Estimating 40 years of nitrogen deposition in global biomes using the SCIAMACHY NO2 column. Issue 20 (17th October 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lu, Xuehe; Jiang, Hong; Zhang, Xiuying; Liu, Jinxun; Jin, JiaXin
• Is Part Of: International journal of remote sensing. Volume 37:Issue 20(2016)
• Page Start: 4964
• Page End: 4978
• Publication Date: 2016-10-17
• Subjects: Remote sensing -- Periodicals; Télédétection -- Périodiques; 621.3678
• DOI: 10.1080/01431161.2016.1225178
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0143-1161

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Owing to human activity, global nitrogen (N) cycles have been altered. In the past 100 years, global N deposition has increased. Currently, the monitoring and estimating of N deposition and the evaluation of its effects on global carbon budgets are the focus of many researchers. NO2 columns retrieved by space-borne sensors provide us with a new way of exploring global N cycles and these have the ability to estimate N deposition. However, the time range limitation of NO2 columns makes the estimation of long timescale N deposition difficult. In this study we used ground-based NOx emission data to expand the density of NO2 columns, and 40 years of N deposition (1970–2009) was inverted using the multivariate linear model with expanded NO2 columns. The dynamic of N deposition was examined in both global and biome scales. The results show that the average N deposition was 0.34 g N m –2 year –1 in the 2000s, which was an increase of 38.4% compared with the 1970s'. The total N deposition in different biomes is unbalanced. N deposition is only 38.0% of the global total in forest biomes; this is made up of 25.9%, 11.3, and 0.7% in tropical, temperate, and boreal forests, respectively. As N-limited biomes, there was little increase of N deposition in boreal forests. However, N deposition has increased by a total of 59.6% in tropical forests and croplands, which are N-rich biomes. Such characteristics may influence the effects on global carbon budgets.