Leveraging the signature of heterotrophic respiration on atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> for model benchmarking Journal Article uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • Abstract. Spatial and temporal variations in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) reflect large-scale net carbon exchange between the atmosphere and terrestrial ecosystems. Soil heterotrophic respiration (HR) is one of the component fluxes that drive this net exchange but, given observational limitations, it is difficult to quantify this flux or to evaluate global-scale model simulations thereof. Here, we show that atmospheric CO2 can provide a useful constraint on large-scale patterns of soil heterotrophic respiration. We analyze three soil model configurations (CASA-CNP, MIMICS and CORPSE) that simulate HR fluxes within a biogeochemical testbed that provides each model with identical net primary productivity (NPP) and climate forcings. We subsequently quantify the effects of variation in simulated terrestrial carbon fluxes (NPP and HR from the three soil testbed models) on atmospheric CO2 distributions using a three-dimensional atmospheric tracer transport model. Our results show that atmospheric CO2 observations can be used to identify deficiencies in model simulations of the seasonal cycle and interannual variability in HR relative to NPP. In particular, the two models that explicitly simulated microbial processes (MIMICS and CORPSE) were more variable than observations at interannual timescales and showed a stronger than observed temperature sensitivity. Our results prompt future research directions to use atmospheric CO2, in combination with additional constraints on terrestrial productivity or soil carbon stocks, for evaluating HR fluxes.;

publication date

  • July 15, 2019

has restriction

  • green

Date in CU Experts

  • November 7, 2020 12:03 PM

Full Author List

  • Basile SJ; Lin X; Wieder WR; Hartman MD; Keppel-Aleks G

author count

  • 5

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