Global Soil Respiration Rates with Biome and Climate Data

This dataset compiles annual soil respiration rates from terrestrial and wetland ecosystems reported in scientific literature before 1992. It includes biome type, vegetation, location coordinates, and estimated mean annual temperature and precipitation for each site. The compilation was created by ORNL_CLOUD, synthesizing measurements from studies that used full-year monitoring to exclude data from soil cores which could modify root respiration.

Use Cases

• Modeling the relationship between soil respiration rates and mean annual temperature/precipitation across biomes.
• Analyzing spatial patterns of carbon flux from soils using geographic coordinates and biome type.
• Comparing baseline soil respiration rates between different vegetation types for ecological studies.
• Validating modern carbon cycle models against a historical compilation of pre-1992 field measurements.

Strengths

• Data is curated from peer-reviewed literature, ensuring a foundation in published science.
• Includes estimated climate data (temperature, precipitation) for sites where original papers lacked it, using a 0.5-degree resolution global climate archive.
• Focuses on full-year measurements to provide reliable annual rate estimates, excluding data from soil cores to avoid modified root respiration.

Limitations

• Conflicting last update dates: one source lists 1992-01-01, while others list 2026-03-13, suggesting a metadata inconsistency.
• Specific row count, file size, and complete column names are not provided by any source.
• All data originates from literature published prior to 1992, limiting temporal relevance to contemporary studies.

Provenance

Source

ORNL_CLOUD

Collection Method

Compilation and synthesis of rates from scientific literature, with climate data estimated from the Legates and Willmott global climate archive where needed.

Time Range

Studies published prior to 1992.

Freshness

2026-03-13 02:37:16.756539

Geography

Global, covering terrestrial and wetland ecosystems.