PACE, with its frequently collected continuous high spectral resolution imagery, provides an opportunity to describe dynamics of key terrestrial vegetation biochemical and functional characteristics. Frequent observations of leaf pigment contents provide information on vegetation seasonal activity and stress responses that are related to photosynthetic rates and ecosystem primary productivity. Spectral reflectance can also identify vegetation functional type coverage, related to biodiversity, which further constrains physiological responses. Thus, taken together, PACE measurements can describe factors determining plant productivity, stress responses, and resource allocations, providing new insights into global patterns of the function of terrestrial ecosystems and their response to environmental conditions.
The potential uses of PACE data for terrestrial applications are demonstrated in a variety of studies using data from combinations of MODIS ocean and land bands, HICO and Hyperion imaging spectrometers, AVIRIS imagery from aircraft, ground measurements, and vegetation canopy models.
