Satellite observations miss many extreme carbon cycle events research shows

Satellite carbon dioxide observations capture more carbon cycle extremes than ground stations, but they still miss many events and underestimate their magnitude, Eos Earth & Space Science reported. Lei and colleagues examined how accurately extreme climate events can be identified using atmospheric measurements. The researchers prescribed a known true carbon flux and simulated observations from both ground stations and NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 satellite. [1]

Plants and soils constantly exchange carbon dioxide with the atmosphere, according to Eos Earth & Space Science. Extreme climate events such as droughts, heatwaves, floods, and wildfires can severely disrupt this normal exchange. For example, the 2003 European summer drought released an amount of carbon equivalent to what the continent's ecosystems had accumulated over the preceding four years. [1]

The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical process through which carbon is exchanged among the atmosphere, biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, and hydrosphere of Earth. Carbon forms the primary component of biological compounds and major rock types, while the cycle governs carbon sequestration and release across global carbon sinks. [3]