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JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH,
VOL. 113,
G03S01,
17 PP., 2008
doi:10.1029/2007JG000504
Arctic patterned-ground ecosystems: A synthesis of field studies and models along a North American Arctic Transect
Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
University of Alaska Agriculture and Forestry Experiment Station, Palmer, Alaska, USA
University of Alaska Agriculture and Forestry Experiment Station, Palmer, Alaska, USA
Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Institute of Tropical Forestry, U.S. Department of Agriculture, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Institute of Tropical Forestry, U.S. Department of Agriculture, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, Zurich, Switzerland
Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Institute of Plant Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, Alaska, USA
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Komarov Botanical Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg, Russia
Institute of Plant Ecology, University of Muenster, Muenster, Germany
Arctic landscapes have visually striking patterns of small polygons, circles, and hummocks. The linkages between the geophysical and biological components of these systems and their responses to climate changes are not well understood. The “Biocomplexity of Patterned Ground Ecosystems” project examined patterned-ground features (PGFs) in all five Arctic bioclimate subzones along an 1800-km trans-Arctic temperature gradient in northern Alaska and northwestern Canada. This paper provides an overview of the transect to illustrate the trends in climate, PGFs, vegetation, n-factors, soils, active-layer depth, and frost heave along the climate gradient. We emphasize the thermal effects of the vegetation and snow on the heat and water fluxes within patterned-ground systems. Four new modeling approaches build on the theme that vegetation controls microscale soil temperature differences between the centers and margins of the PGFs, and these in turn drive the movement of water, affect the formation of aggradation ice, promote differential soil heave, and regulate a host of system properties that affect the ability of plants to colonize the centers of these features. We conclude with an examination of the possible effects of a climate warming on patterned-ground ecosystems.
Received 31 May 2007; accepted 26 March 2008; published 14 June 2008.
Citation: (2008), Arctic patterned-ground ecosystems: A synthesis of field studies and models along a North American Arctic Transect, J. Geophys. Res., 113, G03S01, doi:10.1029/2007JG000504.
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