Thomas Foken – författare

This practical handbook provides a clearly structured, concise and comprehensive account of the huge variety of atmospheric and related measurements relevant to meteorologists and for the purpose of weather forecasting and climate research, but also to the practitioner in the wider field of environmental physics and ecology.

The Springer Handbook of Atmospheric Measurements is divided into six parts: The first part offers instructive descriptions of the basics of atmospheric measurements and the multitude of their influencing factors, fundamentals of quality control and standardization, as well as equations and tables of atmospheric, water, and soil quantities. The subsequent parts  present classical in-situ measurements as well as remote sensing techniques from both  ground-based as well as airborn or satellite-based methods. The next part focusses on complex measurements and methods that integrate different techniques to establish more holistic data. Brief discussions of measurements in soils and water, at plants, in urban and rural environments and for renewable energies demonstrate the potential of such applications. The final part  provides an overview of atmospheric and ecological networks.

Written by distinguished experts from academia and industry, each of the 64 chapters provides in-depth discussions of the available devices with their specifications, aspects of quality control, maintenance as well as their potential for the future. A large number of thoroughly compiled tables of physical quantities, sensors and system characteristics make this handbook a unique, universal and useful reference for the practitioner and absolutely essential for researchers, students, and technicians.

The book focuses on atmospheric processes that directly influence human environments within the lower 100–1000 meters of the atmosphere, spanning regions of only a few kilometers in size. It represents the English translation of the fourth edition of the German work titled "Applied Meteorology – Micrometeorological Methods". It provides a fundamental understanding of micrometeorology as applied to various disciplines, including biometeorology, agrometeorology, hydrometeorology, technical meteorology, environmental meteorology, and biogeosciences, through carefully selected examples.

Compared to the second edition, the new features include updates and minor additions in all chapters, as well as selected new content that addresses the challenges posed by climate change.

This book focuses on fluxes of energy, carbon dioxide and matter in and above a Central European spruce forest. The transition from a forest affected by acid rain into a heterogeneous forest occurred as a result of wind throw, bark beetles and climate change. Scientific results obtained over the last 20 years at the FLUXNET site DE-Bay (Waldstein-Weidenbrunnen) are shown together with methods developed at the site, including the application of footprint models for data-quality analysis, the coupling between the trunk space and the atmosphere, the importance of the Damköhler number for trace gas studies, and the turbulent conditions at a forest edge. In addition to the many experimental studies, the book also applies model studies such as higher-order closure models, Large-Eddy Simulations, and runoff models for the catchment and compares them with the experimental data. Moreover, by highlighting processes in the atmosphere it offers insights into the functioning of the ecosystem asa whole. It is of interest to ecologists, micrometeorologists and ecosystem modelers.

Gegenstand des Buches sind die atmosphärischen Vorgänge im unmittelbaren Lebensraum des Menschen, also in den unteren 100-1000 Metern der Atmosphäre und in Gebieten mit nur einigen Kilometern Ausdehnung. Die zweite Auflage wurde an die Entwicklungen der letzten Jahre angepasst und teilweise durch neuere Forschungsergebnisse erweitert. Damit bietet das Buch Grundlagen insbesondere für angewandte meteorologische Fachgebiete wie Biometeorologie, Agrarmeteorologie, Hydrometeorologie, Umweltmeteorologie und technische Meteorologie sowie für die Biogeochemie mit ausgewählten Beispielen aus diesen Gebieten. Ein wichtiger Schwerpunkt sind dabei die Transportprozesse und Stoffflüsse zwischen Atmosphäre und Erdoberfläche, wobei bewachsene und heterogene Unterlagen eine besondere Beachtung finden. Der Autor behandelt die Teilgebiete Theorie, Messtechnik, experimentelle Verfahren und Modellierung so, dass sie jeweils auch eigenständig für Lehre, Forschung und Praxis genutzt werden können.

The book focusses on atmospheric processes, which directly affect human environments within the lowest 100–1000 meters of the atmosphere over regions of only a few kilometres in extent. The book is the translation into English of the third edition of the German book “Applied Meteorology – Micrometeorological Methods”. It presents, with selected examples, the basics of micrometeorology applied to disciplines such as biometeorology, agrometeorology, hydrometeorology, technical meteorology, environmental meteorology, and biogeosciences. The important issues discussed in this book are the transport processes and fluxes between the atmosphere and the underlying surface. Vegetated and heterogeneous surfaces are special subjects.  The author covers the areas of theory, measurement techniques, experimental methods, and modelling all in ways that can be used independently in teaching, research, or practical applications.

Gegenstand des Buches sind die hundert bis tausend Vorgänge im unmittelbaren Lebensraum des Menschen, also in den unteren hundert bis tausend Metern der Atmosphäre und in räumlichen Einheiten von nur einigen Kilometern Ausdehnung. Dieser mikrometeorologische Raum wird in Büchern der allgemeinen Meteorologie nur wenig berücksichtigt. Damit bietet das Buch Grundlagen insbesondere für angewandte meteorologische Fachgebiete wie Biometeorologie, Agrarmeteorologie, Hydrometeorologie, Umweltmeteorologie und technische Meteorologie sowie für die Biogeochemie. Ein wichtiger Schwerpunkt sind die Transportprozesse und Stoffflüsse zwischen Atmosphäre und Erdoberfläche, wobei bewachsene und heterogene Unterlagen besondere Beachtung finden. 

Thomas Foken ist Professor im Ruhestand für Mikrometeorologie an der Universität Bayreuth.

How to interpret meteorological measurements made at a given level over a surface with regard to characteristic properties such as roughness, albedo, heat, moisture, carbon dioxide, and other gases is an old question which goes back to the very beginnings of modern micrometeorology. It is made even more challenging when it is unclear whether these measurements are only valid for this point/region and precisely describe the conditions there, or if they are also influenced by surrounding areas. After 50 years of field experiments, it has become both apparent and problematic that meteorological measurements are influenced from surfaces on the windward side. As such, extending these measurements for inhomogeneous experimental sites requires a quantitative understanding of these influences. When combined with atmospheric transport models similar to air pollution models, the ‘footprint’ concept – a fundamental approach introduced roughly 20 years ago – provides us with information on whether or not the condition of upwind site homogeneity is fulfilled. Since these first models, the development of more scientifically based versions, validation experiments and applications has advanced rapidly. The aim of this book is to provide an overview of these developments, to analyze present deficits, to describe applications and to advance this topic at the forefront of micrometeorological research.

Die Autoren behandeln die Teilgebiete Theorie, Messtechnik, experimentelle Verfahren und Modellierung so, dass sie jeweils auch eigenständig für Lehre, Forschung und Praxis genutzt werden können.

Neuerungen gegenüber der dritten Auflage sind Aktualisierungen und kleinere Ergänzungen in allen Kapiteln sowie ausgewählte inhaltliche Erweiterungen unter Berücksichtigung der Fragen des Klimawandels.