First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing Drone
The world’s most extensive tropical peatlands occur in the Cuvette Centrale depression in the Congo Basin, which stores 30.6 petagrams of carbon (95% CI, 6.3–46.8). Improving our understanding of the genesis, development and functioning of these under-studied peatlands requires knowledge of their to...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-07-01
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| Series: | Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/12/14/2196 |
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| author | Ian J. Davenport Iain McNicol Edward T. A. Mitchard Greta Dargie Ifo Suspense Brice Milongo Yannick E. Bocko Donna Hawthorne Ian Lawson Andy J. Baird Susan Page Simon L. Lewis |
| author_facet | Ian J. Davenport Iain McNicol Edward T. A. Mitchard Greta Dargie Ifo Suspense Brice Milongo Yannick E. Bocko Donna Hawthorne Ian Lawson Andy J. Baird Susan Page Simon L. Lewis |
| author_sort | Ian J. Davenport |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The world’s most extensive tropical peatlands occur in the Cuvette Centrale depression in the Congo Basin, which stores 30.6 petagrams of carbon (95% CI, 6.3–46.8). Improving our understanding of the genesis, development and functioning of these under-studied peatlands requires knowledge of their topography and, in particular, whether the peat surface is domed, as this implies a rain-fed system. Here we use a laser altimeter mounted on an unmanned airborne vehicle (UAV) to measure peat surface elevation along two transects at the edges of a peatland, in the northern Republic of Congo, to centimetre accuracy and compare the results with an analysis of nearby satellite LiDAR data (ICESat and ICESat-2). The LiDAR elevations on both transects show an upward slope from the peatland edge, suggesting a surface elevation peak of around 1.8 m over ~20 km. While modest, this domed shape is consistent with the peatland being rainfed. In-situ peat depth measurements and our LiDAR results indicate that this peatland likely formed at least 10,000 years BP in a large shallow basin ~40 km wide and ~3 m deep. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:36:04Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f3c9e5be76ac4d4b89f8c37c065ea858 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T18:36:04Z |
| publishDate | 2020-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj.art-f3c9e5be76ac4d4b89f8c37c065ea8582023-11-20T06:17:58ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922020-07-011214219610.3390/rs12142196First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing DroneIan J. Davenport0Iain McNicol1Edward T. A. Mitchard2Greta Dargie3Ifo Suspense4Brice Milongo5Yannick E. Bocko6Donna Hawthorne7Ian Lawson8Andy J. Baird9Susan Page10Simon L. Lewis11School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FF, UKSchool of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FF, UKSchool of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FF, UKSchool of Geography, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UKÉcole Normale Supérieure, Université Marien Ngouabi, Brazzaville 99324, Republic of the CongoÉcole Normale Supérieure, Université Marien Ngouabi, Brazzaville 99324, Republic of the CongoFaculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université Marien NGOUABI, Brazzaville 99324, Republic of the CongoSchool of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, Scotland KY16 9AJ, UKDepartment of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, St Andrews KY16 9AL, UKSchool of Geography, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UKSchool of Geography, Geology and the Environment, University of Leicester, Leicester LE1 7RH, UKSchool of Geography, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UKThe world’s most extensive tropical peatlands occur in the Cuvette Centrale depression in the Congo Basin, which stores 30.6 petagrams of carbon (95% CI, 6.3–46.8). Improving our understanding of the genesis, development and functioning of these under-studied peatlands requires knowledge of their topography and, in particular, whether the peat surface is domed, as this implies a rain-fed system. Here we use a laser altimeter mounted on an unmanned airborne vehicle (UAV) to measure peat surface elevation along two transects at the edges of a peatland, in the northern Republic of Congo, to centimetre accuracy and compare the results with an analysis of nearby satellite LiDAR data (ICESat and ICESat-2). The LiDAR elevations on both transects show an upward slope from the peatland edge, suggesting a surface elevation peak of around 1.8 m over ~20 km. While modest, this domed shape is consistent with the peatland being rainfed. In-situ peat depth measurements and our LiDAR results indicate that this peatland likely formed at least 10,000 years BP in a large shallow basin ~40 km wide and ~3 m deep.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/12/14/2196peatLiDARdomecarbonICESatICESat-2 |
| spellingShingle | Ian J. Davenport Iain McNicol Edward T. A. Mitchard Greta Dargie Ifo Suspense Brice Milongo Yannick E. Bocko Donna Hawthorne Ian Lawson Andy J. Baird Susan Page Simon L. Lewis First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing Drone Remote Sensing peat LiDAR dome carbon ICESat ICESat-2 |
| title | First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing Drone |
| title_full | First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing Drone |
| title_fullStr | First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing Drone |
| title_full_unstemmed | First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing Drone |
| title_short | First Evidence of Peat Domes in the Congo Basin using LiDAR from a Fixed-Wing Drone |
| title_sort | first evidence of peat domes in the congo basin using lidar from a fixed wing drone |
| topic | peat LiDAR dome carbon ICESat ICESat-2 |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/12/14/2196 |
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