COSORE: A community database for continuous soil respiration and other soil‐atmosphere greenhouse gas flux data
Authors: Bond‐Lamberty Ben , Christianson Danielle S. , Malhotra Avni , Pennington Stephanie C. , Sihi Debjani , AghaKouchak Amir , Anjileli Hassan , Altaf Arain M. , Armesto Juan J. , Ashraf Samaneh , Ataka Mioko , Baldocchi Dennis , Andrew Black Thomas , Buchmann Nina , Carbone Mariah S. , Chang Shih‐Chieh , Crill Patrick , Curtis Peter S. , Davidson Eric A. , Desai Ankur R. , Drake John E. , El‐Madany Tarek S. , Gavazzi Michael , Görres Carolyn‐Monika , Gough Christopher M. , Goulden Michael , Gregg Jillian , Gutiérrez del Arroyo Omar , He Jin‐Sheng , Hirano Takashi , Hopple Anya , Hughes Holly , Järveoja Järvi , Jassal Rachhpal , Jian Jinshi , Kan Haiming , Kaye Jason , Kominami Yuji , Liang Naishen , Lipson David , Macdonald Catriona A. , Maseyk Kadmiel , Mathes Kayla , Mauritz Marguerite , Mayes Melanie A. , McNulty Steve , Miao Guofang , Migliavacca Mirco , Miller Scott , Miniat Chelcy F. , Nietz Jennifer G. , Nilsson Mats B. , Noormets Asko , Norouzi Hamidreza , O’Connell Christine S. , Osborne Bruce , Oyonarte Cecilio , Pang Zhuo , Peichl Matthias , Pendall Elise , Perez‐Quezada Jorge F. , Phillips Claire L. , Phillips Richard P. , Raich James W. , Renchon Alexandre A. , Ruehr Nadine K. , Sánchez‐Cañete Enrique P. , Saunders Matthew , Savage Kathleen E. , Schrumpf Marion , Scott Russell L. , Seibt Ulli , Silver Whendee L. , Sun Wu , Szutu Daphne , Takagi Kentaro , Takagi Masahiro , Teramoto Munemasa , Tjoelker Mark G. , Trumbore Susan , Ueyama Masahito , Vargas Rodrigo , Varner Ruth K. , Verfaillie Joseph , Vogel Christoph , Wang Jinsong , Winston Greg , Wood Tana E. , Wu Juying , Wutzler Thomas , Zeng Jiye , Zha Tianshan , Zhang Quan , Zou Junliang 
Published: October 2020

Globally, soils store two to three times as much carbon as currently resides in the atmosphere, and it is critical to understand how soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and uptake will respond to ongoing climate change. In particular, the soil‐to‐atmosphere CO2 flux, commonly though imprecisely termed soil respiration (RS), is one of the largest carbon fluxes in the Earth system. An increasing number of high‐frequency RS measurements (typically, from an automated system with hourly sampling) have been made over the last two decades; an increasing number of methane measurements are being made with such systems as well. Such high frequency data are an invaluable resource for understanding GHG fluxes, but lack a central database or repository. Here we describe the lightweight, open‐source COSORE (COntinuous SOil REspiration) database and software, that focuses on automated, continuous and long‐term GHG flux datasets, and is intended to serve as a community resource for earth sciences, climate change syntheses and model evaluation. Contributed datasets are mapped to a single, consistent standard, with metadata on contributors, geographic location, measurement conditions and ancillary data. The design emphasizes the importance of reproducibility, scientific transparency and open access to data. While being oriented towards continuously measured RS, the database design accommodates other soil‐atmosphere measurements (e.g. ecosystem respiration, chamber‐measured net ecosystem exchange, methane fluxes) as well as experimental treatments (heterotrophic only, etc.). We give brief examples of the types of analyses possible using this new community resource and describe its accompanying R software package.