Improving Estimates of Gross Primary Productivity by Assimilating Solar‐Induced Fluorescence Satellite Retrievals in a Terrestrial Biosphere Model Using a Process‐Based SIF Model

C Bacour,C Frankenberg,V Bastrikov,A Porcar‐Castell,N Macbean,F Chevallier,N Vuichard,P Peylin,J Flexas,F Maignan

doi:10.1029/2019jg005040

Abstract

AbstractOver the last few years, solar‐induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) observations from space have emerged as a promising resource for evaluating the spatio‐temporal distribution of gross primary productivity (GPP) simulated by global terrestrial biosphere models. SIF can be used to improve GPP simulations by optimizing critical model parameters through statistical Bayesian data assimilation techniques. A prerequisite is the availability of a functional link between GPP and SIF in terrestrial biosphere models. Here we present the development of a mechanistic SIF observation operator in the ORCHIDEE (Organizing Carbon and Hydrology In Dynamic Ecosystems) terrestrial biosphere model. It simulates the regulation of photosystem II fluorescence quantum yield at the leaf level thanks to a novel parameterization of non‐photochemical quenching as a function of temperature, photosynthetically active radiation, and normalized quantum yield of photochemistry. It emulates the radiative transfer of chlorophyll fluorescence to the top of the canopy using a parametric simplification of the SCOPE (Soil Canopy Observation Photosynthesis Energy) model. We assimilate two years of monthly OCO‐2 (Orbiting Carbon Observatory‐2) SIF product at 0.5° (2015–2016) to optimize ORCHIDEE photosynthesis and phenological parameters over an ensemble of grid points for all plant functional types. The impact on the simulated GPP is considerable with a large decrease of the global scale budget by 28 GtC/year over the period 1990–2009. The optimized GPP budget (134/136 GtC/year over 1990–2009/2001–2009) remarkably agrees with independent GPP estimates, FLUXSAT (137 GtC/year over 2001–2009) in particular and FLUXCOM (121 GtC/year over 1990–2009). Our results also suggest a biome dependency of the SIF‐GPP relationship that needs to be improved for some plant functional types.

Highlights

The terrestrial biosphere currently plays a pivotal role for climate by offsetting about one fourth of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions released by anthropogenic activities into the atmosphere (Le Quéré et al, 2018)
The analysis of the estimated parameter values after assimilation does not enable to really identify the main parameters causing the change in gross primary productivity (GPP) for all plant functional type (PFT), the reduction in GPP budget are attributed to a decrease of GPP magnitude and/or of the seasonal cycle length depending on PFT
We have presented the development of a process‐based model for solar‐induced fluorescence implemented in the ORCHIDEE TBM

Summary

Introduction

The terrestrial biosphere currently plays a pivotal role for climate by offsetting about one fourth of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions released by anthropogenic activities into the atmosphere (Le Quéré et al, 2018). Terrestrial ecosystems assimilate CO2 in leaf chloroplasts by photosynthesis, but most of the assimilated carbon is released back into the atmosphere (mainly as CO2) through ecosystem respiration. The net carbon budget of terrestrial ecosystems is the main quantity of interest for climate studies, quantifying the gross fluxes (photosynthesis and respiration) is crucial in order to better understand the drivers of the net fluxes. Current knowledge of the spatial and temporal distribution of net and gross carbon fluxes over the globe is mainly driven by atmospheric and ecosystem measurements, but our ability to anticipate their evolution under a changing climate largely relies on global terrestrial biosphere models (TBMs) (Sitch et al, 2015). The large uncertainties that remain in our understanding of the carbon sequestration in land ecosystems

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