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Greening of arctic Alaska, 1981–2001
- Source :
- Geophysical Research Letters. 30
- Publication Year :
- 2003
- Publisher :
- American Geophysical Union (AGU), 2003.
-
Abstract
- [1] Here we analyzed a time series of 21-yr satellite data for three bioclimate subzones in northern Alaska and confirmed a long-term trend of increase in vegetation greenness for the Alaskan tundra that has been detected globally for the northern latitudes. There was a 16.9% (±5.6%) increase in peak vegetation greenness across the region that corresponded to simultaneous increases in temperatures. We also examined the changes for four specific vegetation types using an 11-yr finer resolution (1-km) satellite data and found that the temporal changes in peak and time-integrated greenness were greatest in areas of moist nonacidic tundra. These changes in greenness between 1981 and 2001 correspond approximately to a 171 g/m2 (±81 g/m2) increases in aboveground plant biomass for Alaskan tundra. This remotely sensed interpretation is conducted in the absence of long-term biomass records in the region.
Details
- ISSN :
- 19448007 and 00948276
- Volume :
- 30
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Geophysical Research Letters
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........fa6944a0ed43b2d6766d6d9153a956bf