Energy balance closure at ChinaFLUX sites

Network of eddy covariance observation is measuring long-term carbon and water fluxes in contrasting ecosystems and climates. As one important reference of independently evaluating scalar flux estimates from eddy covariance, energy balance closure is used widely in study of carbon and water fluxes. Energy balance closure in ChinaFLUX was evaluated by statistical regression of turbulent energy fluxes (sensible and latent heat) against available energy (net radiation, soil heat flux, canopy heat storage) and the energy balance ratio (EBR) and the frequency distribution of relative errors of energy balance (δ). The trends of diurnal and seasonal variation of energy balance in ChinaFLUX were analyzed. The results indicated that the imbalance was prevalent in all observation sites, but there were little differences among sites because of the properties variation of sites. The imbalance was greater during nocturnal periods than daytime and closure was improved with friction velocity intensifying. Generally the results suggested that estimates of the scalar turbulent fluxes of sensible and latent heat were underestimated and/or that available energy was overestimated. Finally, we discussed certain factors that are contributed to the imbalance of energy, such as systematic errors associated with the sampling mismatch, systematic instrument bias, neglected energy sinks, low and high frequency loss of turbulent fluxes and advection of heat and water vapor.     

非均匀灌溉棉田能量平衡特征研究

运用国际能量平衡实验(EBEX-2000)的湍流、净辐射和土壤观测资料,运用涡动相关法分析了非均匀灌溉引起的热内边界层发展条件下近地层感热、潜热通量特征,并对有无灌溉两种条件下的能量闭合度进行了对比分析.在计算感热、潜热通量过程中,分别将Schotanus订正和Webb订正纳入了考虑范围,研究了两种订正方法对计算湍流热通量的影响.研究结果发现,由于非均匀灌溉生成的热内边界层使得近地层感热通量受到抑制,潜热通量出现波动,该现象在8.7 m比2.7 m 更为显著.非均匀灌溉导致的热内边界层的存在使得近地层能量闭合度偏低,能量平衡比率约为0.65;而没有热内边界层存在时,近地层能量平衡比率约为0.70.本实验中,Schotanus订正使得感热通量显著减小,其订正量日平均值约为-8 W/m²,占净辐射的近4%;Webb订正量日平均值约为2 W/m²,对能量平衡的影响较小.     

Evaluation of energy balance closure adjustment methods by independent evapotranspiration estimates from lysimeters and hydrological simulations

Non‐closure of the surface energy balance is a frequently observed phenomenon of hydrometeorological field measurements, when using the eddy‐covariance method, which can be ascribed to an underestimation of the turbulent fluxes. Several approaches have been proposed in order to adjust the measured fluxes for this apparent systematic error. However, there are uncertainties about partitioning of the energy balance residual between the sensible and latent heat flux and whether such a correction should be applied on 30‐min data or longer time scales. The data for this study originate from two grassland sites in southern Germany, where measurements from weighable lysimeters are available as reference. The adjusted evapotranspiration rates are also compared with joint energy and water balance simulations using a physically based distributed hydrological model. We evaluate two adjustment methods: the first one preserves the Bowen ratio and the correction factor is determined on a daily basis. The second one attributes a smaller portion of the residual energy to the latent heat flux than to the sensible heat flux for closing the energy balance for every 30‐min flux integration interval. Both methods lead to an improved agreement of the eddy‐covariance based fluxes with the independent lysimeter estimates and the physically based model simulations. The first method results in a better comparability of evapotranspiration rates, and the second method leads to a smaller overall bias. These results are similar between both sites despite considerable differences in terrain complexity and grassland management. Moreover, we found that a daily adjustment factor leads to less scatter than a complete partitioning of the residual for every half‐hour time interval. The vertical temperature gradient in the surface layer and friction velocity were identified as important predictors for a potential future parameterisation of the energy balance residual.     

An Analysis of Turbulent Heat Fluxes and the Energy Balance During the REFLEX Campaign

Three eddy covariance stations were installed at the Barrax experimental farm during the Land-Atmosphere Exchanges (REFLEX) airborne training and measurement campaign to provide ground truth data of energy balance fluxes and vertical temperature and wind profiles. The energy balance closure ratio (EBR) was 105% for a homogeneous camelina site, 86% at a sparse reforestation site, and 73% for a vineyard. We hypothesize that the lower closure in the last site was related to the limited fetch. Incorporating a vertical gradient of soil thermal properties decreased the RMSE of the energy balance at the camelina site by 16 W m^?2. At the camelina site, eddy covariance estimates of sensible and latent heat fluxes could be reproduced well using mean vertical profiles of wind and temperature, provided that the Monin—Obukhov length is known. Measured surface temperature and sensible heat fluxes suggested high excess resistance for heat (kB^?1 = 17).     

VHF radar observations of turbulent structures in the polar mesopause region

The mobile SOUSY VHF Radar was operated in the summer of 1987 during the MAC/SINE campaign in northern Norway to study the polar mesosphere summer echoes (PMSE). Measurements of the spectral width indicate that two types of structures occur. In general mesospheric layers are bifurcated exhibiting a narrow spectral width and a well-defined aspect sensitivity. However, for about 10% of the observation time cells of enhanced turbulence characterized by extremely broad spectral widths appear predominantly in the upper sublayer above 86 km. Identification and separation of beam and shear broadening allows a determination of the turbulence-induced component of the spectral width. This case study reveals that during several events these cloud-like structures of enhanced turbulence move with an apparent velocity of several tens of meters per second which is almost identical with the phase trace velocity of simultaneously observed waves. Since, at that time, the Richardson number was less than a quarter, it was concluded that these turbulent cells were generated by a Kelvin-Helmholtz mechanism. The horizontal extent of these structures was calculated to be less than 40 km. A general relation between spectral width and echo power was not detected. The turbulent component of the spectral width was used to calculate typical values of the energy dissipation rate at times where narrow spectral width dominates and during periods of enhanced turbulence. In addition, the outer scale of the inertial subrange (buoyancy scale) was estimated. For the first time the occurrence and motion of this type of structures of enhanced spectral width is analyzed and discussed in detail.     

Comparison of flux measurement by open-path and close-path eddy covariance systems

For flux measurement, the eddy covariance technique supplies a possibility to directly measure the exchange between vegetation and atmosphere; and there are two kinds of eddy covariance systems, open-path and close-path systems. For the system error, it may result in difference of flux measurements by two systems. Therefore, it is necessary to compare the measured results from them. ChinaFLUX covers of eight sites applied the micrometeorological method, in which Changbai Mountains (CBS) and Qianyanzhou (QYZ) carried out open-path eddy covariance (OPEC) and close-path eddy covariance (CPEC) measurements synchronously.In this paper the data sets of CBS and QYZ were employed. The delay time of close-path analyzer to the open-path analyzer was calculated; the spectra and cospectra of time-series data of OPEC and CPEC were analyzed; the open-path flux measurement was used as a standard comparison, the close-path flux measurement results were evaluated. The results show that, at two sites the delay time of CO2 density for close-path analyzer was about 7.0-8.0 s, H2O density about 8.0-9.0 s; the spectrum from the open-path, close-path and 3D sonic anemometer was consistent with the expected -2/3 slope (log-log plot), and the cospectra showed the expected slope of -4/3 in the internal subrange; the CO2 flux measured by the close-path sensor was about 84% of that of open-path measurement at QYZ, about 80% at CBS, and the latent heat flux was balanced for two systems at QYZ, 86% at CBS. From the flux difference between open-path and close-path analyzers, it could be inferred that the attenuation of turbulent fluctuations in flow through tube of CPEC affected H2O flux more significantly than CO2 flux. The gap between two systems was bigger at CBS than at QYZ; the diurnal variation in CO2 flux of two measurement systems was very consistent.     

Combining the dissipation method and surface renewal analysis to estimate scalar fluxes from the time traces over rangeland grass near Ione (California)

The dissipation method, the method preferred for estimating scalar surface fluxes over open water has not traditionally been used by agronomists, whereas the surface renewal (SR) theory in conjunction with the analysis of the scalar time trace offers tremendous advantages for estimating fluxes over agronomic crops. For a steady and horizontally homogeneous flow, it is shown that the dissipation method and SR analysis are closely related. As a consequence, a new dissipation–SR analysis expression for estimating scalar surface fluxes was derived. The new equation requires no calibration, and the scalar time trace measured at a frequency capable of identifying canopy‐scale coherent structures (typically 4–10 Hz in agriculture) is the only input required. Sensible and latent heat flux estimates obtained from 10 Hz air temperature and water vapour concentration measurements in the inertial sub‐layer (2 m height) over short, homogeneous rangeland grass at a site where similarity does not hold gave similar results to those measured with the eddy covariance (EC) method. For unstable cases, the new equation provided a root mean square error of 57 W m^?2 for the surface energy‐balance closure. For stable cases, the performance was difficult to evaluate because the EC fluxes were similar in magnitude to the sensor error. It is concluded that the proposed method can contribute to a better understanding of hydrological processes and water requirements by providing an accurate, less costly, alternative method to indirectly estimate evapotranspiration as the residual of the energy balance equation. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evapotranspiration from a wet temperate grassland and its sensitivity to microenvironmental variables

The eddy covariance and energy balance method was employed to determine evapotranspiration (LE) over a wet temperate C3–C4 co‐existing grassland in Japan. After sensible heat flux (H) was estimated via the eddy covariance technique, LE was calculated as the residual of the energy budget with calibration against the direct measurements of LE by a lysimeter. Daily mean LE varied from 0·8 to 10·5 MJ d⁻¹, with a peak at 16·5 MJ d⁻¹ in late July to early August. Day‐to‐day and seasonal variability in LE was affected appreciably by net radiation (R_n), atmospheric vapour pressure deficit (VPD), canopy surface conductance (g_c) and leaf area index (LAI). Before the canopy closure, LE responded to LAI in a linear manner. However, LE decreased with increasing LAI later in summer. Daytime variation in the decoupling coefficient (Ω) demonstrates that the canopy decoupled from the atmosphere in the morning and LE was primarily driven by the available energy, while in the afternoon the canopy partially coupled to the atmosphere so that LE was sensitive to VPD and g_c. Throughout the whole measurement period, Ω was generally larger than 0·5, suggesting that the available energy contributes more to LE than VPD. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the performance of surface renewal analysis to estimate sensible heat flux over two growing rice fields under the influence of regional advection

High-frequency temperature data were recorded at one height and they were used in Surface Renewal (SR) analysis to estimate sensible heat flux during the full growing season of two rice fields located north–northeast of Colusa, CA (in the Sacramento Valley). One of the fields was seeded into a flooded paddy and the other was drill seeded before flooding. To minimize fetch requirements, the measurement height was selected to be close to the maximum expected canopy height. The roughness sub-layer depth was estimated to discriminate if the temperature data came from the inertial or roughness sub-layer. The equation to estimate the roughness sub-layer depth was derived by combining simple mixing-length theory, mixing-layer analogy, equations to account for stable atmospheric surface layer conditions, and semi-empirical canopy–architecture relationships. The potential for SR analysis as a method that operates in the full surface boundary layer was tested using data collected over growing vegetation at a site influenced by regional advection of sensible heat flux. The inputs used to estimate the sensible heat fluxes included air temperature sampled at 10 Hz, the mean and variance of the horizontal wind speed, the canopy height, and the plant area index for a given intermediate height of the canopy. Regardless of the stability conditions and measurement height above the canopy, sensible heat flux estimates using SR analysis gave results that were similar to those measured with the eddy covariance method. Under unstable cases, it was shown that the performance was sensitive to estimation of the roughness sub-layer depth. However, an expression was provided to select the crucial scale required for its estimation.     

Effects of different gap filling methods and land surface energy balance closure on annual net ecosystem exchange in a semiarid area of China

Based on eddy covariance measurements over two kinds of land surfaces(a degraded grassland and a maize cropland)in a semiarid area of China in 2005 and 2008,the effects of different gap filling methods,energy balance closure and friction velocity threshold(u*)on annual net ecosystem exchange(NEE)were analyzed.Six gap filling methods,including mean diurnal variation(MDV),marginal distribution sampling(MDS),and nonlinear regressions method,were investigated by generating secondary datasets with four different artificial gap lengths(ranging in length from single half-hours to 12 consecutive days).The MDS generally showed a good overall performance especially for long gaps,with an annual sum bias error less than 5 g C m-2 yr-1.There was a large positive annual sum bias error for nonlinear regressions,indicating an overestimate on net ecosystem respiration.The offset in the annual sum NEE for four nonlinear regressions was from 8.0 to 30.8 g C m-2 yr-1.As soil water content was a limiting factor in the semiarid area,the nonlinear regressions considering both soil temperature and soil water content as controlling variables had a better performance than others.The performance of MDV was better in daytime than in nighttime,with an annual sum bias error falling between-2.6 and-13.4 g C m-2 yr-1.Overall,the accuracy of the gap filling method was dependent on the type of the land surface,gap length,and the time of day when the data gap occurred.The energy balance ratio for the two ecosystems was nearly 80%.Turbulent intensity had a large impact on energy balance ratio.Low energy balance ratio was observed under low friction velocity during the night.When there was a large fetch distance in a wind direction,a low energy balance ratio was caused by mismatch of the footprints between the available energy and turbulent fluxes.The effect of energy balance correction on CO2 flux was evaluated by assuming the imbalance caused by the underestimation of sensible heat flux and latent heat flux.The results showed an average increase of 10 g C m-2 yr-1 for annual NEE in both ecosystems with an energy balance correction.On the other hand,the u*threshold also have a large impact on annual sum NEE.Net carbon emission increased 37.5 g C m-2 yr-1 as u*threshold increased from 0.1 to 0.2 m s-1,indicating a large impact of imposing u*threshold on net ecosystem carbon exchange.     

近地层能量闭合度对陆面过程模式影响

大量近地层观测试验表明,利用涡动相关法观测的湍流通量小于近地层可利用能量,即近地层能量是不闭合的,这种不闭合度一般为20%甚至更高.而陆面过程模式是基于地气间能量平衡建立,并且模式中的湍流边界层参数化方案通常根据实际观测的湍流通量来确定,因此能量不闭合必将对陆面过程模式造成一定的影响.本文利用2007年春季SACOL站的近地层观测资料,依据能量守恒将能量不闭合中的残余能量通过波文比分配到观测的湍流通量中,即修正涡动相关法观测的湍流通量使得近地层能量达到平衡;之后分别利用观测和修正的湍流通量,建立了能量不闭合和闭合情形下的湍流参数化方案,借助陆面过程模式SHAW,通过数值模拟和对比分析方法考察近地层能量闭合度对陆面过程模式的影响.研究结果表明近地层能量闭合对陆面过程模式有显著的影响:在陆面过程数值模拟中,当应用近地层能量不闭合的湍流通量形成的湍流参数化方案时,陆面过程模式会明显高估地表长波辐射及土壤温度;但当应用修正湍流通量使得近地层能量达到闭合形成的湍流参数化方案后,在不改变任何地表土壤物理生化属性的情况下,陆面过程模式能较好地模拟地表长波辐射和土壤温度.     

Multiple time scale evaluation of the energy balance during the maize growing season,and a new reason for energy imbalance

Energy imbalance is a common problem associated with the measurement of surface energy using the eddy covariance method. In the evaluation of the energy balance, people usually pay more attention to the statistical result that the effective energy (the sum of sensible and latent heat) is systematically lower than the available energy (the difference of net radiation and ground heat flux). However, little attention has been paid to the existence of the reversed situation when the effective energy is larger than the available energy or their contribution to the overall energy closure rate. In this paper, based on the analysis of the energy balance on multiple time scales across the maize growth season, we conclude that the non-synchronization of energy components is the main reason for the existence of the reversed case. By shifting the phase of the effective energy components half an hour ahead, the rates of energy closure over all time scales are improved and dramatically reduce the number of the half-hourly samples when the energy ratio exceeds 1 or is below 0.5. According to the characteristics of the energy distribution and transformation over multiple time scales, latent heat is always the main type of energy cost, and the residual of the energy balance increases with the growth of the maize plant surpassing the sensible heat for seventy days. It is suggested that the heat storage and photosynthetic energy play an important role in the energy balance during the growing period of maize. Supported by National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No.2007CB714402) and State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science (Beijing Normal University)     

湍流湿度脉动特性研究——根据淮河流域实验资料

利用淮河流域实验得到的湍流湿度脉动资料 ,应用统计理论、Fourier分析和小波分析方法 ,对湍流湿度脉动的统计特征、谱特征和间歇性特征作了初步分析 .结果表明 :(1)在淮河流域这样的高湿地区 ,水汽对其地表能量平衡 ,能量输送与循环具有重要作用 ;(2)湍流湿度脉动的能谱和互谱在惯性副区基本符合“ - 2 /3”次律和“ - 4/3”次律 ;(3)淮河流域湍流湿度脉动场存在很强的间歇性 ,不符合Kolmogorov湍流理论 .利用离散正交小波变换将湍流湿度脉动场中的耗散事件分离出来 ,通过引入限制因子 ,将湍流脉动场中的耗散事件滤去后 ,能较好地抑制湍流湿度的间歇性 .但与风速脉动相比 ,湍流湿度场间歇性的抑制效果较差 .     

Observational study of land-atmosphere turbulent flux exchange over complex underlying surfaces in urban and suburban areas

Based on observation data from urban observation stations in Nanjing and Suzhou at two heights in the roughness sublayer above the canopy and observation data at three heights in the SORPES station at the Xianlin Campus of Nanjing University in a suburban area, the of land-atmosphere turbulent flux exchange and the energy balance over complex underlying surfaces were analyzed. The results indicated that in the roughness sublayer above the canopy, the nearsurface momentum flux, sensible heat flux, and latent heat flux increase with height, and the observation value of the surface albedo increases with height. However, the observation value of the net radiation decreases with height, thus resulting in a change in the urban surface energy budget with height. At the SORPES station in the Xianlin Campus of Nanjing University located in a hilly area, the momentum flux, sensible heat flux, and latent heat flux of the ground observation field significantly differed from those of the two heights on the tower, while the two heights on the tower were extremely close. These results indicate that the flux observation over the complex underlying surface exhibits adequate local only when it is conducted at a higher altitude above the ground. The turbulent flux observation results at a lower altitude in urban areas are underestimated, while the turbulent flux observation results near the surface produce a large deviation over the underlying hilly complex.     

Variabilité de la densité spectrale de la température et du vent moyen dans la couche limite planétaire

We have carried out a series of recordings reproducing the small scale structures of temperature and windspeed within the boundary layer. The results obtained have been processed by computer and a direct comparison made between the slope of the spectral density functions and the theoretical slopen=5/3 defining the turbulence in the region of the inertial subrange.The measurements made at various altitudes on thin atmospheric samples demonstrate the variability of the spectral density slope with altitude. The hypotheses put forward by A. M. Obukhov, R. Bolgiano, G. H. Shur, P. Misme, A. Monin or S. Panchev, for example, enable the spectral variations and certain discontinuities in the turbulence observed during the experiments, within and beyond the boundary layer, to be explained.

     

Wet surface resistance of forest canopy in monsoon Asia: Implications for eddy‐covariance measurement of evapotranspiration

During the Asian monsoon period, intense precipitation commonly occurs for an extended period in accompaniment with a reduction in solar radiation. This suggests that wet surface evapotranspiration is an important contributor to the total evapotranspiration. Therefore, investigating evapotranspiration over a wet canopy surface is critical to achieve a better understanding of water and energy cycles in Asia. In this study, we estimated surface resistances under wet conditions in a mixed forest influenced by the East Asian monsoon system. We showed that the surface resistance had a non‐negligible magnitude of about 30 sm^?1 even under wet conditions. We also found that the ratio between the actual and potential evapotranspiration depended on the friction velocity regardless of the time of day. Our analyses suggest that this dependency is tightly related to the underestimation of turbulent fluxes by the eddy‐covariance system under wet surface conditions. Together, our findings suggest that the wet surface resistance, although small, should be considered in simulating evapotranspiration because the forest ecosystem is strongly coupled to the overlying atmosphere. This could significantly improve the shortcomings of evapotranspiration measurement and modeling in Asian forest canopies influenced by the monsoon system. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

藏南羊卓雍错湖面大气湍流特征观测分析

湍流运动是大气边界层的本质特征,是地表与大气之间能量和物质交换的主要方式.本文利用2016和2017年4-10月藏南羊卓雍错湖泊涡动观测资料,分析了湖面大气湍流方差和湍流特征量的统计和变化特征.结果表明：（1）不稳定层结下,三维风速分量和超声虚温、水汽密度、CO₂密度的无量纲标准差随稳定度变化符合Monin-Obukhov相似理论的"1/3"或"-1/3"次幂律,垂直风速的拟合效果最好;稳定层结下,除CO₂密度无量纲标准差与稳定度无明显关系外,其他量基本上满足相似性规律;中性条件下,以上物理量的无量纲标准差分别趋近常数：3.57、3.93、0.77、20.91、6.35和11.96.（2）水平方向平均湍流强度（0.60和0.58）大于垂直方向（0.13）,三维方向湍流强度与平均风速的变化呈显著负相关,相关系数分别为-0.39、-0.42和-0.34.（3）湖面湍流动能随风速呈线性增长,增长率达0.45 m/s;近中性层结时湍流动能最大,层结越稳定或不稳定湍流动能均减小.（4）湖泊下午到傍晚动量输送较强,13：00-22：30时间段平均动量通量达0.091 kg/（m·s²）;热量输送以潜热为主,潜热通量日平均值（77.3 W/m²）是感热通量（14.6 W/m²）的5.3倍,感热和潜热通量日变化峰值分别出现在5：30（22.4 W/m²）和16：00（106.6 W/m²）.     

Eddy flux corrections for CO2 exchange in broad-leaved Korean pine mixed forest of Changbai Mountains

Based on analysis of mechanisms causing energy no-closure and nocturnal low fluxes issues for CO2 exchange studies by eddy covariance method, corrections were done with the raw data sets obtained from Changbai Mountains forest flux site, to evaluate the impacts of sonic anemometer tilt, frequency response limitations and advection on estimation of CO2 exchange, respectively. The results show that the planar fit coordinate transforming method is superior to the streamline coordinate transforming method in tilt correction. The latter could cause a systematical underestimation of eddy fluxes relating with the angle of sensor and terrain tilt. The underestimation of CO2 and energy fluxes for frequency response limitations average 3.0% and 2.0% during daytime, respectively, which increase by 9.0% and 5.5% during nighttime, respectively. The corrections of frequency response limitations are closely related to atmospheric stability. The advection loss of CO2 fluxes is dominated by nocturnal vertical advection, which is at least 18% when the horizontal advection is neglected. It is suggested that more work be done to understand the characteristics of horizontal advection and turbulent eddies under a complexcircumstance.