by Isabella Eclipse
Marc Rosenfield sets up a carbon cycling sensor outside the U.S. Capitol Building. (Credit: Megan Wilkerson)
This is the second in a series of posts highlighting research the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center is continuing to do amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and adaptations its staff have been making in a more socially distant world.
When the pandemic hit, many scientists’ field sites closed down, bringing countless research projects to a screeching halt. Marc Rosenfield, a graduate student at George Washington University, found himself in this exact situation when the Virginia Coast Reserve shut its doors. An ecosystem ecologist, Rosenfield was studying the exchange of carbon between the land and the atmosphere. He’d planned to deploy carbon sensors to understand how carbon exchange differs when moving from marshes to surrounding forests.
Instead of giving up, Rosenfield switched gears and transformed his research into a citizen science project. He, along with his dedicated undergraduate assistant Leona Neftaliem, reached out to colleagues in Washington, D.C., to see if anyone would allow the setup of carbon sensors in their backyards. To his surprise, an overwhelming number said yes. Soon, strangers were asking him to set up sensors on their properties. Today, Rosenfield has 30 sensors in locations across D.C., from private backyards to the U.S. Botanic Garden. There’s even one at the famous 9:30 nightclub.
This carbon sensor, designed by SERC researcher Roy Rich, is one over two dozen across Washington, D.C., taking continuous measurements of carbon dioxide and other key climate variables during the pandemic. (Credit: Marc Rosenfield)
The carbon sensors, designed by SERC scientist Roy Rich, measure CO2, temperature, pressure, humidity and other carbon-based compounds. They run continuously, storing data on an SD card which volunteers can remove and send to scientists for analysis every few weeks. Rich’s compact design is cost-effective and creates a detailed picture of the variation in carbon levels across a landscape.
“The best way I can describe it is by thinking of a camera with higher resolution,” Rosenfield explained. “Where most studies try to maximize the area a single CO2 sensor can measure, we minimize the area and deploy a larger sensor network.”
The carbon sensors have only been in place for a couple months. Rosenfield hopes the data will reveal how plants, buildings and cars affect carbon cycling in and out of the atmosphere. The pandemic also offers a rare opportunity for Rosenfield to observe how the environment reacts to drops in human activity.
Rosenfield plans to keep the sensors running for at least a year. Ultimately, he thinks his research could help inform city planning. For example, if nearby plants help mitigate the effects of human pollution on the carbon cycle, urban planners could plant trees strategically near areas of concentrated pollution.
More Research During COVID:
Repurposing Nature To Restore the San Francisco Shoreline
Plastic Cleanup Expedition Helps Research Stay Afloat During Pandemic
Orchid Hybrids Offer Clues for Conservation
TEMPEST Experiment Mimics Future Storms Inside Forests
How the “Blue Methane” Team Used COVID Restrictions To Get More Data Than Ever
