Collaborative Research: Thermal Controls on Ecosystem Metabolism and Function: Scaling from Leaves to Canopies to Regions

温度在空间和时间的尺度范围内对生物系统和过程施加主要的环境控制。它的影响是根本性的，从控制酶的反应速率，生态系统的生物地球化学反应，到植物和动物物种的大规模分布。温度也是气候的一个基本特征。事实上，对气候变暖影响的大部分担忧都是由温度对生物体的普遍影响引起的。虽然大多数关注的焦点通常是空气温度，但在许多情况下，生物（如植物）的皮肤温度实际上更相关。然而，到目前为止，由于传感器和计算的限制，使用从一定距离拍摄的热图像测量生物体温度一直具有挑战性。本研究项目通过三个目标来解决这一认识上的差距：(1)评估热成像测量在生态和农业研究中的应用，如监测植物冠层对高温和干旱胁迫的响应；(2)展示了对一系列生态系统进行连续冠层成像的鲁棒热像仪的持续部署；(3)开发缩放算法，将单个冠层站点的稀疏测量结果与飞机和卫星传感器在区域尺度上观测到的模式联系起来。这项工作将以一种创新的方式将一系列空间分辨率的温度观测与合成活动结合起来。这些结果将增强我们对生态系统结构和功能如何与皮肤温度模式相关的理解。该项目将引入新的技术和基础设施，用于长期热数据收集，这可能对我们对跨多个尺度的生态功能的理解产生重大影响。它将结合不同职业阶段的研究人员在植物生理学、遥感、生物地理学和统计学等领域的不同跨学科专业知识。研究结果将直接揭示叶片温度与生态系统碳同化之间的关系，以及自然和农业生态系统对干旱胁迫的反应。它将解决与温度相关的特性和过程的缩放问题，这是预测对气候变化的反应所需要的。将特别关注生态系统对干旱和热浪的反应。更实际的成果将是在理解自然和管理生态系统中植物与温度的相互作用方面取得进展，以及在三个长期监测点建立冠层热成像设备。最后，本项目将通过培养博士后研究人员、指导本科生，以及基于本项目产生的概念和数据开发用于地理、地球科学、生态学和环境科学本科和研究生课程的实验模块，将研究与教学结合起来。

Temperature exerts a primary environmental control on biological systems and processes at a range of scales in space and time. Its influence is fundamental, ranging from controls on the reaction rates of enzymes, ecosystem biogeochemical reactions, and large-scale distributions of plant and animal species. Temperature is also a fundamental characteristic of climate. Indeed, much of the concern about the impact of climate warming is motivated by the pervasive influence of temperature on organisms. Although most focus is usually on air temperature, the skin temperature of an organism, such as a plant, is actually more relevant in many cases. However, until now measurements of organismal temperature using thermal images taken from some distance away have been challenging because of sensor and computational limitations. This research project addresses this gap in understanding through three goals: (1) to assess the use of thermal imaging measurements for ecological and agricultural studies, such as monitoring the response of plant canopies to heat and drought stress; (2) to demonstrate the continuous deployment of robust thermal cameras for continuous canopy imaging for a range of ecosystems; and (3) to develop scaling algorithms to relate sparse measurements at individual canopy sites to the patterns observed at regional scales by sensors on aircraft and satellites. The work will combine temperature observations at a range of spatial resolutions with synthesis activities in an innovative manner. The results will enhance our understanding of how ecosystem structure and function are related to skin temperature patterns. This project will introduce new technology and infrastructure for long-term thermal data collection that could have a large impact on our understanding of ecological functioning across multiple scales. It will combine the diverse interdisciplinary expertise of researchers at different stages in their careers in fields including plant physiology, remote sensing, biogeography, and statistics. Results will directly inform questions concerning the link between leaf temperatures and carbon assimilation by ecosystems and the response of natural and agricultural ecosystems to drought stress. It will address scaling of properties and processes related to temperature, as is required for predicting responses to climate change. Particular focus will be on the responses of ecosystems to drought and heat waves. More tangible outcomes will be advances in understanding of plant-temperature interactions in natural and managed ecosystems, as well as the establishment of canopy thermal imaging equipment at three long-term monitoring sites. Finally, this project will integrate research and teaching through the training of post-doctoral researchers, mentoring of undergraduate students, and development of laboratory modules based on the concepts and data generated by this project for undergraduate and graduate courses in geography, earth science, ecology, and environmental science.