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Introduction

På svenska

Author

  • Hans Meltofte
  • Torben Christensen
  • Bo Elberling
  • Mads C Forchhammer
  • Morten Rasch

Editor

  • Hans Meltofte
  • Torben Christensen
  • Bo Elberling
  • Mads C Forchhammer
  • Morten Rasch

Summary, in English

Our continuously changing global environment requires continuous and detailed monitoring for us to understand how ecosystems are structured and function in response to climatic changes. Understanding the arctic ecosystems is of particular importance (Oechel et al., 1997). Indeed, rather than in boreal and temperate regions, the forecasted climatic changes will be first and most pronounced in the Arctic. Hence, performing long-term monitoring of an arctic ecosystem provides us with the unique ability to not only give "early warnings" of climate change impacts but also, and perhaps even more important, predict how and where in the ecosystem these will be most pronounced and with what consequences for stability, structure and function. Since 1995, Zackenberg Ecological Research Operations (ZERO) has monitored annually over 1500 variables concurrently across the physical and biological compartments of a single high-arctic terrestrial ecosystem in central Northeast Greenland. This makes ZERO the most integrated and comprehensive long-term monitoring and research programme presently operating in the Arctic. This book explores the complex physical and ecological long-term dynamics of a high-arctic terrestrial ecosystem. Since the book is based on data from ZERO, this introductory chapter presents the structural and organisational foundation for ZERO. Following our introduction are four chapters providing the climatic and ecological background together with a presentation of the study area. The rest of the book is devoted entirely to the physical, ecological and ecosystem processes.

Publishing year

2008

Language

English

Pages

1-12

Publication/Series

High-arctic ecosystem dynamics in a changing climate - Ten years of monitoring and research at Zackenberg Research Station, Northeast Greenland (Advances in Ecological Research)

Volume

40

Document type

Book chapter

Publisher

Elsevier

Topic

  • Physical Geography

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0065-2504
  • ISBN: 9780123736659