Analysis of periods with strong and coherent CO2 advection over a forested hill

Horizontal and vertical advective fluxes of CO2 measured during the CarboEurope-IP advection experiment (ADVEX) at the Wetzstein spruce forest site in Thuringia, Germany, were related to wind direction, stratification regime and friction velocity u.. Measurements of wind speed and direction carried out at one of the slopes of the ridge revealed the existence of reverse flow below the canopy on the downwind side. This uphill flow occurred concurrently with the advective fluxes measured at the top of the hill. Such result is in agreement with recent modeling works that support the existence of advection at low hills covered with a canopy. Another experimental evidence that suggest a link between advection at this site with the flow over the hill came from the analysis of the horizontal gradient of CO2 inside the volume formed by the ADVEX towers. It was observed that CO2 accumulated near the downwind side of the crest for cross-ridge flows, what is consistent with another modeling work of the transport of scalars across a low hill covered with a canopy. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.