A mobile tram system for systematic sampling of ecosystem optical properties

John A. Gamon; Yufu Cheng; Helen Claudio; Loren MacKinney; Daniel A. Sims

doi:10.1016/j.rse.2006.04.006

A mobile tram system for systematic sampling of ecosystem optical properties

John A. Gamon, Yufu Cheng, Helen Claudio, Loren MacKinney, Daniel A. Sims

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

82 Scopus citations

Abstract

Reliable and repeatable field sampling methods are needed for monitoring ecosystem optical properties linked to carbon flux. Here we describe a tram system, consisting of a dual-detector spectrometer mounted on a robotic cart for mobile sampling of ecosystem spectral reflectance. To illustrate the application of this system for monitoring dynamic ecosystem activity, we illustrate how the tram can be used for exploring the multiple factors influencing the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a measure of vegetation greenness and a key optical indicator of vegetation carbon dioxide assimilation. With this system, we collected five years of NDVI data for a chaparral ecosystem in Southern California subject to extreme disturbance. Key factors affecting NDVI at this site included snow cover, sky conditions (clear vs. cloudy), time of day, season, species composition, and environmental perturbations such as rainfall, drought and fire. Applications of this tram system include ecosystem monitoring, satellite validation, and developing surface-atmosphere flux models from remote sensing.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	246-254
Number of pages	9
Journal	Remote Sensing of Environment
Volume	103
Issue number	3
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2006.04.006
State	Published - Aug 15 2006
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Chaparral
Disturbance
FLUXNET
NDVI
Robotic tram system
SpecNet
Spectral reflectance

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Soil Science
Geology
Computers in Earth Sciences

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10.1016/j.rse.2006.04.006

Cite this

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title = "A mobile tram system for systematic sampling of ecosystem optical properties",

abstract = "Reliable and repeatable field sampling methods are needed for monitoring ecosystem optical properties linked to carbon flux. Here we describe a tram system, consisting of a dual-detector spectrometer mounted on a robotic cart for mobile sampling of ecosystem spectral reflectance. To illustrate the application of this system for monitoring dynamic ecosystem activity, we illustrate how the tram can be used for exploring the multiple factors influencing the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a measure of vegetation greenness and a key optical indicator of vegetation carbon dioxide assimilation. With this system, we collected five years of NDVI data for a chaparral ecosystem in Southern California subject to extreme disturbance. Key factors affecting NDVI at this site included snow cover, sky conditions (clear vs. cloudy), time of day, season, species composition, and environmental perturbations such as rainfall, drought and fire. Applications of this tram system include ecosystem monitoring, satellite validation, and developing surface-atmosphere flux models from remote sensing.",

keywords = "Chaparral, Disturbance, FLUXNET, NDVI, Robotic tram system, SpecNet, Spectral reflectance",

author = "Gamon, {John A.} and Yufu Cheng and Helen Claudio and Loren MacKinney and Sims, {Daniel A.}",

note = "Funding Information: Development of the tram was made possible by NSF (CREST, SGER and Ecosystems) and IARC grants to J.A.G. Thanks to the staff of the Sky Oaks Field Station and the San Diego State University Field Stations Office for their support of this project. Administrative support for tram development was provided by the Desert Research Institute, Reno NV, USA. J. Cano, F. Chowdhury, D. Horyath, and R. Johnson provided technical assistance. Z. Mao and D. Thayer provided assistance with Fig. 8 .",

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AU - Gamon, John A.

AU - Cheng, Yufu

AU - Claudio, Helen

AU - MacKinney, Loren

AU - Sims, Daniel A.

N1 - Funding Information: Development of the tram was made possible by NSF (CREST, SGER and Ecosystems) and IARC grants to J.A.G. Thanks to the staff of the Sky Oaks Field Station and the San Diego State University Field Stations Office for their support of this project. Administrative support for tram development was provided by the Desert Research Institute, Reno NV, USA. J. Cano, F. Chowdhury, D. Horyath, and R. Johnson provided technical assistance. Z. Mao and D. Thayer provided assistance with Fig. 8 .

PY - 2006/8/15

Y1 - 2006/8/15

N2 - Reliable and repeatable field sampling methods are needed for monitoring ecosystem optical properties linked to carbon flux. Here we describe a tram system, consisting of a dual-detector spectrometer mounted on a robotic cart for mobile sampling of ecosystem spectral reflectance. To illustrate the application of this system for monitoring dynamic ecosystem activity, we illustrate how the tram can be used for exploring the multiple factors influencing the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a measure of vegetation greenness and a key optical indicator of vegetation carbon dioxide assimilation. With this system, we collected five years of NDVI data for a chaparral ecosystem in Southern California subject to extreme disturbance. Key factors affecting NDVI at this site included snow cover, sky conditions (clear vs. cloudy), time of day, season, species composition, and environmental perturbations such as rainfall, drought and fire. Applications of this tram system include ecosystem monitoring, satellite validation, and developing surface-atmosphere flux models from remote sensing.

AB - Reliable and repeatable field sampling methods are needed for monitoring ecosystem optical properties linked to carbon flux. Here we describe a tram system, consisting of a dual-detector spectrometer mounted on a robotic cart for mobile sampling of ecosystem spectral reflectance. To illustrate the application of this system for monitoring dynamic ecosystem activity, we illustrate how the tram can be used for exploring the multiple factors influencing the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a measure of vegetation greenness and a key optical indicator of vegetation carbon dioxide assimilation. With this system, we collected five years of NDVI data for a chaparral ecosystem in Southern California subject to extreme disturbance. Key factors affecting NDVI at this site included snow cover, sky conditions (clear vs. cloudy), time of day, season, species composition, and environmental perturbations such as rainfall, drought and fire. Applications of this tram system include ecosystem monitoring, satellite validation, and developing surface-atmosphere flux models from remote sensing.

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A mobile tram system for systematic sampling of ecosystem optical properties

Abstract

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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