Dr Carole Helfter

Research interests

I study surface-atmosphere exchange of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane) both in natural and urban environments using micrometeorological techniques. I run eddy-covariance systems at two long-term measurements sites in Scotland (Auchencorth Moss, a peatland, and Easter Bush, a managed grassland) and contribute flux data to the CarboEurope and NitroEurope databases. I have a keen interest in tropical ecosystems and took part in NERC OP3-Danum 2008 (Oxidant and Particle Photochemical Processes above a South-East Asian tropical rain forest), where I focused on CO2, heat and momentum fluxes.

I contributed to the analysis and interpretation of flux data from the London REPARTEE campaigns, focusing on source attribution of carbon dioxide emissions and I currently play an active role in NERC ClearFlo (Clean Air for London), a thematic consortium grant concerned with the long-term monitoring of pollutants above London (UK).

Research career

2007-present: Environmental physicist at the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (Edinburgh research station).

2004-2007: PhD (Physics) at Heriot-Watt University (Edinburgh, Scotland, UK). Thesis title: “Non-invasive measurements of phloem and xylem sap flow in woody plants by a laser-based heat pulse technique”.

1999-2004: BSc and MSc in physics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL).

Awards

2007: Finalist of the Young Scientist Award delivered by the Society for Experimental Biology (SEB).

2006: Recipient of the second year physics PhD research prize awarded by the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Heriot-Watt University (Edinburgh, UK).

Recent publications

See also the NERC Open Research Archive.

Dinsmore, K.J, Billett, M.F., Skiba, U.M., Rees, R.m., Drewer, J, Helfter, C. (2010). Role of the aquatic pathway in the carbon and greenhouse gas budgets of a peatland catchment. Global Change Biology 16, 2750-2762

Drewer, J., Lohila, A., Aurela, M., Laurila, T., Minkkinen, K., Penttilä, T., Dinsmore, K.J., McKenzie, R.M, Helfter, C., Flechard, C., Sutton, M., Skiba U.M. (2010). Comparison of greenhouse gas fluxes and nitrogen budgets from an ombotrophic bog in Scotland and a minerotrophic sedge fen in Finland. European Journal of Soil Science 61, 640-650

Famulari, D., Braban, C., White, A., Helfter, C., Coyle M., Sutton M.A., Nemitz E., (2010). NH3 release through a forest canopy: an agro-forestry experiment. Research, monitoring and modelling in the study of climate change and air pollution impacts on forest ecosystems, Rome Italy.

Helfter, C., Coyle, M., Di Marco, C., Phillips, G., Fowler, D., Nemitz, E., (2009a). Turbulence, trace gas and heat fluxes above a South-East Asia forest. Atmospheric Transport and Chemistry in Forest Ecosystems, Castle of Thurnau, Germany.

Helfter, C., Coyle, M., Di Marco, C., Phillips, G., Siong, J., Skiba, U., Fowler, D., Nemitz, E., (2009b). Greenhouse gas emission in SE Asia: contrasts between an oil palm plantation and a primary forest. APPRAISE annual science meeting, Manchester Conference Centre, Manchester, UK.

Helfter, C., Coyle, M., Phillips, G., Siong, J., Skiba, U., Fowler, D., Nemitz, E., (2009c). Measurements of turbulence, heat fluxes and greenhouse gas fluxes above tropical rain forest and oil palm in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. Asiaflux annual workshop, University of Hokkaido, Sapporo, Japan.

Helfter, C., Famulari, D., Phillips, G.J., Barlow, J.F., Wood, C.R., Grimmond, C.S.B., Nemitz, E., (2010). Controls of carbon dioxide concentrations and fluxes above central London. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions 10, 23739-23780.

Helfter, C., Hand, D., Windt, C., Van As, H., Mencuccini, M., (2007a). Comparison of xylem flow velocities determined by MRI and a non-invasive heat pulse technique in Golden Alder and Silver Birch. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology a-Molecular & Integrative Physiology 146, DOI 10.1016/j.cbpa.2007.1001.1602|1015.

Helfter, C., Shephard, J., Martinez-Vilalta, J., Mencuccini, M., (2006). A non-invasive optical system for the measurement of phloem and xylem sap flow in woody plants. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology a-Molecular & Integrative Physiology 143, S145-S145.

Helfter, C., Shephard, J.D., Martinez-Vilalta, J., Mencuccini, M., Hand, D.P., (2007b). A noninvasive optical system for the measurement of xylem and phloem sap flow in woody plants of small stem size. Tree Physiology 27, 169-179

Hewitt, C.N., Lee, J., Barkley, M.P., Carslaw, N., Chappell, N.A., Coe, H., Collier, C., Commane, R., Davies, F., Di Carlo, P., Di Marco, C., Edwards, P.M., Evans, M.J., Fowler, D., Furneaux, K.L., Gallagher, M., Guenther, A., Heard, D.E., Helfter, C., Hopkins, J., Ingham, T., Irwin, M., Jones, C., Karunaharan, A., Langford, B., Lewis, A., Lim, S.F., MacDonald, S.M., MacKenzie, A.R., Mahajan, A.S., Malpass, S., McFiggans, G., Mills, G., Misztal, P., Moller, S., Monks, P.S., Nemitz, E., Nicolas-Perea, V., Oetjen, H., Oram, D., Palmer, P.I., Phillips, G., Plane, J.M.C., Pugh, T., Pyle, J.A., Reeves, C.E., Robinson, N.H., Stewart, D., Stone, D., Whalley, L.K., (2009). Oxidant and particle photochemical processes above a south-east Asian tropical rain forest (the OP3 project): introduction, rationale, location characteristics and tools. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions 9, 18899-18963.

Hewitt, C.N., Lee, J., Barkley, M.P., Carslaw, N., Chappell, N.A., Coe, H., Collier, C., Commane, R., Davies, F., Di Carlo, P., Di Marco, C., Edwards, P.M., Evans, M.J., Fowler, D., Furneaux, K.L., Gallagher, M., Guenther, A., Heard, D.E., Helfter, C., Hopkins, J., Ingham, T., Irwin, M., Jones, C., Karunaharan, A., Langford, B., Lewis, A., Lim, S.F., MacDonald, S.M., MacKenzie, A.R., Mahajan, A.S., Malpass, S., McFiggans, G., Mills, G., Misztal, P., Moller, S., Monks, P.S., Nemitz, E., Nicolas-Perea, V., Oetjen, H., Oram, D., Palmer, P.I., Phillips, G., Plane, J.M.C., Pugh, T., Pyle, J.A., Reeves, C.E., Robinson, N.H., Stewart, D., Stone, D., Whalley, L.K., Yin, X., (2010). Overview: Oxidant and particle photochemical processes above a south-east Asian tropical rain forest (the OP3 project): introduction, rationale, location characteristics and tools. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 10, 169-199.

Langford, B., Misztal, P.K., Nemitz, E., Davison, B., Helfter, C., Pugh, T.A.M., MacKenzie, A.R., Lim, S.F., Hewitt, C.N., 2010. Fluxes and concentrations of volatile organic compounds from a South-East Asian tropical rainforest. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics Discussions 10, 11975-12021.

Misztal, P.K., Owen, S.M., Guenther, A.B., Rasmussen, R., Geron, C., Harley, P., Phillips, G.J., Ryan, A., Edwards, D.P., Hewitt, C.N., Nemitz, E., Siong, J., Heal, M.R., Cape, J.N., (2010). Large estragole fluxes from oil palms in Borneo. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 10, 4343-4358.

Muller, J., Coyle, M., Helfter, C., Dorsey, J., Gallagher, M., Percival, C., Nemitz, E., Fowler, D., (2010). Ozone fluxes over South-East Asian tropical rainforest and oil palm plantation. Geophysical Research Abstracts 12.

Pike, R.C., Lee, J.D., Young, P.J., Carver, G.D., Yang, X., Warwick, N., Moller, S., Misztal, P., Langford, B., Stewart, D., Reeves, C.E., Hewitt, C.N., Pyle, J.A., (2010). NOx and O3 above a tropical rainforest: an analysis with a global and box model. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 10, 10607-10620.

Pugh, T.A.M., Mackenzie, A.R., Hewitt, C.N., Langford, B., Edwards, P.M., Furneaux, K.L., Heard, D.E., Hopkins, J.R., Jones, C.E., Karunaharan, A., Lee, J., Mills, G., Misztal, P., Moller, S., Monks, P.S., Whalley, L.K., (2010). Simulating atmospheric composition over a South-East Asian tropical rainforest: performance of a chemistry box model. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 10, 279-298.

Ryder, J., Langford, B., Oram, D., Misztal, P., Helfter, C., Phillips, G., Coyle, M., Whitehead, J., Lowe, D., McFiggans, G., Nemitz, E., (2009). Sources, sinks and chemical processing of volatile organic compounds within a South-East Asian rainforest canopy. Proceedings of the International Conference of “Atmospheric Transport and Chemistry in Forest Ecosystems”, University of Bayreuth, Germany, Castle of Thurnau, Germany.

Skiba, U., Drewer, J., Tang, Y.S., van Dijk, N., Helfter, C., Nemitz, E., Famulari, D., Cape, J.N., Jones, S.K., Twigg, M., Pihlatie, M., Vesala, T., Larsen, K.S., Carter, M.S., Ambus, P., Ibrom, A., Beier, C., Hensen, A., Frumau, A., Erisman, J.W., Bruggemann, N., Gasche, R., Butterbach-Bahl, K., Neftel, A., Spirig, C., Horvath, L., Freibauer, A., Cellier, P., Laville, P., Loubet, B., Magliulo, E., Bertolini, T., Seufert, G., Andersson, M., Manca, G., Laurila, T., Aurela, M., Lohila, A., Zechmeister-Boltenstern, S., Kitzler, B., Schaufler, G., Siemens, J., Kindler, R., Flechard, C., Sutton,,M.A., (2009). Biosphere–atmosphere exchange of reactive nitrogen and greenhouse gases at the NitroEurope core flux measurement sites: Measurement strategy and first data sets. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 133, 139-149.

Wood, C.R., Lacser, A., Barlow, J.F., Padhra, A., Belcher, S.E., Nemitz, E., Helfter, C., Famulari, D., Grimmond, C.S.B., (2010). Turbulent flow at 190 m height above London during 2006-2008: A climatology and the applicability of similarity theory. Boundary-Layer Meteorology 137, 77-96.

Yi, C., Ricciuto, D., Li, R., Wolbeck, J., Xu, X., Nilsson, M., Aires, L., Albertson, J.D., Amman, C., Arain, M.A., de Araujo, A.C., Aubinet, M., Aurela, M., Barcza, Z., Barr, A., Berbigier, P., Beringer, J., Bernhofer, C., Black, A.T., Bolstad, P.V., Bosveld, F.C., Broadmeadow, M.S.J., Buchmann, N., Burns, S.P., Cellier, P., Chen, J., Chen, J., Ciais, P., Clement, R., Cook, B.D., Curtis, P.S., Dail, D.B., Dellwik, E., Delpierre, N., Desai, A.R., Dore, S., Dragoni, D., Drake, B.G., Dufrene, E., Dunn, A., Elbers, J., Eugster, W., Falk, M., Feigenwinter, C., Flanagan, L.B., Foken, T., Frank, J., Fuhrer, J., Gianelle, D., Golstein, A., Goulden, M., Granier, A., Grunwald, T., Gu, L., Guo, H., Hammerle, A., Han, S., Hanan, N.P., Haszpra, L., Heinesch, B., Helfter, C., Hendriks, D., Hutley, L.B., Ibrom, A., Jacobs, C., Johansson, T., Jongen, M., Katul, G., Kiely, G., Klumpp, K., Knohl, A., Kolb, T., Kutsch, W.L., Lafleur, P., Laurila, T., Leuning, R., Lindroth, A., Liu, H., Loubet, B., Manca, G., Marek, M., Margolis, H.A., Martin, T.A., Massman, W.J., Matamala, R., Matteucci, G., McCaughey, H., Merbold, L., Meyers, T., Migliavacca, M., Miglietta, F., Misson, L., Molder, M., Moncrieff, J., Monson, R.K., Montagnani, L., Montes-Helu, M., Moors, E., Moureaux, C., Mukelabai, M.M., Munger, J.W., Myklebust, M., Nagy, Z., Noormets, A., Oechel, W., Oren, R., Pallardy, S.G., Paw, U K.T., Pereira, J.S., Pilegaard, K., Pinter, K., Pio, C., Pita, G., Powell, T.L., Rambal, S., Randerson, J.T., von Randow, C., Rebmann, C., Rinne, J., Rossi, F., Roulet, N., Ryel, R.J., Sagerfors, J., Saigusa, N., Sanz, M.J., Scarascia Mugnozza, G., Schmid, H.P., Seufert, G., Siqueira, M., Soussana, J.-F., Starr, G., Sutton, M.A., Tenhunen, J., Tuba, Z., Tuovinen, J.-P., Valentini, R., Vogel, C.S., Wang, J., Wang, S., Wang, W., Welp, L.R., Wen, X., Wharton, S., Wilkinson, M., Williams, C.A., Wohlfahrt, G., Yamamoto, S., Yu G., Zampedri, R., Zhao, B., Zhao, X., (2010). Climate control of terrestrial carbon exchange across biomes and continents. Environmental Research Letters 5.