A large release of CO2 and CH4 from high latitude terrestrial and marine systems to the atmosphere has the potential to affect the climate system in a way that may accelerate global warming. To improve our ability to predict the dynamics of carbon in high latitudes, this team analyze comprehensively the carbon cycle of the arctic system, guided by the following general questions: What are the geographic patterns of fluxes of CO2 and CH4 over the Pan-Arctic region and how is the balance changing over time and What processes control the sources and sinks of CO2 and CH4 over the Pan-Arctic region and how do the controls change with time?
To address these general questions, the group will integrate data on CO2 and CH4 dynamics of the Arctic System using a combination of prognostic and inverse approaches and provide an integrative approach to estimating and understanding the exchanges of CO2 and CH4 from terrestrial and marine components of the system.
Because the climate system is vulnerable to significant releases of CO2 and CH4 from high latitudes, the responses of these gases to climate change have global consequences. This study will bring together diverse regional data sets and understanding in the context of a linked set of numerical model studies. It will examine, and attempt to quantify, the fluxes and links between the terrestrial, atmospheric and oceanic components of the Arctic carbon and methane cycles.
