Working Group Dynamics of Soil Processes
The main objective of the Working Group is to increase our understanding on the dynamics of soil processes, their interaction with vegetation and climate, and respective feedback mechanisms. With such increased understanding, we aim to contribute to overarching questions about Earth’s future biogeochemical cycles and climate, and the conservation of soils’ future ecosystem services.
We study
- soil organic matter transformation, stabilization, and translocation
- coupling of heat, water, and solids transport (permafrost ecosystems)
- interactions between carbon and nitrogen cycle processes
- interactions between extreme meteorological events and soil processes
Key research areas include:
- importance of microbial functions on greenhouse gas dynamics
- future carbon budget of permafrost ecosystems
- dynamics of carbon, nutrients and microbial biomass in temperate cropland, grassland and forest soils
To accomplish these goals, the group observes processes in the field, performs laboratory experiments, and develops and employs numerical models from laboratory to regional scales. There are two regional foci at the moment: Arctic permafrost soils, and soils in Northern Germany.
The Working Group actively participates in soil science research topics within the Center for Earth System Research and Sustainability (CEN) and the DFG Cluster of Excellence Climate, Climatic Change, and Society (CLICCS).