CSTCF

Carbonyl Sulfide for Tracing Carbon Fluxes

26 March 2012 - 7 June 2012

Lead Scientist: Elliott Campbell

Observatory: SGP (Southern Great Plains)

Regional flux partitioning represents a critical knowledge gap due to a lack of robust methods for regional-scale flux partitioning and large uncertainties in forecasting carbon-climate feedbacks. Atmospheric carbonyl sulfide (COS) analysis has the potential capability for partitioning the regional carbon flux into respiration and photosynthesis components. This emerging approach is based on the observation that continental atmospheric CO2 gradients are dominated by net ecosystem fluxes while continental atmospheric COS gradients are dominated by photosynthesis-related plant uptake. Here we use a new COS eddy flux system, COS airborne monitoring data, and atmospheric modeling tools to quantify the climate sensitivity of carbon flux processes at the regional scale. The ARM Southern Great Plains site hosted a spring field deployment of this new measurement system. The multi-scale analysis provides evidence to demonstrate a new COS technique to the terrestrial ecology community and an understanding of how COS should be incorporated into comprehensive investigations of ecosystem processes.