Leaf Peeping with PACE

Narration: Ryan Fitzgibbons

Transcript:

It’s autumn and things are changing. Cool air, hot cider, and leaves! As humans we can see this striking change in our neighborhoods or even on a trip. Fall foliage tourism brings in tens of billions of dollars in the U.S. alone. But there’s more to it than just a pretty scene. The fall colors signal changes with our food, our air, and our ecosystem. Photosynthesis ends, carbon and water balance change, and leaf color changes how much sunlight is absorbed. Now with the PACE satellite, we’re seeing seasonal fall foliage in a whole new view. PACE can see more information in leaf color changes than our eyes can detect, especially in leaf pigments. These pigments protect plants and allow them to thrive in changing conditions and seasons. Before PACE, we’d have to infer the timing of seasonal changes by how much “green-ness” has decreased. By looking at how PACE’s pigment indices change relative to one another, it can give us a view into the health of ecosystems. For instance, a shift in the start of fall colors could mean drier or colder years. And data on leaf pigments could help answer other science questions. Like why do trees even turn red? Is it sun protection in colder temperatures? Warning against insect damage? Or something else entirely? As PACE repeatedly covers both land and ocean, we’ll gather more data to help us decode these colors.