Measuring and Modeling the Effects of Landscape Development on Climate Variability and Evapotranspiration in Southeastern Massachusetts 

 Southeastern Massachusetts is experiencing dramatic rates of landscape change, largely due to the human activity. This project measures and models the impacts of human land-use change on climate variability in SE Mass. Surface air temperature is a common indicator of climate change, and because evapotranspiration (ET) is a critical component of the hydrologic cycle and cool process for land surfaces, it is important to quantify its temporal and spatial variability across various landscapes.

This project seeks to:

• Identify seven landscape types using 0.5 meter aerial, color orthophotographs and existing land-use classifications.
• Install one automatic weather station in seven natural and anthropogenically developed locations (completed Dec. 2006).
• Estimate ET using the BROOK90 hydrologic model and the ETref potential ET model (in progress).
• Compare landscape impacts on patterns of ET and temperature using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) (in progress).
• Facilitate opportunities for undergraduate student research experiences