This interdisciplinary project consists of a series of climate model experiments that explore the impacts of arctic land-surface changes on large-scale features of climate. The project addresses the two primary categories of known vegetation-climate feedbacks: impacts on carbon cycling, and impacts on surface and lower atmosphere energy exchange. Existing work has been largely with simple conceptual models of impact assessment - this project endeavors to take the next step by isolating and assessing the remote impact of arctic land-surface change in a global climate model framework. The research first involves model development to improve the representation of biological processes in boreal ecosystems in a coupled climate-dynamic vegetation model system. This is followed by model simulations to assess the regional and global impacts of CO2-induced high-latitude warming and subsequent changes in boreal vegetation. A graduate student will be supported, and applicable results will be incorporated into the PI's teaching curriculum. Broader impacts may also result from bridging the Arctic terrestrial and global climate communities, and potential input to the ongoing international climate change detection and assessment process.
