A Long-Term Aerobiological Research Corridor
for Characterizing and Forecasting the Aerial Flow of Biota
between the Subtropical and Continental Interior Regions
of North America
A Long-Term Aerobiological Research Corridor
for Characterizing and Forecasting the Aerial Flow of Biota
between the Subtropical and Continental Interior Regions
of North America
Hypothesis & Objectives
The general hypothesis of the bioflow aerobiology proposal is that:
organisms that utilize the atmosphere for translation from one geographic place to another, flow within atmospheric motion systems along routes that are mediated by physical and biological features of the earth's surface. The pathways and timing of the flow of biota are to a large degree regular, and thus the movement of organisms in the atmosphere is predictable.
To evaluate this hypothesis, we have developed two specific research objectives:
(1) to characterize the biological and meteorological phenomena that influence the flow of biota in the atmosphere, paying particular attention to developing an understanding of the spatial and temporal scales of these phenomena and how their variations through time and across space interact to govern the pathways and timing of this flow, and
(2) to predict the pathways and timing of the long-distance aerial flow of biota from subtropical to midlatitude continental interior regions of North America during spring/summer and the equatorward flow that occurs during the summer/autumn.
To achieve these objectives, we propose to develop measurement standards and an observation network throughout the subtropical and continental interior regions of North America to measure populations of important/indicator aerobiota. We plan to interface new radar technologies for measuring bioflow in the atmosphere with the existing National Weather Service (NWS) weather radar observing network to monitor movement within this atmospheric corridor. The data from the biological observation network and the radar observations of biota moving in the atmosphere will be integrated with the vast array of existing meteorological and biological observations, information on the physical characteristics of the land, and remotely sensed data on land surface changes. These data will be: (1) managed in an efficient and easily accessible electronic format, (2) used to drive models to predict the aerial movement of diseases, pathogens, pests, and beneficial organisms to help protect human health and to improve the management of many North American ecosystems, and (3) made available to all potential users via modern electronic technologies.
Draft by Stuart Gage and Scott Isard; discussed at the 1996 annual meeting of NCR-148
This page was constructed by Gail Kampmeier at gkamp[at]uiuc.edu
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