Substantial hysteresis in emergent temperature sensitivity of global wetland CH4 emissions. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • Wetland methane (CH4) emissions ([Formula: see text]) are important in global carbon budgets and climate change assessments. Currently, [Formula: see text] projections rely on prescribed static temperature sensitivity that varies among biogeochemical models. Meta-analyses have proposed a consistent [Formula: see text] temperature dependence across spatial scales for use in models; however, site-level studies demonstrate that [Formula: see text] are often controlled by factors beyond temperature. Here, we evaluate the relationship between [Formula: see text] and temperature using observations from the FLUXNET-CH4 database. Measurements collected across the globe show substantial seasonal hysteresis between [Formula: see text] and temperature, suggesting larger [Formula: see text] sensitivity to temperature later in the frost-free season (about 77% of site-years). Results derived from a machine-learning model and several regression models highlight the importance of representing the large spatial and temporal variability within site-years and ecosystem types. Mechanistic advancements in biogeochemical model parameterization and detailed measurements in factors modulating CH4 production are thus needed to improve global CH4 budget assessments.

published proceedings

  • Nat Commun

altmetric score

  • 35.3

author list (cited authors)

  • Chang, K., Riley, W. J., Knox, S. H., Jackson, R. B., McNicol, G., Poulter, B., ... Zona, D.

citation count

  • 12

complete list of authors

  • Chang, Kuang-Yu||Riley, William J||Knox, Sara H||Jackson, Robert B||McNicol, Gavin||Poulter, Benjamin||Aurela, Mika||Baldocchi, Dennis||Bansal, Sheel||Bohrer, Gil||Campbell, David I||Cescatti, Alessandro||Chu, Housen||Delwiche, Kyle B||Desai, Ankur R||Euskirchen, Eugenie||Friborg, Thomas||Goeckede, Mathias||Helbig, Manuel||Hemes, Kyle S||Hirano, Takashi||Iwata, Hiroki||Kang, Minseok||Keenan, Trevor||Krauss, Ken W||Lohila, Annalea||Mammarella, Ivan||Mitra, Bhaskar||Miyata, Akira||Nilsson, Mats B||Noormets, Asko||Oechel, Walter C||Papale, Dario||Peichl, Matthias||Reba, Michele L||Rinne, Janne||Runkle, Benjamin RK||Ryu, Youngryel||Sachs, Torsten||Schäfer, Karina VR||Schmid, Hans Peter||Shurpali, Narasinha||Sonnentag, Oliver||Tang, Angela CI||Torn, Margaret S||Trotta, Carlo||Tuittila, Eeva-Stiina||Ueyama, Masahito||Vargas, Rodrigo||Vesala, Timo||Windham-Myers, Lisamarie||Zhang, Zhen||Zona, Donatella

publication date

  • April 2021