Authors
Charles D Koven, Edward Schuur, Christina Schaedel, Theodore J Bohn, Eleanor Burke, Guangsheng Chen, Xiaodong Chen, Philippe Ciais, Guido Grosse, JW Harden, Daniel J Hayes, Gustaf Hugelius, Elchin E Jafarov, Gerhard Krinner, Peter Kuhry, David M Lawrence, Andrew MacDougall, Sergei S Marchenko, A David McGuire, Susan Natali, Dmitry Nicolsky, David Olefeldt, Shushi Peng, Vladimir E Romanovsky, Kevin M Schaefer, Jens Strauss, Claire C Treat, Merritt R Turetsky
Publication date
2015/12
Journal
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
Volume
2015
Pages
B42C-08
Description
We present an approach to estimate the feedback from large-scale thawing of permafrost soils using a simplified, data-constrained model that combines three elements: soil carbon (C) maps and profiles to identify the distribution and type of C in permafrost soils; incubation experiments to quantify the rates of C lost after thaw; and models of soil thermal dynamics in response to climate warming. We call the approach the Permafrost Carbon Network Incubation-Panarctic Thermal scaling approach (PInc-PanTher). The approach assumes that C stocks do not decompose at all when frozen, but once thawed follow set decomposition trajectories as a function of soil temperature. The trajectories are determined according to a 3-pool decomposition model fitted to incubation data using parameters specific to soil horizon types. We calculate litterfall C inputs required to maintain steady-state C balance for the current climate …