VEMAP 2: Annual Ecosystem Model Responses to U.S. Climate Change, 1994-2100

VEMAP 2 contains annual model outputs from a major international project evaluating terrestrial ecosystem sensitivity to climate and CO2 changes. The dataset includes results from five biogeochemical cycling models and two dynamic global vegetation models, run on projected climate data from 1994 to 2100. These gridded outputs are designed for comparing ecological responses to transient climate scenarios.

Use Cases

• Comparing the sensitivity of different biogeochemical models (e.g., Biome-BGC, Century) to projected climate forcing.
• Analyzing transient ecological responses, including succession and fire simulation, from dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs).
• Validating ecosystem model projections against historical baseline data (1895-1993).
• Studying long-term trends in plant production and nutrient cycles under elevated atmospheric CO2 scenarios.

Strengths

• Results from a large, multi-institutional international collaboration, indicating a high level of scientific consensus.
• Provides a long-term projection from 1994 to 2100, enabling analysis of century-scale ecological trends.
• Includes outputs from seven distinct ecosystem models, allowing for model intercomparison studies.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as row count, file size, and specific column names are unavailable across all platforms.
• The license is ambiguously listed as 'other-license-specified' without clear terms.
• Documentation is referenced but not directly provided, requiring users to locate external user guides.

Provenance

Source

Vegetation-Ecosystem Modeling and Analysis Project (VEMAP), a collaborative international effort.

Collection Method

Model outputs from ecosystem models run on gridded climate data derived from two climate system models (CCCma and Hadley Centre).

Time Range

1895-2100 (historical baseline 1895-1993; projections 1994-2100)

Freshness

Last updated on 2026-04-12 according to two platform entries.

Geography

Likely covers the contiguous United States, based on the project's focus and 'U.S. Climate Change' in the title.