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Modelling flow routing in permafrost landscapes with TWI : an evaluation against site-specific wetness measurements

Persson, Andreas LU ; Hasan, Abdulghani LU orcid ; Tang, Jing LU orcid and Pilesjö, Petter LU (2012) In Transactions in GIS 16(5). p.701-713
Abstract
In northern peatlands the thawing of permafrost increasing the active layer depth and changing the hydrology may lead to feedbacks in the climate system through changes in the biogeochemistry of carbon. We are examining this association on the Stordalen peatland complex in subarctic Sweden by analyzing a DEM derived from LiDAR-data and the calculated TWI. The DEM, with a spatial resolution of 1 m, and the TWI are evaluated against two seasons of water level measurements from 30 sites in the peatland. The TWI is calculated with a form-based flow routing algorithm which produces a natural flow routing pattern. In permafrost wetlands the topography is the major driver and is very important even though its magnitude is low. Site-specific... (More)
In northern peatlands the thawing of permafrost increasing the active layer depth and changing the hydrology may lead to feedbacks in the climate system through changes in the biogeochemistry of carbon. We are examining this association on the Stordalen peatland complex in subarctic Sweden by analyzing a DEM derived from LiDAR-data and the calculated TWI. The DEM, with a spatial resolution of 1 m, and the TWI are evaluated against two seasons of water level measurements from 30 sites in the peatland. The TWI is calculated with a form-based flow routing algorithm which produces a natural flow routing pattern. In permafrost wetlands the topography is the major driver and is very important even though its magnitude is low. Site-specific wetness (SSW) measurements from the sites were compared with the different peatland types that occur in the study area, i.e. fen, internal fen and palsa. The results showed a strong correlation between the TWI and the palsa. The TWI was better at describing general patterns than site-specific hydrology. The evaluation of spatial patterns of TWI against SSW reveal the resolution required to develop the technique to be useful for climate change studies. (Less)
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author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Transactions in GIS
volume
16
issue
5
pages
701 - 713
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • wos:000309747500009
  • scopus:84867413943
ISSN
1467-9671
DOI
10.1111/j.1467-9671.2012.01338.x
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
5
id
e6f6daa1-f390-4447-a48c-1d82c4849f89 (old id 3168214)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 14:11:46
date last changed
2023-10-15 14:22:04
@article{e6f6daa1-f390-4447-a48c-1d82c4849f89,
  abstract     = {{In northern peatlands the thawing of permafrost increasing the active layer depth and changing the hydrology may lead to feedbacks in the climate system through changes in the biogeochemistry of carbon. We are examining this association on the Stordalen peatland complex in subarctic Sweden by analyzing a DEM derived from LiDAR-data and the calculated TWI. The DEM, with a spatial resolution of 1 m, and the TWI are evaluated against two seasons of water level measurements from 30 sites in the peatland. The TWI is calculated with a form-based flow routing algorithm which produces a natural flow routing pattern. In permafrost wetlands the topography is the major driver and is very important even though its magnitude is low. Site-specific wetness (SSW) measurements from the sites were compared with the different peatland types that occur in the study area, i.e. fen, internal fen and palsa. The results showed a strong correlation between the TWI and the palsa. The TWI was better at describing general patterns than site-specific hydrology. The evaluation of spatial patterns of TWI against SSW reveal the resolution required to develop the technique to be useful for climate change studies.}},
  author       = {{Persson, Andreas and Hasan, Abdulghani and Tang, Jing and Pilesjö, Petter}},
  issn         = {{1467-9671}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{5}},
  pages        = {{701--713}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Transactions in GIS}},
  title        = {{Modelling flow routing in permafrost landscapes with TWI : an evaluation against site-specific wetness measurements}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9671.2012.01338.x}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/j.1467-9671.2012.01338.x}},
  volume       = {{16}},
  year         = {{2012}},
}