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Soil Organic Carbon and Below Ground Biomass: Development of New GLOBE Special MeasurementsA scientific consensus is building that changes in the atmospheric concentrations of radiatively active gases are changing the climate (IPCC, 1990). One of these gases CO2 has been increasing in concentration due to additions from anthropogenic sources that are primarily industrial and land use related. The soil contains a very large pool of carbon, estimated at 1550 Gt (Lal 1995) which is larger than the atmospheric and biosphere pools of carbon combined (Greenland, 1995). The flux between the soil and the atmosphere is very large, 60 Pg C/yr (Lal 1997), and is especially important because the soil can act as either a source or a sink for carbon. On any given landscape, as much as 50% of the biomass that provides the major source of carbon can be below ground. In addition, the movement of carbon in and out of the soil is mediated by the living organisms. At present, there is no widespread sampling of soil biomass in any consistent or coordinated manner. Current large scale estimates of soil carbon are limited by the number and widely dispersed nature of the data points available. A measurement of the amount of carbon in the soil would supplement existing carbon data bases as well as provide a benchmark that can be used to determine whether the soil is storing carbon or releasing it to the atmosphere. Information on the below ground biomass would be a valuable addition to our understanding of net primary productivity and standing biomass. The addition of these as special measurements within GLOBE would be unique in terms of areal extent and continuity, and make a real contribution to scientific understanding of carbon dynamics.
Document ID
19990089295
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Levine, Elissa
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Haskett, Jonathan
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Date Acquired
August 19, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1999
Subject Category
Geophysics
Meeting Information
Meeting: Global Learning to Benefit the Environment
Location: Durham, NH
Country: United States
Start Date: July 18, 1999
End Date: July 30, 1999
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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