Highlights

Since 1989, the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) has submitted annual reports to Congress called Our Changing Planet. The reports describe the status of USGCRP research activities, provide progress updates, and document recent accomplishments.

In particular, Our Changing Planet highlights progress and accomplishments in interagency activities. These highlights represent the broad spectrum of USGCRP activities that extend from Earth system observations, modeling, and fundamental research through synthesis and assessment, decision support, education, and public engagement.

G-LiHT measurements for an area within Bonanza Creek Experimental Forest near Fairbanks, Alaska.

Scientists are using aerial and ground survey methods to measure change in Alaska’s interior forests and its impact on ecosystem services.

The boreal forests of interior Alaska are changing rapidly as the climate warms. Wildfires are more frequent and more severe, and declines in growth of spruce trees may be driving a shift towards ecosystems normally found in warmer climates. These changes can have significant impacts on the quality of wildlife habitat and ecosystem services that support the subsistence economies of many native Alaskan...

Using 29 years of data from Landsat satellites, researchers at NASA found extensive greening in the vegetation across Alaska and Canada.

Scientists are using satellites to collect detailed data on forest change in remote parts of Alaska and the Arctic.

Rapid warming in the Arctic and boreal regions of Alaska is affecting boreal forests and tundra ecosystems in a number of ways. Higher temperatures and changes in precipitation have led to a higher incidence of wildfire and increased tree mortality from drought, insects, and disease. Increases in the length of the growing season and the amount of energy produced by vegetation have also been observed. While tracking how climate...

Map shows the average active layer thickness (ALT) at the end of the growing season for the Barrow, Alaska region that contains the NGEE Arctic study site.

Scientists are gaining new understanding of processes that control greenhouse gas emissions from Arctic permafrost, a potential driver of significant future warming.

Rapid warming in the Arctic is causing carbon-rich soils known as permafrost, previously frozen for millennia, to thaw. As thawing soils decompose, the greenhouse gases carbon dioxide and methane are released into the atmosphere in varying proportions depending on the conditions under which decomposition occurs. Permafrost emissions could contribute significantly to future warming...

Improving Predictions of Changing Arctic Ecosystems

A key challenge for Earth System Models is accurately representing land surface and subsurface processes and their complex interactions in a warming climate. This is true for ecosystems across the globe, but particularly critical for Arctic ecosystems, which are projected to warm at a rate twice that of the global average by the end of the 21st century. The Next-Generation Ecosystem Experiments in the Arctic (NGEE-Arctic) project is addressing this challenge by integrating process studies, ecosystem observations, and computational...

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Highlights

Monitoring change in Alaskan forests

Detecting the drivers of forest change in Alaska and the Arctic

Understanding carbon cycling in Arctic ecosystems

Improving Predictions of Changing Arctic Ecosystems