Submitted by Anonymous on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 18:33
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Carbon Balance in Warming and Drying Tundra 2012

Dear Mr. Wood John O. Per. 4 Answers for questions

  1. We expect the Co2 measurements to go up because the permafrostis letting off a lot of Co2.

2.We would see them going up as gas is released from the tundra source.

  1. Yes, the time of day is a big role. For example, when it is light out side it is letting out more Co2

Question: What is a tundra sink ?

Tue, 03/27/2012 - 19:02

John Wood

Good thinking. The CO2 is coming out of the tundra. I'm not sure however, the the time of day plays a big role when the plants are all under a layer of snow. The terms source and sink refer to something leaving or coming in. If something is a source (the tundra for example), then you will get something from it (CO2). When you go to the store you bring home food. So the store is a source of food,A sink refers to something going in (or down the drain in the sink). When CO2 is being taken in the tundra by the plants, the tundra becomes a sink because more CO2 is going in from the atmosphere than coming out.
Does that help?
Thanks,
Mr. Wood