Articles | Volume 23, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-263-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-263-2026
Research article
 | 
09 Jan 2026
Research article |  | 09 Jan 2026

Land surface model underperformance tied to specific meteorological conditions

Jon Cranko Page, Martin G. De Kauwe, Andy J. Pitman, Isaac R. Towers, Gabriele Arduini, Martin J. Best, Craig R. Ferguson, Jürgen Knauer, Hyungjun Kim, David M. Lawrence, Tomoko Nitta, Keith W. Oleson, Catherine Ottlé, Anna Ukkola, Nicholas Vuichard, Xiaoni Wang-Faivre, and Gab Abramowitz

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Abramowitz, G., Ukkola, A., Hobeichi, S., Cranko Page, J., Lipson, M., De Kauwe, M. G., Green, S., Brenner, C., Frame, J., Nearing, G., Clark, M., Best, M., Anthoni, P., Arduini, G., Boussetta, S., Caldararu, S., Cho, K., Cuntz, M., Fairbairn, D., Ferguson, C. R., Kim, H., Kim, Y., Knauer, J., Lawrence, D., Luo, X., Malyshev, S., Nitta, T., Ogee, J., Oleson, K., Ottlé, C., Peylin, P., de Rosnay, P., Rumbold, H., Su, B., Vuichard, N., Walker, A. P., Wang-Faivre, X., Wang, Y., and Zeng, Y.: On the predictability of turbulent fluxes from land: PLUMBER2 MIP experimental description and preliminary results, Biogeosciences, 21, 5517–5538, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-5517-2024, 2024. a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m
Alton, P. B.: Representativeness of global climate and vegetation by carbon-monitoring networks; implications for estimates of gross and net primary productivity at biome and global levels, Agr. Forest Meteorol., 290, 108017, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2020.108017, 2020. a
Arora, V. K., Katavouta, A., Williams, R. G., Jones, C. D., Brovkin, V., Friedlingstein, P., Schwinger, J., Bopp, L., Boucher, O., Cadule, P., Chamberlain, M. A., Christian, J. R., Delire, C., Fisher, R. A., Hajima, T., Ilyina, T., Joetzjer, E., Kawamiya, M., Koven, C. D., Krasting, J. P., Law, R. M., Lawrence, D. M., Lenton, A., Lindsay, K., Pongratz, J., Raddatz, T., Séférian, R., Tachiiri, K., Tjiputra, J. F., Wiltshire, A., Wu, T., and Ziehn, T.: Carbon–concentration and carbon–climate feedbacks in CMIP6 models and their comparison to CMIP5 models, Biogeosciences, 17, 4173–4222, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-4173-2020, 2020. a, b
Aubinet, M., Feigenwinter, C., Heinesch, B., Bernhofer, C., Canepa, E., Lindroth, A., Montagnani, L., Rebmann, C., Sedlak, P., and Van Gorsel, E.: Direct advection measurements do not help to solve the night-time CO2 closure problem: evidence from three different forests, Agr. Forest Meteorol., 150, 655–664, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2010.01.016, 2010. a
Aubinet, M., Vesala, T., and Papale, D.: Eddy Covariance: A Practical Guide to Measurement and Data Analysis, Springer Netherlands, Dordrecht, the Netherlands, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2351-1, 2012. a
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This paper used a large dataset of observations, machine learning predictions, and computer model simulations to test how well land surface models represent the water, energy, and carbon cycles. We found that the models work well under "normal" weather but do not meet performance expectations during coinciding extreme conditions. Since these extremes are relatively rare, targeted model improvements could deliver major performance gains.
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