Biophysical impact of global green

Webinar by Giovanni Forzieri Oct 22nd

Decadal trends in global greening have recently been detected from long-term Earth observations. These have largely been attributed to the effect of CO₂ fertilisation. Associated changes in the structure and physiology of vegetation may affect a series of biogeochemical and biophysical processes, whose net effects on climate are not well understood. Nowadays, the large uncertainties in model-based assessments of vegetation-driven biophysical climate feedbacks can be corroborated with extensive and long-term satellite retrievals of surface properties.

In this talk, I will present observational evidences - based on an ensemble of remote sensing and data-driven products - on how changes in vegetation cover over the past several decades have influenced the global terrestrial energy balance and local climate. I will also briefly discuss the potential of model representations of vegetation-atmosphere interactions with observation-driven estimates to enhance the reliability of future climate predictions.