Biospheric Theory and Modelling
Overview
We approach the Earth system from fundamental physical principles and by using a whole system perspective. Our approach focuses on how Earth system processes transform different forms of energy, in particular how they derive work from the incoming solar forcing and how processes transform this energy further to drive the dynamics of Earth systems. Entropy and the second law of thermodynamics set fundamental constraints on the direction and intensity of the resulting dynamics. Although these physical concepts are rather fundamental and essential, they are rarely used in Earth system science.
We use this approach to develop physically based, parsimonious insights for a range of topics in Earth system science and compare them with observations and much more complex numerical model simulations. Our success so far shows that it is very well suited to better understand and predict land-atmosphere interactions, global climate change, renewable energy, and the role of the biosphere and human societies in the Earth system. It reveals the main, dominant factors that shape phenomena and make them highly predictable.
Our approach provides a comprehensive understanding of the Earth system and global change based on a solid physical foundation. It requires only a few physical concepts and hardly any empirical parameters, thus providing an alternative approach that complements the analysis of observations and complex numerical models. This approach is well suited for applications in uncharted territory, such as future states of the Earth system and potentially habitable exoplanets, but also for teaching and science communication, because the physical concepts can be explained and linked to the involved processes at a relatively simple, yet profound level.
Our research topics
Our research focuses on three areas:
1. Earth system theory. We develop the approach further by describing Earth system processes from sunlight to societies in terms of the energy they convert, the effect they have on their boundary conditions, the resulting interactions and limits, and the emergent behavior at the larger system scale. This includes exploratory applications of this approach to biospheric regulation (such as the Gaia hypothesis), human societies and exoplanets.
2. Land-atmosphere interactions. We apply our approach to the land-atmosphere system to understand and predict the emergent climatological state, its sensitivity to global change, and the role of the terrestrial biosphere in these interactions.
3. The energy transition. We utilize our approach to determine limits of renewable energy and the consequences of their use on the Earth system, focusing mostly on wind energy, realistic scenario settings, and other aspects of the energy transition.
