This book focuses on fluxes of energy, carbon dioxide and matter in and above a Central European spruce forest. The transition from a forest affected by acid rain into a heterogeneous forest occurred as a result of wind throw, bark beetles and climate change. Scientific results obtained over the last 20 years at the FLUXNET site DE-Bay (Waldstein-Weidenbrunnen) are shown together with methods developed at the site, including the application of footprint models for data-quality analysis, the coupling between the trunk space and the atmosphere, the importance of the Damköhler number for trace gas studies, and the turbulent conditions at a forest edge. In addition to the many experimental studies, the book also applies model studies such as higher-order closure models, Large-Eddy Simulations, and runoff models for the catchment and compares them with the experimental data. Moreover, by highlighting processes in the atmosphere it offers insights into the functioning of the ecosystem as a whole. It is of interest to ecologists, micrometeorologists and ecosystem modelers.

After years of technological development and its important achievements to make our life easier and more comfortable, human society is going to face one of the most difficult challenges of the last century: to stabilize the concentra tion levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to prevent harmful effects on the climate system. Through a delicate balance between photosynthesis and respiration, terres trial ecosystems, and in particular forests, are today thought to take up a sig nificant part of the carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere, sometimes called the "terrestrial carbon sink". However, the location, magnitude, and vulnerability of the carbon dioxide sink of the terrestrial biota are still uncer tain. The suite of traditional tools in an ecologist's toolbox for studying ecosys tem productivity and carbon balance include leaf cuvettes, whole-plant and soil chambers for gas exchange, and biomass and soil carbon inventories. While each of the cited methods has distinct advantages, they are limited with regards to their ability to measure net carbon dioxide exchange of the whole ecosystem across a variety of time scales. This book present a compendium of results of a European project (EURO FLUX), funded by the European Commission through its fourth framework program, aiming to elucidate the role of forests in continental carbon balance.

This practical handbook provides a clearly structured, concise and comprehensive account of the huge variety of atmospheric and related measurements relevant to meteorologists and for the purpose of weather forecasting and climate research, but also to the practitioner in the wider field of environmental physics and ecology. The Springer Handbook of Atmospheric Measurements is divided into six parts: The first part offers instructive descriptions of the basics of atmospheric measurements and the multitude of their influencing factors, fundamentals of quality control and standardization, as well as equations and tables of atmospheric, water, and soil quantities. The subsequent parts present classical in-situ measurements as well as remote sensing techniques from both ground-based as well as airborn or satellite-based methods. The next part focusses on complex measurements and methods that integrate different techniques to establish more holistic data. Brief discussions of measurements in soils and water, at plants, in urban and rural environments and for renewable energies demonstrate the potential of such applications. The final part provides an overview of atmospheric and ecological networks. Written by distinguished experts from academia and industry, each of the 64 chapters provides in-depth discussions of the available devices with their specifications, aspects of quality control, maintenance as well as their potential for the future. A large number of thoroughly compiled tables of physical quantities, sensors and system characteristics make this handbook a unique, universal and useful reference for the practitioner and absolutely essential for researchers, students, and technicians.

This book presents research on precipitation partitioning processes in vegetated ecosystems, putting them into a global context. It describes the processes by which meteoric water comes into contact with the vegetation's canopy, typically the first surface contact of precipitation on land. It also discusses how precipitation partitioning by vegetation impacts the amount, patterning, and chemistry of water reaching the surface, as well as the amount and timing of evaporative return to the atmosphere. Although this process has been extensively studied, this is the first review of the global literature on the partitioning of precipitation by forests, shrubs, crops, grasslands and other less-studies plant types. The authors offer global contextualization combined with a detailed discussion of the impacts for the climate and terrestrial ecohydrological systems. As such, this comprehensive overview is a valuable reference tool for a wide range of specialists and students in the fields of geoscience and the environment.

This book focuses on the status quo and the latest information on the water-soil-agriculture nexus in the MENA countries. It presents several case studies and applications from e.g. Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan, while also sharing and discussing the latest findings. The content includes a range of agriculture-related topics that focus on: water resources management, impacts of climate change, and wastewater treatment for reuse in agriculture sectors; in addition, sustainable approaches to agricultural-based industry, organic crop production, crop water requirements, and soil environment are discussed in an updated and comprehensive review. In turn, the book discusses the applications of GIS and remote sensing as a new technology for better agriculture management, as well as its use in Egypt as a representative country. In closing, it considers the implementation of an environmental information system in data-scarce MENA countries from the standpoint of the water-food nexus, and addresses the question of climate justice in the MENA region. Exploring various dimensions of MENA country-based case studies on achieving sustainable agriculture, the book offers an invaluable source of topical information for agricultural sustainability-related stakeholders in the region, researchers and graduate students alike.

Semiannual, with semiannual and annual indexes. References to all scientific and technical literature coming from DOE, its laboratories, energy centers, and contractors. Includes all works deriving from DOE, other related government-sponsored information, and foreign nonnuclear information. Arranged under 39 categories, e.g., Biomedical sciences, basic studies; Biomedical sciences, applied studies; Health and safety; and Fusion energy. Entry gives bibliographical information and abstract. Corporate, author, subject, report number indexes.