Vegetation Trajectories and Shortwave Radiative Forcing Following Boreal Forest Disturbance in Eastern Siberia
Major boreal forest disturbance and associated carbon emissions have been reported in the coldest region of the Northern Hemisphere. Related biophysical feedbacks to climate remain highly uncertain but might reduce warming effects expected from carbon emissions. This study quantifies albedo change a...
| Published in: | Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences |
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| Main Authors: | , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JG005395 http://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?gldocs-11858/8475 |
| Summary: | Major boreal forest disturbance and associated carbon emissions have been reported in the coldest region of the Northern Hemisphere. Related biophysical feedbacks to climate remain highly uncertain but might reduce warming effects expected from carbon emissions. This study quantifies albedo change after disturbance, primarily fires, in larch‐dominated forests around Yakutsk as compared to undisturbed areas with natural albedo variability, using satellite‐based time series. The related annual mean shortwave radiative forcing was −6.015 W/m2 for the 13 years following forest disturbance. It was highly negative during snow‐covered months (−3.738 to −13.638 W/m2), but positive (+5.441 W/m2) for the summer months in the first year after disturbance, decreasing afterward and also turning into a negative forcing after 5 years. Forcing by surface shortwave radiation must be considered to assess the impact of boreal forest disturbance on climate and additional feedbacks, such as increased permafrost thaw or transition to alternative ecosystem states. Plain Language Summary: Boreal forests of northeastern Siberia are experiencing disturbances such as fires and permafrost degradation. These disturbances can trigger changes in biomass and heating dynamics resulting in major feedbacks to the local and regional climate. This study quantifies albedo, the ratio of reflected sunlight to incoming sunlight, in a larch‐dominated forest area in Siberia over a time span of 13 years after fire disturbance. Land surface albedo showed significant changes due to larch forest disturbance, which often recovered to a birch‐dominated forest. During summer months of the first 4 years after the forest fire, the decrease in albedo caused a local warming. For snow‐covered seasons, forest disturbance and the corresponding albedo change caused low local cooling directly after disturbance, and this cooling effect increased during the following decade. Key Points: Major boreal forest cover disturbance in the coldest region of the Northern ... |
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