Modeling CO 2 Sinks and Sources of European Land Vegetation Using Remote Sensing Data

Quantifying sources and sinks of climatological relevant trace gases as well as understanding their exchange between atmosphere and land surface have become essential research topics in atmospheric sciences during the last years. Modeling of the net CO2 uptake by vegetation via photosynthesis (Net Primary Productivity, NPP, and Net Ecosystem Productivity, NEP) has become an important tool to study the mechanisms of CO2 exchange and to quantify the magnitude of terrestrial sinks and sources. For Europe not many studies exist regarding NPP and NEP of the whole continent. Veroustraete et al. [1] used the C-Fix model, a Monteith type parametric model driven by temperature, radiation and fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (fAPAR). These type of models are based on the idea to estimate plant productivity by using the light use efficiency and the amount of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation. In order to make a comparison with the results of Veroustraete et al. simulations with a more complex model are presented for improving the fundamental knowledge of geographical distribution of European carbon sinks and sources.