Complexity revealed in the greening of the Arctic

Citation

Myers-Smith IH, Kerby JT, Phoenix GK, Bjerke JW, Epstein HE, Assmann JJ, John C, Andreu-Hayles L, Angers-Blondin S, Beck PSA, Berner LT, Bhatt US, Bjorkman AD, Blok D & Parker TC (2020) Complexity revealed in the greening of the Arctic. Nature Climate Change, 10 (2), pp. 106-117. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-019-0688-1

Abstract
As the Arctic warms, vegetation is responding, and satellite measures indicate widespread greening at high latitudes. This ‘greening of the Arctic’ is among the world’s most important large-scale ecological responses to global climate change. However, a consensus is emerging that the underlying causes and future dynamics of so-called Arctic greening and browning trends are more complex, variable and inherently scale-dependent than previously thought. Here we summarize the complexities of observing and interpreting high-latitude greening to identify priorities for future research. Incorporating satellite and proximal remote sensing with in-situ data, while accounting for uncertainties and scale issues, will advance the study of past, present and future Arctic vegetation change.

Keywords
Social Sciences (miscellaneous); Environmental Science (miscellaneous)

Notes
Additional co-authors: Anders Bryn, Casper T. Christiansen, J. Hans C. Cornelissen, Andrew M. Cunliffe, Sarah C. Elmendorf, Bruce C. Forbes, Scott J. Goetz, Robert D. Hollister, Rogier de Jong, Michael M. Loranty, Marc Macias-Fauria, Kadmiel Maseyk, Signe Normand, Johan Olofsson, Frans-Jan W. Parmentier, Eric Post, Gabriela Schaepman-Strub, Frode Stordal, Patrick F. Sullivan, Haydn J. D. Thomas, Hans Tømmervik, Rachael Treharne, Craig E. Tweedie, Donald A. Walker, Martin Wilmking & Sonja Wipf

Journal
Nature Climate Change: Volume 10, Issue 2

People

Dr Tom Parker

Research Fellow, Biological and Environmental Sciences