thought-provoking. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 106(7). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0900137106

Richardson, A. D., Braswell, B. H., Hollinger, D. Y., Jenkins, J. P., Ollinger, S. V. 2009. Near-surface remote sensing of spatial and temporal variation in canopy phenology. Ecological Applications. 19(6), 1417-1428. DOI: 10.1890/08-2022.1

Kokaly, R. F., Asner, G. P., Ollinger, S. V., Martin, M. E., Wessman, C. A. 2009. Characterizing canopy biochemistry from imaging spectroscopy and its application to ecosystem studies. Remote Sensing of Environment. 113, S78-S91. DOI: 10.1016/j.rse.2008.10.018

Bradford, J., Weishampel, P., Smith, M., Kolka, R., Birdsey, R. A., Ollinger, S. V., Ryan, M. G. 2009. Detrital carbon pools in temperate forests: magnitude and potential for landscape-scale assessment. Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 39(4), 802-813. DOI: 10.1139/X09-010

Ollinger, S. V., Richardson, A. D., Martin, M. E., Hollinger, D. Y., Frolking, S. E., Reich, P. B., Plourde, L. C., Katul, G. G., Munger, J. W., Oren, R., Smith, M., Paw U, K. T., Bolstad, P. V., Cook, B. D., Day, M. C., Martin, T. A., Monson, R. K., Schmid, H. P. 2008. Canopy nitrogen, carbon assimilation, and albedo in temperate and boreal forests: Functional relations and potential climate feedbacks. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 105(49), 19336-19341. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0810021105

Martin, M. E., Plourde, L. C., Ollinger, S. V., Smith, M., McNeil, B. E. 2008. A generalizable method for remote sensing of canopy nitrogen across a wide range of forest ecosystems. Remote Sensing of Environment. 112(9), 3511-3519. DOI: 10.1016/j.rse.2008.04.008

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

• Canopy diversity in relation to carbon fluxes, water use and ecosystem resilience in North American forests.   --   (Scott Ollinger, Jingfeng Xiao, Rossella Guerrieri, Lucie Lepine, Heidi Asbjornsen)   [abstract]

2013 NASA Terrestrial Ecology Science Team Meeting Poster(s)

• Remote Sensing of Foliar N across a Range of Scales Using Data from Multiple Platforms   --   (Scott V. Ollinger, Lucie C. Lepine, Mary E. Martin)   [abstract]   [poster]

2011 NASA Carbon Cycle & Ecosystems Joint Science Workshop Poster(s)

• Investigating the Relationships Between AVIRIS Reflectance, Foliar Nitrogen, and Nitrogen Deposition across the Northeastern US   --   (Mary E. Martin, Scott Ollinger, Lucie Lepine)   [abstract]
• Recent dynamics of arctic tundra vegetation: Field observations, remote sensing, and simulation modeling   --   (Howard Epstein, Martha Raynolds, Donald Walker, Uma Bhatt, Compton Tucker, Jorge Pinzon, Gerald Frost, Qin Yu, Gensuo Jia, Heqing Zeng)   [abstract]   [poster]

2010 NASA Terrestrial Ecology Science Team Meeting Poster(s)

• Examining Trends in Foliar N and Albedo in Response to Disturbance in Canadian Forests   --   (Lucie C. Lepine, Scott V. Ollinger, Mary E. Martin, Steve E. Frolking)   [abstract]
• Exploring Nitrogen - Albedo Linkages Across a Range of Biomes and Spatial Scales: Functional Relations and Potential Climate Feedbacks   --   (Scott V. Ollinger, Lucie C. Lepine, David Y. Hollinger, Mary E. Martin, Andrew D. Richardson)   [abstract]

2008 NASA Carbon Cycle & Ecosystems Joint Science Workshop Posters

• Canopy Nitrogen, Carbon Assimilation and Surface Reflectance features in U.S. Forest Ecosystems   --   (Scott V Ollinger, David Y Hollinger, Mary E Martin, Andrew D Richardson, Steve E Frolking, Lucie C Plourde, Peter B Reich)   [abstract]
• Tundra vegetation properties along a latitudinal gradient of the Yamal Region of Russia   --   (Howard E Epstein, Donald A Walker, Patrick Kuss, Elina Kaarlejarvi)   [abstract]   [poster]
• Evaluating Arctic Tundra System Resilience to Grazing Disturbances: A Modeling Approach   --   (Qin Yu, Howard Epstein)   [abstract]   [poster]
• Circumpolar and regional analysis of the relationship between sea-ice variability, summer land-surface temperatures, Arctic tundra greenness and large-scale climate drivers   --   (Uma Bhatt, Donald A. (Skip) Walker, Martha K. Raynolds, Josefino Comiso)   [abstract]
• Application of space-based technologies and models to address land-cover/land-use change problems on the Yamal Peninsula, Russia: 2007 field studies along the bioclimate gradient   --   (Donald A. (Skip) Walker, Howard E. Epstein, Elina Kaarlejärvi, J. Patrick Kuss, Mariina O. Leibman, George V. Matyshak, Nataliya G. Moskalenko, Vladimir E. Romanovsky)   [abstract]
• Spatial patterns of land-surface temperature and NDVI, and their relation to vegetation distribution on the Yamal Peninsula, Russia   --   (Martha K. Raynolds, Donald A. (Skip) Walker, Josefino C. Comiso)   [abstract]
• Applications of space-based technologies to examine LCLUC on the Yamal Peninsula, Russia: Combining satellite imagery with traditional knowledge to study the effects of petroleum development on reindeer herding   --   (Bruce C. Forbes, Florian Stammler, Anu Pajunen, Elina Kaarlejärvi, Timo Kumpula, Nina Meschtyb, Donald A. (Skip) Walker, Anatoli Gubarkov, Marina Leibman, Artem Khomutov)   [abstract]

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

• NASA Terrestrial Ecology (TE) Project Profile
• North American Carbon Program (NACP) Project Profile