1. Data user perspective: Ecosystem
data and tool requirements for
modelling applications
ecosystem Modelling And Scaling infrasTructure
(eMAST)
Presentation by Brad Evans based on contributions by Colin
Prentice, Michael Hutchinson, Gab Abramowitz, Ben Evans,
Rhys Whitley, Julie Pauwels

2. eMAST’s objectives 2013-2015
DELIVER research data infrastructure to
integrate TERN (and other) data streams on the
National Computing Infrastructure
ENABLE data assimilation, model evaluation and
accreditation and ecosystem model optimization
DRIVE advances in ecosystem science, impact
assessment and land management

3. Driving science questions
CARBON: How much CO2 is exchanged? How
much carbon can be stored and where?
WATER: What drives water use by ecosystems,
and runoff in rivers?
CLIMATE CHANGE: How does it change the
rules?
LAND MANAGEMENT: What will work, in a
changing climate?

4. More driving science questions
FIRE: What are the risks? How can they be
mitigated?
CLIMATE FEEDBACKS: How will ecosystem
changes influence the exchanges of
carbon, water and energy with the atmosphere?
BIODIVERSITY: What species are threatened?
Where are likely refugia? Is there a tipping
point?

5. Data: Climate data sets (1 km)
Tmin
Tmax
vp
P
daily
✔
1970-2011
✔
✔
✔
monthly
✔
1970-2011
✔
✔
✔
✔
mean
monthly
pan
evap.
wet
days
✔
✔
✔
✔
✔
✔
solar
rad.
wind
speed
✔
✔

6. Bioclimate data sets (1 km T, P and R)

7. Tools
Data assimilation collaboration with NEON and
NCAR, CSIRO, Macquarie University and the
Australian National University : DART (NCAR)
eMAST : An R-Package ‘emast’ for the computation
and visualization of bioclimatic indices
ePiSaT 2.0 : Use of eMAST, OzFlux and AusCover
data to model Gross Primary Production across the
landscape, an R-Package ‘ePiSaT’.
Protocol for the Analysis of Land Surface Models
(PALS) for evaluation of data and models

8. User example: ePiSaT
How does gross primary productivity
(GPP) vary in space and time across
Australia?
How can we ‘simply’ estimate GPP
across Australia?
What data does TERN provide that
might be useful for addressing this
research question?

9. User workflow: ePiSaT GPP
Choose the ePiSaT
model from the TERN
portal
Produce continental
scale estimates of GPP
and evaluate them
Obtain OzFlux data via
the TERN/ OzFlux
portals
Obtain climate (eMAST)
and satellite data
(AusCover) to scale the
ePiSaT parameters
Run the ePiSaT model –
generate estimates of
ecosystem parameters,
evaluate them

10. OzFlux

11. ePiSaT: Flux partitioning
1
Respiration
R=
1
Data filtering:
Removal of outliers
etc.. Gap filling of
PAR (PPFD) for GPP
Amax = - 2
Quantum
3
Rectangular
Hyperbole
3 parameter
1
Assimilation
2
2
Efficiency
2
Φ=
3
3
FC = R -
Amax * Φ I
Amax +Φ I

12. ePiSaT : Flux tower scaling

13. http://episat-software.blogspot.com.au/
This project is supported by the Australian National Data Service (ANDS). ANDS is supported by the Australian Government through the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy
Program and the Education Investment Fund (EIF) Super Science Initiative. For more information visit the ANDS website ands.org.au and Research Data Australia services.ands.org.au.

14. ePiSaT : Partitioning evaluation

15. Model data evaluation
from Gab Abramowitz (UNSW)

16. eMAST in 2014
Delivery of our key datasets through the RDSI,
Data Discovery, Visualization & Exploitation…
consolidation of our tools and porting them to
Raijin.