His research is focused on canopy fluid mechanics including developing theoretical formulations, designing observations, and performing numerical simulations to understand the physical, biological, and chemical processes that control the exchange of trace gas between the vegetation and the atmosphere. Yi was a leading recipient of World Meteorological Organization Norbert-Gerbier-MUMM International Award in 2012. Yi was a Rossby Fellow from International Meteorological Institute at Stockholm University during 2014 – 2015. His lab has a broad spectrum of research projects across Forest Ecology, Remote Sensing, Micrometeorology, Climate Change, Paleoclimate, and Hydrology. The overall goal of his team is to use nonlinear system theory, stability analysis approach, resilience, and tipping point concepts to predict potential critical transitions of nature and society in facing extremes induced by the warming climate.
While at the University of Innsbruck, Prof. Yi will study the feedback linkage between daytime atmospheric boundary-layer (ABL) evolution and plants’ stomatal opening dynamics for alpine ecosystems with Professor Georg Wohlfahrt’s team. The major challenge of this work is to estimate canopy conductance as gross primary production (GPP) is not directly measured at most flux-tower sites. Prof. Wohlfahrt’s group explores new ways for a semidirect GPP estimation by using additional carbonyl sulfide (COS) flux and sun-induced fluorescence (SIF) measurements at the FAIR forest infrastructure (AT-Mmg).
To better understanding interactions between mountain ABL dynamics and alpine ecosystem photosynthesis, Yi will use these data to develop an ecosystem conductance model with Wohlfahrt’s postdocs and graduate students. He also will apply his ABL depth model, developed based on observations from a 915-MHz boundary layer profiling radar and CO2 mixing ratio measured from a 447-m tower in northern Wisconsin, to Innsbruck tower site AT-Mmg. He will work with graduate students in the Ecology and Biodiversity and Environmental Management of Mountainous Areas (EMMA) M.Sc. programs, and the Biology Ph.D. program, and will teach lecture and seminar courses on Global Change Ecology.
Save the date:
October 10, 2022 at 5 p.m.
"Forest resilience and climate change"
presentation for students and interested public, Hörsaal A, Sternwartestr. 15, Innsbruck