Research campaign at a tropical peat swamp forest in Indonesia Research campaign at a tropical peat swamp forest in Indonesia

In early April 2025, Yohanes Ginting, a PhD student in the Climate Monitoring Group, conducted a fieldwork campaign in a tropical peat swamp forest in Indonesia. Collaborating with Indonesian scientists, he plans to investigate the interaction between the forest and the atmospheric boundary layer. The research focuses on the transport of mass, heat, momentum, and net ecosystem exchange. He combines the recorded data from sensors attached to the meteorological tower in the field with ground based in-situ sensors to understand the surface process, such as soil respiration and peatland hydrology. During his time in Indonesia, Yohanes set up an eddy covariance system to measure CO₂ and H₂O fluxes between the peat swamp forest and the atmosphere. Additionally, he used chamber-based instruments to measure the soil respiration. The most challenging part of the campaign was related to the unpredictable weather conditions at the research site. It was really hard to finish the installation of the eddy covariance system since the weather was changing in the mornings and the afternoons, as we had rain coming starting at noon, which made the climb up the tower impossible.