GTMIP fraction of photosynthetically active radiation (fPAR) and leaf area index (LAI) for the GRENE-TEA observation sites (level 1.0)

The modeling group (GTM) in the terrestrial ecosystem research project of the GRENE Arctic Climate Change Research Project (GRENE-TEA) aims to a) feed to the coupled global climate model (CGCM) research project for the possible improvement of the physical and ecological processes for the Arctic terrestrial modeling (excl. glaciers and ice sheets) in the extant terrestrial schemes in the CGCMs, and b) lay the foundations of the future-generation Arctic terrestrial model development. To achieve these goals GTM conducts a model intercomparison project (GTMIP) among the openly participating models. The GTMIP is designated to 1) enhance communications and understanding of the "mind and hands" between the modeling researchers and field scientists, 2) assess the uncertainty and variations stemmed from the extant model implementation/designation, and the variability due to climatic and historical conditions among the Arctic sites, and 3) feed such information and evaluations to the future-generation Arctic terrestrial model development. The GTMIP comprised of two stages: the first using observation data at the GRENE-TEA sites (stage 1) and the second using CGCM outputs for the circumpolar regions (stage 2) to drive and validate the models. The stage 1 provides monthly fPAR and LAI for the GTMIP sites, including Fairbanks (Poker Flat Research Range), Alaska, USA; Kevo (Kevo Research Station), Finland; Tiksi, Sakha Republic, Russian Federation; Yakutsk (Spasskaya Pad), Sakha Republic, Russian Federation. This data is intended to be a ready-to-feed-into-the-model set of biological data, taken and processed from the closest grid-point values of MODIS satellite data (MOD15A2, MYD15A2) at GRENE-TEA sites.