DATA-MODEL ASSIMILATION CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN THE LTER PROGRAM

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DATA-MODEL ASSIMILATION CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES IN THE LTER PROGRAM
Debra Peters Lead Research Scientist, USDA ARS,
Jornada Experimental Range, Las Cruces, NM
88003-0003. debpeter_at_nmsu.edu Lead Principal
Investigator, Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological
Research program
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• Long Term Ecological Research Network
• national-level network funded continuously since
  1980
• 26 sites and a network office
• funded in 6 year increments by the National
  Science Foundation
• http//www.lternet.edu

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LTER network contains diverse ecosystems with
common environmental problems How can we
understand and predict dynamics? Are there
general principles and properties across sites?
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LTER from 1980 to 2004 focus on site-based
science and long-term data
Grasslands
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2000 future added focus on network-level
science Common conceptual framework for all sites
Natural systems
Human systems
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LTER provides solid foundation for regional,
continental, and global networks
Rio Grande Network
NM Energy Flux Tower Network
(http//bosque.unm.edu/cleverly/ ).
http//www.p2erls.net/riogrande.html
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National-level networks build on LTER sites
EcoTrends Project (www.ecotrends.info)
Led by Jornada LTER-ARS, NMSU
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• Objectives of EcoTrends Project
• to create a platform for synthesis by producing a
  compendium of easily accessible long-term graphs
  and data (gt 10 years) from ecological research
  sites
• biogeochemistry
• biotic structure
• human economic and demographic
• climate
• (2) to illustrate the utility of this platform in
  addressing important within-site and
  network-level scientific questions
• To date, gt 50 sites and gt 400 datasets are
  accessible through the EcoTrends project.

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Global Network Pole-to-Pole Ecological Lattice
of Sites (P2ERLS) global network of networks
(http//www.p2erls.net)
Web portal to information about research sites
(gt 300 existing sites in the US to-date) Led by
Jornada ARS-LTER, NMSU
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• Opportunities
• Data and site information are available for use
  in models in derived, easy-to-use format
  (EcoTrends, P2ERLS)
• Long-term datasets and sites can be added
  (EcoTrends)
• Sites can be added to continental to global
  networks accessed via web portals (P2ERLS)

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Compare same data from many different sites
Cedar Creek Kellogg Shortgrass
steppe Jornada
Harvard Forest Hubbard Brook Coweeta
Andrews
Palmer Drought severity index (1895-2003)
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Compare similar dynamics in different sites
Kelp forest off CA coast
Desert in NM
(Laliberte et al. 2004)
Jornada ARS- LTER (New Mexico) State changes
through time
Santa Barbara Coastal LTER (California) Change in
fish species composition with time
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Products 1. Folio-sized book to be submitted in
Jan 2008 to Oxford Univ. Press 2. Website
(data, metadata) for synthesis and analysis of
static data (http//www.ecotrends.info) Opportuni
ties Accessibility of many long-term data sets
for modeling and synthesis activities