PhD Thesis, 2007 - University College Cork

3 MATERIALS AND METHODS 14
3.1 Site description 14
3.1.1 Location 14
3.1.2 Climate 15
3.2 Methods of the vegetation survey 15
3.2.1 Vegetation survey 15
3.2.2 Statistical analyses 17
3.2.3 Ordination analyses 18
3.2.3 Vegetation survey data analyses 19
3.3 Micrometeorological theory 21
3.3.1 Atmospheric boundary layer 21
3.3.2 Atmospheric motions 22
3.3.3 Turbulent kinetic equation 22
3.3.4 Potential temperature and atmospheric conditions 23
3.3.5 Turbulent flows 24
3.4 The Eddy Covariance methodology 25
3.4.1 Eddy Covariance technique 25
3.4.2 Advantages and limitation of the Eddy Covariance technique 27
3.4.3 Footprint analysis 30
3.4.4 Data processing and filtering 32
3.4.5 Gapfilling 36
4 VEGETATION PATTERNS OF AN ATLANTIC BLANKET BOG IN
SOUTH-WESTERN IRELAND 39
4.1 Summary 40
4.2 Introduction 41
4.3 Material and methods 43
4.3.1 Study site 43
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