National Ecological Observatory Network

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The National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) is a continental research platform designed to extend our understanding of the biosphere to regional and continental scales. Through remote sensing, in-situ observation, synthesis, and modeling, NEON will provide researchers with a unique capability to quantify the strong and weak forces regulating the biosphere and predict its response to climate and land-use change. NEON infrastructure will include field deployed instrumented towers and sensor arrays, remote sensing capabilities, cutting-edge laboratory instrumentation, natural history archives, and facilities for data analysis, modeling, visualization, and forecasting, all networked through a cyberinfrastructure backbone. Infrastructure will be deployed across the continental US, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico using a statistically determined design, stratified by climate and land-use. The knowledge base NEON will create, its real time and continuous integrated data, simulation and observation capabilities, and its networked communication will be an asset for formal and informal education and training. A NEON gateway will provide resources to support informal public education and provide opportunities for citizens to actively participate in scientific investigations. This award is the administrative framework for the construction and operations of the National Ecological Observatory Network.