Luquillo CZO: The role of hot spots and hot moments in tropical landscape evolution and functioning of the critical zone

Luquillo CZO：热点和热点时刻在热带景观演化和关键区域功能中的作用

• 批准号: 1331841
• 负责人: William McDowell
• 金额: $ 490万
• 依托单位: University of New Hampshire
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Cooperative Agreement
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-12-01 至 2021-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1331841&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Luquillo; CZO; role; hot; spots

The structure and function of the critical zone (CZ) plays a central role in sustaining Earth's life support system. During the first phase of the Luquillo Critical Zone Observatory (LCZO1), investigators identified differences in rock type, deep weathering, geomorphology, and topography as the dominant drivers of key CZ processes such as nutrient supply, greenhouse gas emissions, and water quantity and quality. Building on this foundation, LCZO2 will evaluate the role of "hot spots and hot moments" in the CZ: locations or time periods that disproportionately impact the environment as a whole. "Hot spots and hot moments" are particularly relevant to humid tropical environments such as the LCZO, which are characterized by high physical, geochemical, and biological diversity in space and time. Critical zone processes can occur at very small to very large spatial scales. For example, bedrock weathering occurs at a millimeter spatial scale, while wholesale changes in vegetation and carbon cycling occur over several kilometers such as along elevation gradients. Critical zone processes can also vary over time; oxidation-reduction reactions occur in soils on the scale of minutes, and catastrophic events such as hurricanes and landslides occur at decadal time scales. Investigators will identify, quantify, and model the role of "hot spots and hot moments" in a range of CZ processes and use that knowledge to predict the rates of CZ processes across the Luquillo Mountains and in other montane areas with high temperature and rainfall. Specific focal areas include: 1) the importance of knickpoints and landscape position as hot spots for weathering, soil development, and biogeochemical cycling; 2) the role of "hot spots and hot moments" in redox fluctuations and mineral weathering for C and nutrient retention and loss; 3) the role of "hot spots" for sediment production and "hot moments" in stream flow for the transport of sediment, C, and nutrients from mountains to the sea; and 4) the development of climate and hydrologic models to scale up "hot spots and hot moments" in time and space. The data collected and synthesized will transform the understanding of the controls on key CZ processes such as weathering, soil development, C and nutrient storage and loss, soil and sediment transport, and ultimately landscape evolution and the effects of climate change. The project will provide an unprecedented level of detail on "hot spots and hot moments" in a tropical system. The results of this research will allow us to accurately and precisely 'earthcast' the effects of environmental change on important environmental processes such as flooding, erosion, and landslides. Because all critical zones have "hot spots and hot moments" of significant environmental processes, the development of the "hot spots and hot moments" concept in the CZ context will promote cross-site integration, the development of conceptual models of the CZ, and provide a venue for the Earth science community to develop and test novel approaches to CZ science.The LCZO2 will continue to collaborate with University of Puerto Rico (UPR) students and scientists to enhance the participation of underrepresented groups in the Earth and environmental sciences. LCZO2 will also contribute to an existing 'Schoolyard' environmental education program at high schools in Puerto Rico. This program has a successful record of incorporating new data and research techniques into the curriculum and provides professional development for the teachers in addition to research opportunities for students. The diverse group of co-PIs, senior personnel, and collaborators will provide strong role models for research students and postdocs. Our robust collaborations with local and federal agencies and educational institutions provide access to policy makers and other stakeholders that will help us to translate science into policy-relevant findings. Informal forums will be used to share our research findings and to emphasize the significance of CZ research to environmental decision makers dealing with questions such as soil erosion that can fill reservoirs, water quality that degrades water supply and coral reefs, and carbon storage that counteracts the effects of global increases in carbon dioxide. An inclusive and comprehensive engagement plan will encourage participation by scientists not yet affiliated with the LCZO2. The plans for cross-CZO modeling, open sharing of data and samples, and cyberseminars that are open to the public will strengthen the CZO network as a whole and enhance the availability of CZ science to the public and decision-makers.

关键带（CZ）的结构和功能在维持地球生命支持系统中起着核心作用。在Luquillo临界带观测站（LCZO1）的第一阶段，研究人员确定了岩石类型、深层风化、地貌和地形的差异是CZ关键过程（如养分供应、温室气体排放、水量和质量）的主要驱动因素。在此基础上，LCZO2将评估CZ中“热点和热点时刻”的作用：对整个环境产生不成比例影响的地点或时间段。“热点和热点时刻”与潮湿的热带环境特别相关，如LCZO，其特征是空间和时间上高度的物理、地球化学和生物多样性。临界区过程可以发生在非常小到非常大的空间尺度上。例如，基岩风化发生在毫米的空间尺度上，而植被和碳循环的大规模变化发生在几公里的范围内，比如沿着海拔梯度。关键区域过程也可能随时间变化；土壤中的氧化还原反应以分钟为单位发生，而飓风和山体滑坡等灾难性事件则以十年为单位发生。研究人员将确定、量化和模拟一系列CZ过程中“热点和热点时刻”的作用，并利用这些知识来预测整个Luquillo山脉和其他高温多雨山区的CZ过程的速率。具体的重点领域包括：1)裂缝点和景观位置作为风化、土壤发育和生物地球化学循环的热点的重要性；2)“热点和热点时刻”在氧化还原波动和矿物风化中对C和养分的保留和损失的作用；3)产沙“热点”和水流“热点时刻”对山向海输沙、碳和营养物质的作用；4)气候和水文模式的发展，在时间和空间上放大“热点和热点时刻”。收集和综合的数据将改变对关键CZ过程的控制的理解，如风化、土壤发育、碳和养分的储存和损失、土壤和沉积物的运输，最终是景观演变和气候变化的影响。该项目将为热带系统的“热点和热点时刻”提供前所未有的详细信息。这项研究的结果将使我们能够准确而精确地“地球cast”环境变化对洪水、侵蚀和滑坡等重要环境过程的影响。由于所有关键区域都具有重要环境过程的“热点和热点时刻”，“热点和热点时刻”概念在CZ背景下的发展将促进CZ概念模型的跨站点整合，并为地球科学界开发和测试CZ科学的新方法提供场所。LCZO2将继续与波多黎各大学（UPR）的学生和科学家合作，以加强代表性不足的群体对地球和环境科学的参与。LCZO2还将为波多黎各高中现有的“校园”环境教育项目做出贡献。该项目在将新数据和研究技术纳入课程方面取得了成功，并为教师提供了专业发展，同时为学生提供了研究机会。各种各样的共同署名人、高级人员和合作者将为研究生和博士后提供强有力的榜样。我们与地方和联邦机构以及教育机构的密切合作为政策制定者和其他利益相关者提供了机会，帮助我们将科学转化为与政策相关的发现。非正式论坛将用于分享我们的研究成果，并强调CZ研究对环境决策者处理诸如可以填满水库的土壤侵蚀、使供水和珊瑚礁退化的水质以及抵消全球二氧化碳增加影响的碳储存等问题的重要性。一个包容和全面的参与计划将鼓励尚未加入LCZO2的科学家参与。跨CZO建模、开放数据和样本共享以及向公众开放的网络研讨会的计划将加强CZO网络的整体能力，并提高CZO科学对公众和决策者的可用性。