Carbon Dioxide Flux Time Series from Harvard Forest and BOREAS Sites

Half-hourly to annual flux and meteorological data from two FLUXNET sites: Harvard Forest, Massachusetts (1992-1995) and Old Black Spruce, Alberta, Canada (1994-1995). The dataset contains gap-filled measurements of carbon dioxide, water vapor, and energy exchanges between terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere. It is part of the International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP II) and is provided by the ORNL_CLOUD organization.

Use Cases

• Validating and calibrating terrestrial ecosystem models using half-hourly CO2 flux measurements.
• Analyzing seasonal and interannual variability in carbon exchange using daily, weekly, monthly, and annual aggregated data.
• Studying the relationship between meteorological variables and ecosystem respiration or photosynthesis using concurrent flux and weather data.
• Comparing carbon flux dynamics between a temperate deciduous forest (Harvard Forest) and a boreal coniferous forest (Old Black Spruce).

Strengths

• Data is gap-filled, providing continuous time series for analysis.
• Provides measurements at multiple temporal resolutions from half-hourly to annual.
• Sites are part of the standardized FLUXNET global network, ensuring methodological consistency.
• Cross-platform presence on NASA Earthdata and Data.gov indicates recognized importance.

Limitations

• Specific column names and the exact row count are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the last updated date (1995-12-31 vs. 2026-03-13).
• The dataset consists of 6 ZIP files, but the internal file structure and formats are unspecified.

Provenance

Source

ORNL_CLOUD for NASA Earthdata listing.

Collection Method

Collected via eddy covariance methods from micrometeorological towers at FLUXNET sites.

Time Range

1992 to 1995

Freshness

2026-03-13 01:24:49.401953

Geography

Harvard Forest, Massachusetts, USA and Old Black Spruce, Alberta, Canada.