Articles | Volume 21, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-605-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-605-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
29 Jan 2024
Research article |
| 29 Jan 2024
| 29 Jan 2024
Microclimate mapping using novel radiative transfer modelling
Florian Zellweger
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Eric Sulmoni
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Johanna T. Malle
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Andri Baltensweiler
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Tobias Jonas
WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF, Davos Dorf, Switzerland
Niklaus E. Zimmermann
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Christian Ginzler
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Dirk Nikolaus Karger
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Pieter De Frenne
Forest and Nature Lab, Department of Environment, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
David Frey
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
Clare Webster
Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF, Davos Dorf, Switzerland
Department of Geosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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- Unveiling unique microclimate regimes across tropical montane forests in East Africa J. Jia et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2026.111312
- Terrestrial lidar versus field surveys to assess microclimate temperature buffering in forests E. Gril et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123837
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- Holocene summer temperature reconstruction from plant sedaDNA and chironomids from the northern boreal forest R. Mayfield et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2024.109045
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- Urban heat exacerbates climatic risks to urban biodiversity A. Dietzel et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42949-025-00309-6
- Spatial microclimatic heterogeneity is associated with forest structure and biodiversity K. Pierick et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.114874
- Environmental and seasonal filtering of taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversity patterns of mountain butterflies in a prime butterfly area, Greece K. Nasiou et al. https://doi.org/10.1111/icad.70119
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- Local atmospheric vapor pressure deficit as microclimate index to assess tropical rainforest riparian restoration success B. Felippe et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.179146
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- Surface boundary layer stability and meteorological drivers of temporal microclimate variability in a semiarid grassland D. Barnard et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110723
- Towards precision forestry: A systematic review of optimisation methods for individual-tree decisions in forest management N. Perry et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tfp.2026.101226
- Capturing microclimates: 30-m downscaled climate dataset reveals fine-scale suitability patterns of invasive pests in karst landscapes Z. Zhao et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.115293
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- Comparison of Landsat-8 and Sentinel-2 Imagery for Modeling Gross Primary Productivity of Tea Ecosystem A. Raza et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10343-024-01058-9
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- Local microclimates can both amplify and mitigate extreme temperatures associated with climate change E. Ashe-Jepson et al. https://doi.org/10.21425/fob.18.164843
24 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Matching climate to biological scales D. Klinges et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2025.11.015
- Remote sensing and geospatial analysis for the study of plant community regeneration in human‐modified landscapes L. Schmid et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.70569
- Microrefugia for Small Mammals in European Forests L. Balčiauskas & L. Balčiauskienė https://doi.org/10.3390/f17040398
- Unveiling unique microclimate regimes across tropical montane forests in East Africa J. Jia et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2026.111312
- Terrestrial lidar versus field surveys to assess microclimate temperature buffering in forests E. Gril et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2026.123837
- Differential responses of taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic multi-taxa diversity to environmental factors in temperate forest ecosystems J. Vigués Jorba et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2025.113855
- Effects of microclimate variation on insect persistence under global change J. Kerr et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44358-025-00067-4
- Holocene summer temperature reconstruction from plant sedaDNA and chironomids from the northern boreal forest R. Mayfield et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2024.109045
- Spatially optimised sensor networks for efficient urban temperature monitoring and prediction L. Vitanova et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44327-026-00308-x
- Relationships between canopy surface temperature measured from drones and below-canopy forest microclimate in a tree diversity experiment L. Wei et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-026-03173-w
- Urban heat exacerbates climatic risks to urban biodiversity A. Dietzel et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42949-025-00309-6
- Spatial microclimatic heterogeneity is associated with forest structure and biodiversity K. Pierick et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.114874
- Environmental and seasonal filtering of taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversity patterns of mountain butterflies in a prime butterfly area, Greece K. Nasiou et al. https://doi.org/10.1111/icad.70119
- Embracing plant–plant interactions—Rethinking predictions of species range shifts P. Sanczuk et al. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.14415
- Local atmospheric vapor pressure deficit as microclimate index to assess tropical rainforest riparian restoration success B. Felippe et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.179146
- Ten practical guidelines for microclimate research in terrestrial ecosystems P. De Frenne et al. https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.14476
- Surface boundary layer stability and meteorological drivers of temporal microclimate variability in a semiarid grassland D. Barnard et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2025.110723
- Towards precision forestry: A systematic review of optimisation methods for individual-tree decisions in forest management N. Perry et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tfp.2026.101226
- Capturing microclimates: 30-m downscaled climate dataset reveals fine-scale suitability patterns of invasive pests in karst landscapes Z. Zhao et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.115293
- Addressing Data Scarcity in Solar Energy Prediction with Machine Learning and Augmentation Techniques A. Gevorgian et al. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17143365
- Hourly potential light availability maps at 10 m resolution over Switzerland C. Webster et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-025-06152-9
- Comparison of Landsat-8 and Sentinel-2 Imagery for Modeling Gross Primary Productivity of Tea Ecosystem A. Raza et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10343-024-01058-9
- High-resolution hydrometeorological and snow data for the Dischma catchment in Switzerland J. Magnusson et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-703-2025
- Local microclimates can both amplify and mitigate extreme temperatures associated with climate change E. Ashe-Jepson et al. https://doi.org/10.21425/fob.18.164843
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 05 Oct 2026
Short summary
The microclimatic conditions experienced by organisms living close to the ground are not well represented in currently used climate datasets derived from weather stations. Therefore, we measured and mapped ground microclimate temperatures at 10 m spatial resolution across Switzerland using a novel radiation model. Our results reveal a high variability in microclimates across different habitats and will help to better understand climate and land use impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems.
The microclimatic conditions experienced by organisms living close to the ground are not well...
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