SNS-108: Satellite-based mapping of the growing season in northern Fennoscandia and neighbouring parts of Russia (2009-2011)

Project leader: Docent Anne Tolvanen, anne.tolvanen@metla.fi

Financing: 50.000 Euro/year for 3 years

Many recent phenological monitoring studies have shown that the timing of spring onset has advanced due to climate warming. This gradual climatic change may have considerable implications for plants’ growth and reproduction, especially in regions where plants grow near their distribution limits.

The project “Satellite-based mapping of the growing season in northern Fennoscandia and neighbouring parts of Russia” will develop new methods to map the onset and end of the growing season with the aid of satellite-image analysis. The study will cover changes in Northern Fennoscandia and adjacent parts of north-western Russia over the period 1982–2010. The output will be a time-series that should be valuable not only for seasonal studies, but also for developing tools for monitoring phenomena such as forest disturbances.

The project is a cooperation between Finland, Sweden and Russia.