Nina Tiralla

Room 5.133
Phone: +49 551 39 28035
Email: ntirall1#at#gwdg.de

ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1855-9350

Research Interests

Stem temperatures of forest stands and their temporal and spatial variations are of fundamental importance for the biodiversity and the energy and carbon balance of forest ecosystems. My PhD project aims to investigate the impact of small-scale variability of biophysical factors such as radiation, air temperature, water transportation, wind, etc. on spatial and temporal variations of stem temperatures in a mixed beech forest. A combination of comprehensive micrometeorological measurements and 3D-modelling shall characterize the thermal energy balance of tree trunks. The following four effects are quantitatively addressed: 1) the contribution of each individual biophysical factor to stem temperature variations, 2) the effect of radiation dynamics due to phenology and tree position inside the forest or at forest edges, 3) the importance of vertical heat transport, e.g. via water transport in the xylem, and 4) the relevance of stem temperature for the microclimate within forest stands. A process based dynamic 3D-stem temperature model as function of climatic and phenological variables shall be developed based on the quantification of the four mentioned effects. It shall be applicable to deciduous forests during all seasons and shall consider edge effects.