1. Methane fluxes from Zambian tropical wetlands
- Author
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Jacob Shaw, Grant Allen, Patrick Barker, Joseph Pitt, James Lee, Stéphane Bauguitte, Dominika Pasternak, Keith Bower, Michael Daly, Mark Lunt, Anita Ganesan, Adam Vaughan, Rebecca Fisher, James France, David Lowry, Paul Palmer, Prudence Bateson, and Euan Nisbet
- Subjects
chemistry.chemical_compound ,chemistry ,Cryosphere ,Environmental science ,Atmospheric sciences ,Biogeosciences ,Tropical wetlands ,Methane - Abstract
Airborne measurements of methane (CH4) were recorded over three major wetland areas in Zambia in February 2019 during the MOYA (Methane Observations and Yearly Assessments) ZWAMPS field campaign. Enhancements of up to 600 ppb CH4 were measured over the Bangweulu (11°36’ S, 30°05’ E), Kafue (15°43’ S, 27°17’ E), and Lukanga (14°29’ S, 27°47’ E) wetlands. Three independent methods were used to quantify methane emission fluxes; aircraft mass balance, aircraft eddy covariance, and atmospheric inversion modelling. Results yielded methane emission fluxes of 10-20 mg CH4 m-2 hr-1, which were up to an order of magnitude greater than the emission fluxes simulated by various wetland process models (WetCHARTs ensemble and LPX-Bern). Independent column CH4 observations from the TROPOMI instrument were used to verify these fluxes, and investigate their applicability for timescales longer than the duration of the MOYA flight campaign.
- Published
- 2021