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Item Open Access MODIS Monthly Fog and Low Cloud Cover Rasters 2000-2022(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Werner, Zackary; Choi, Christopher Tsz Hin; Winter, Anna; Vorster, Anthony G.; Berger, Anika; O'Shea, Kristen; Evangelista, Paul; Woodward, BrianThe MODIS Monthly Fog and Low Cloud Cover Rasters 2000-2022 dataset contains fog and low cloud cover (FLCC) observations summarized into days per month along the California and Southern Oregon Coast from 2000-2022. This dataset accompanies the publication https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsase.2022.100832, which describes the methodology for creating this dataset. The dataset can also be viewed through a Google Earth Engine web application https://christopherchoi98.users.earthengine.app/view/modis-fog-detection-app.Item Open Access Dataset associated with "Analysis of Kenya's Atmospheric Moisture Sources and Sinks"(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Keys, Patrick W.Achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are contingent on understanding the potential interactions among human and natural systems. In Kenya, the goal of conserving and expanding forest cover to achieve SDG 15 ‘Life on land’ may be related to other SDGs because it plays a role in regulating some aspects of Kenyan precipitation. We present a 40-year analysis of the sources of precipitation in Kenya, and the fate of the evaporation that arises from within Kenya. Using MERRA2 climate reanalysis and the Water Accounting Model 2-layers, we examine the annual and seasonal changes in moisture sources and sinks. We find that most of Kenya’s precipitation originates as oceanic evaporation, but that 10% of its precipitation originates as evaporation within Kenya. This internal recycling is concentrated in the mountainous and forested Kenyan highlands, with some locations recycling more than 15% of evaporation, to Kenyan precipitation. We also find that 75% of Kenyan evaporation falls as precipitation elsewhere over land, including 10% in Kenya, 25% in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and around 5% falling in Tanzania and Uganda. Further, we find a positive relationship between increasing rates of moisture recycling and fractional forest cover within Kenya. By beginning to understand both the seasonal and biophysical interactions taking place, we may begin to understand the types of leverage points that exist for integrated atmospheric water cycle management. These findings have broader implications for disentangling environmental management and conservation and have relevance for large-scale discussions about sustainable development.Item Open Access Nitrous oxide emissions from 2008 to 2012 for agricultural lands in the conterminous United States(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2022) Ogle, S. M.; Del Grosso, S. J.; Nevison, C.Nitrous oxide (N2O) is an important greenhouse gas (GHG) that also contributes to depletion of ozone in the stratosphere. Agricultural soils account for about 60% of anthropogenic N2O emissions. Most national GHG reporting to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change assumes nitrogen (N) additions drive emissions during the growing season, but soil freezing and thawing during spring is also an important driver in cold climates. We show that both atmospheric inversions and newly implemented bottom-up modeling approaches exhibit large N2O pulses in the northcentral region of the United States during early spring and this increases annual N2O emissions from croplands and grasslands reported in the national GHG inventory by 11%. Considering this, emission accounting in cold climate regions is very likely under-estimated in most national reporting frameworks. Current commitments related to the Paris Agreement and COP 26 emphasize reductions of carbon compounds. Assuming these targets are met, the importance of accurately accounting and mitigating N2O increases once CO2 and CH4 are phased out. Hence, the N2O emission under-estimate introduces additional risks into meeting long term climate goals.Item Open Access Dataset associated with “What’s in a name? The paradox of citizen science and community science”(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2021) Lin Hunter, Danielle; Newman, Gregory; Balgopal, MeenaCitizen science has expanded ecological and environmental sciences by making possible studies across greater spatial and temporal scales while incorporating local expertise and interests that might otherwise be overlooked. Broadly, citizen science involves the public in the process of science. However, it continues to struggle to engage diverse participants. Citizen science project coordinators are increasingly trying to promote inclusivity by rebranding as “community science” to avoid the term “citizen.” Rebranding efforts, while well-intentioned, are uninformed by research, as we lack an evidenced-based understanding of these terms. We distributed a survey to those who participate in citizen and community science. We found differences in how well known and accepted the terms are, who is perceived as initiating and benefiting from the projects, and associated levels of inclusivity. Our findings have important implications for those involved in citizen and community science seeking to better describe projects in the future.Item Open Access Snow persistence grids and snow zone shape files for the western United States(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2012) Moore, Cara; Kampf, Stephanie; Stone, Brandon; Richer, EricThis study maps the geographic extent of intermittent and seasonal snow cover in the western United States using thresholds of 2000–2010 average snow persistence derived from moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer snow cover area data from 1 January to 3 July. Results show seasonal snow covers 13% of the region, and intermittent snow covers 25%. The lower elevation boundaries of intermittent and seasonal snow zones increase from north-west to south-east. Intermittent snow is primarily found where average winter land surface temperatures are above freezing, whereas seasonal snow is primarily where winter temperatures are below freezing. However, temperatures at the boundary between intermittent and seasonal snow exhibit high regional variability, with average winter seasonal snow zone temperatures above freezing in west coast mountain ranges. Snow cover extent at peak accumulation is most variable at the upper elevations of the intermittent snow zone, highlighting the sensitivity of this snow zone boundary to climate conditions.Item Open Access Hydro-biogeochemistry transport of black carbon project-data(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015) Cotrufo, FrancescaThis data package was produced by researchers working on the Hyrdo-Biogeochemistry Transport of Black Carbon Project. This project was supported by National Science Foundation and the Water Institute at Colorado State University. This data package includes a tab-delimited data table and an accompanying tab-delimited file (file name ending in "_var') that denotes header definitions and data types for each column in the data table. Detailed metadata also are contained within an Ecological Metadata Language document (i.e. XML). Black carbon (BC) is a ubiquitous component of the carbon cycle, yet controls on its landscape-level distribution, including the relative importance of mechanisms for transport across the terrestrial aquatic interface, are relatively unknown. In June 2012, the High Park Fire (HPF) burned 353 km2 of land in the Cache la Poudre (CLP) watershed just northwest of Fort Collins, CO. Following independent efforts of our group to quantify the effects of the HPF on biogeochemical pools and landscape geomorphology, we aimed to synthesize our respective datasets with two main objectives: 1. determine and relate BC content in different parts of the watershed including litter, soils, river bank sediments and dissolved and particulate organic materials in river water, 2. develop a conceptual framework for mechanisms that contribute to BC export from the CLP on short and long-term time scales. Using the benzene polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) method as a molecular proxy for BC concentrations, we found that the majority of BC deposited on the landscape by the HPF was located in the litter, coarse plant fraction of river bank sediments, and DOC, suggesting that BC mobilized on the landscape is transported downstream through the river network. We also participated in a comparative study to investigate differences between the BPCA method and stable polycyclic aromatic carbon and benzene polycarboxylic acid method. The results of the comparative analysis are included in this data table and this work was supported by an NSF grant for Catalyzing New International Collaborations.Item Open Access C and N dynamics between grass litter, soil and the atmosphere determined using isotope tracing(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015) Cotrufo, Francesca; Soong, Jennifer