Natural events as drought, hard rain, and temperature changes will become more frequent in the future climate. Their impacts on natural heath ecosystems are potentially very important, but not very well documented. Plants have high ability for acclimation and optimization of photosynthesis, why this process is a good choice when evaluating effects of natural events. Measurements of leaf gas exchange before, during and after an event can be used as basis for analysis. In addition, measurements could optionally be conducted within the CLIMAITE setup to study the interaction between an event (e.g. rain) and global change factors, such as increased CO₂, temperature, and drought. Also, measures of plant stress by means of chlorophyll fluorescence could be done if appropriate. Potentially, such a thesis could be a major contribution to the CLIMAITE project and the applicant can expect close supervision throughout the process.

Contact (More contact info - press here):

Helge Ro-Poulsen, KU, helgerp@bi.ku.dk; Kristian Albert, KU, kristiana@bi.ku.dk; Teis N. Mikkelsen, Risø, teis.mikkelsen@risoe.dk