THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES
The arctic has experienced more rapid global warming and is more sensitive to temperature changes compared with the rest of the world. We can already see how vegetation distributed across the arctic tundra has changed in composition, height, and abundance. It’s not only that climate can change the v...
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ftunivgoeteborg:oai:gupea.ub.gu.se:2077/73702 2023-10-29T02:34:17+01:00 THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES Aspelin, Edith University of Gothenburg / Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences Göteborgs universitet / Instiutionen för biologi och miljövetenskap 2022-09-28T09:15:46Z application/pdf https://hdl.handle.net/2077/73702 eng eng https://hdl.handle.net/2077/73702 Text M2 Student essay 2022 ftunivgoeteborg 2023-10-04T21:13:15Z The arctic has experienced more rapid global warming and is more sensitive to temperature changes compared with the rest of the world. We can already see how vegetation distributed across the arctic tundra has changed in composition, height, and abundance. It’s not only that climate can change the vegetation; it has also been shown that the vegetation can have an impact on the climate and global warming through buffering effects on soil temperatures. This study aimed to investigate what influence alpine vegetation has on tundra soil temperatures by comparing the temperature difference between the vegetation canopy (representing the air temperature) and the soil and ground in places with different amounts and types of vegetation during the summer and winter season. 64 plots were installed on the tundra around Latnjajaure field station in northern Sweden with microclimate loggers to measure temperatures. A vegetation survey was performed at every plot to document vegetation cover and the types of species present. The coverage of shrubs in the plot was significantly related to soil temperatures in the summer, whereby a higher coverage of shrubs led to lower soil temperatures, but the same effect was not seen in surface temperatures. The abundance of moss in the plot had a significant effect in the winter season; more moss correlated with higher soil and ground temperatures compared to air temperatures. The amount of bare soil also showed significance where more bare soil correlated with lower soil temperatures. This study supports the claim that alpine vegetation significantly influences the soil temperatures on the tundra. It’s also suggested that tundra vegetation could lower soil temperatures, offsetting the effects of increasing temperatures on the tundra and thereby influence the speed of permafrost thaw and greenhouse gas emissions. Text Arctic Global warming Northern Sweden permafrost Tundra University of Gothenburg: GUPEA (Gothenburg University Publications Electronic Archive) |
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University of Gothenburg: GUPEA (Gothenburg University Publications Electronic Archive) |
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ftunivgoeteborg |
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English |
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The arctic has experienced more rapid global warming and is more sensitive to temperature changes compared with the rest of the world. We can already see how vegetation distributed across the arctic tundra has changed in composition, height, and abundance. It’s not only that climate can change the vegetation; it has also been shown that the vegetation can have an impact on the climate and global warming through buffering effects on soil temperatures. This study aimed to investigate what influence alpine vegetation has on tundra soil temperatures by comparing the temperature difference between the vegetation canopy (representing the air temperature) and the soil and ground in places with different amounts and types of vegetation during the summer and winter season. 64 plots were installed on the tundra around Latnjajaure field station in northern Sweden with microclimate loggers to measure temperatures. A vegetation survey was performed at every plot to document vegetation cover and the types of species present. The coverage of shrubs in the plot was significantly related to soil temperatures in the summer, whereby a higher coverage of shrubs led to lower soil temperatures, but the same effect was not seen in surface temperatures. The abundance of moss in the plot had a significant effect in the winter season; more moss correlated with higher soil and ground temperatures compared to air temperatures. The amount of bare soil also showed significance where more bare soil correlated with lower soil temperatures. This study supports the claim that alpine vegetation significantly influences the soil temperatures on the tundra. It’s also suggested that tundra vegetation could lower soil temperatures, offsetting the effects of increasing temperatures on the tundra and thereby influence the speed of permafrost thaw and greenhouse gas emissions. |
author2 |
University of Gothenburg / Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences Göteborgs universitet / Instiutionen för biologi och miljövetenskap |
format |
Text |
author |
Aspelin, Edith |
spellingShingle |
Aspelin, Edith THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES |
author_facet |
Aspelin, Edith |
author_sort |
Aspelin, Edith |
title |
THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES |
title_short |
THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES |
title_full |
THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES |
title_fullStr |
THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES |
title_full_unstemmed |
THE INFLUENCE OF TUNDRA VEGETATION ON SOIL TEMPERATURES |
title_sort |
influence of tundra vegetation on soil temperatures |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/2077/73702 |
genre |
Arctic Global warming Northern Sweden permafrost Tundra |
genre_facet |
Arctic Global warming Northern Sweden permafrost Tundra |
op_relation |
https://hdl.handle.net/2077/73702 |
_version_ |
1781056774700269568 |