Flux measurement tower

Being able to measure the exchange of mass, momentum and heat between the surface and atmosphere is key to understanding environmental processes and near surface turbulence. One of the best ways to measure these exchanges is using “flux towers,” which capture high-resolution data at multiple heights above the ground. These towers provide insights into micrometeorology and air chemistry by quantifying, among others, latent and sensible heat fluxes, carbon and moisture exchange and trace gas emissions.

Around Innsbruck, flux towers are used to study these exchange processes above a variety of landscapes, including forests, urban areas and grasslands.

One of these towers is part of the Forest-Atmosphere-Interaction-Research (FAIR) site, located in a Scots Pine forest close to Mieming in the vicinity of Innsbruck. The research activities at the FAIR site currently revolve around five main interlinked research areas, i.e. ecosystem carbon and water cycle, forest-atmosphere air quality interactions, boundary-layer meteorology in complex topography, remote and proximal sensing and model development, testing and validation.