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Response of a deciduous forest to the Mount Pinatubo eruption: enhanced photosynthesis
Lianhong Gu1, Dennis D Baldocchi, Steve C Wofsy
1Environmental Sciences Division, Building 1509, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6335, USA. lianhong-gu@ornl.gov
Abstract:
Volcanic aerosols from the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption greatly increased diffuse radiation worldwide for the following 2 years. We estimated that this increase in diffuse radiation alone enhanced noontime photosynthesis of a deciduous forest by 23% in 1992 and 8% in 1993 under cloudless conditions. This finding indicates that the aerosol-induced increase in diffuse radiation by the volcano enhanced the terrestrial carbon sink and contributed to the temporary decline in the growth rate of atmospheric carbon dioxide after the eruption.
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