THE USE OF SUB-ARCTIC BOGS AS NATURAL CLIMATIC INDICATORS

• Main Author: Lettau,Bernhard
• Other Authors: WISCONSIN UNIV MADISON DEPT OF METEOROLOGY
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1966
• Subjects: Meteorology; (*SWAMPS; CLIMATE); (*CLIMATE; SWAMPS); (*MICROMETEOROLOGY; SOILS; SURFACE TEMPERATURE; CANADA; UNITED STATES; Arctic; Canada
• Online Access: http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/AD0627532; http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=AD0627532

The physical interaction of the atmosphere and the ground surface has been investigated in a particular attempt to derive climatic temperature values from a very limited amount of observed soil temperature data. A model is proposed in which the Fourier equation pertaining to the sinusoidal variation of temperature in a homogeneous medium has been used to generate soil temperature profiles at a given time, which are compared to observed temperature profiles. The estimated annual annual course of temperature at the ground surface agrees quite well with observed air temperatures at nearby stations during summer, but exceeds the observed air temperatures appreciably in winter. Based on the cases studied it can be assumed however, that the estimated parameters accurately represent the temperature field within the ground. This technique therefore has important applications in the field of phytoclimatology. With respect to temperature variations, sphagnum bogs have been shown to serve very well as natural climatic indicators. (Author)