Western US Forest Carbon Fluxes and Stocks Modeled at 4km Resolution

Annual estimates of carbon stocks and fluxes cover forested land in 11 western US states from 1979 to 2099. NASA produced the dataset using the Community Land Model v4.5, simulating business-as-usual scenarios with different climate forcings and harvest rates. The data provides variables like gross primary production and net ecosystem exchange at a 1/24-degree (4 km) spatial resolution.

Use Cases

• Modeling future forest carbon sequestration under different climate scenarios using variables like NEP and NPP.
• Assessing wildfire impacts on carbon budgets via the carbon loss from fire and burned area fraction columns.
• Analyzing spatial and temporal trends in aboveground live tree carbon stocks across the western US.
• Evaluating the effects of harvest rates and climate forcing on ecosystem respiration (RA, RH) and transpiration.

Strengths

• Simulations span a 120-year time range (1979-2099), providing long-term projections.
• Data is modeled at a consistent, high 1/24-degree (4 km x 4 km) spatial resolution.
• Includes 11 key carbon cycle variables such as GPP, NEE, and aboveground live tree carbon.

Limitations

• Row count, file size, and specific column names are not provided by any source.
• Conflicting last updated dates exist between platforms (2099-12 31 vs. 2026-03-13).
• The dataset consists of model outputs, not direct observational measurements.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Multiple simulations using the Community Land Model (v4.5) with different climate forcing data and prescribed harvest rates.

Time Range

1979-2099

Freshness

2026-03 13 00:00:35.909316

Geography

Forested land in 11 western US states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.