{"title":"Rocky Mountains NEON - United States of America","id":{"prefix":"https:\/\/deims.org\/","suffix":"871aaf92-3609-452e-aceb-a30b7a04d3bd"},"type":"site","created":"2020-05-25T09:36:50+02:00","changed":"2025-09-18T16:03:12+02:00","attributes":{"affiliation":{"networks":[{"network":{"name":"GERI","id":{"prefix":"https:\/\/deims.org\/networks\/","suffix":"c3abdc60-49f1-49db-81fe-863b7dbb21d3"}},"siteCode":null,"verified":true},{"network":{"name":"NEON","id":{"prefix":"https:\/\/deims.org\/networks\/","suffix":"fd9fbc88-0baa-4d02-b824-dc29f721782c"}},"siteCode":"RMNP","verified":true}],"projects":null},"contact":{"siteManager":[{"type":"person","name":"Chau Tran","email":"ctran@battelleecology.org","orcid":null}],"operatingOrganisation":null,"metadataProvider":[{"type":"person","name":"Melissa Marquez","email":"marquez@battelleecology.org","orcid":null}],"fundingAgency":null,"siteUrl":[{"title":null,"value":"https:\/\/www.neonscience.org\/field-sites\/rmnp"}]},"general":{"abstract":"The Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) field site is a terrestrial NEON site located 70 km (43.5 mi.) northwest of Denver, CO near Rocky Mountain National Park. The RMNP site is 46.5 km2 (11490 acres) and includes National Park and Forest Service land in the foothills of Colorado. As a mid-elevation site at 2750 m (9022 ft.) on the east side of the Continental Divide, the site is aptly situated to investigate the chemical climate (i.e., pollution) generated along the Front Range as well as dust deposition produced and transported from the Great Basin to higher elevations. The NEON tower and corresponding TOS plots are located in a property that is owned by the National Park Service but outside of Rocky Mountain National Park\u2019s core boundaries. TOS distributed plots are located within the Roosevelt National Forest, managed by the U.S. Forest Service. The area is a popular destination for hiking, camping, shooting, and other recreational activities. The site is part of NEON\u0027s Central Plain Domain (D10), although it is physically located within the borders of NEON\u0027s Southern Rockies \u0026 Colorado Plateau Domain (D13). D10 has two other terrestrial sites and one aquatic site. The RMNP site is not colocated with an aquatic site.","citation":null,"relatedIdentifiers":null,"status":{"label":"Operational","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/elter_cl\/10772"},"yearEstablished":2017,"yearClosed":null,"relatedSites":null,"siteName":"Rocky Mountains NEON","shortName":"CASTNET-RMNP","siteType":"Non-stationary land-based site","protectionLevel":null,"landUse":null,"images":[{"url":"https:\/\/deims.org\/sites\/default\/files\/2020-06\/rmnp%20instruments.jpg","alt":"RMNP instruments"},{"url":"https:\/\/deims.org\/sites\/default\/files\/2020-06\/rmnp_wildflowers.jpg","alt":"RMNP wildflowers"}]},"environmentalCharacteristics":{"airTemperature":{"yearlyAverage":2.9,"monthlyAverage":null,"unit":"\u00b0C","referencePeriod":null},"precipitation":{"yearlyAverage":520,"monthlyAverage":null,"unit":"mm","referencePeriod":null},"biogeographicalRegion":null,"biome":"evergreen_forest","ecosystemType":[{"label":"Evergreen Forest","uri":null},{"label":"Forest","uri":null}],"eunisHabitat":null,"landforms":null,"geoBonBiome":["Terrestrial"],"geology":"The geology at this site is dominated by granite and granodiorite from the Mesoproterozoic age.","hydrology":"Open water only makes up 0.02 km2 (5 acres) or 0.03% of the total land cover at NEON\u0027s site at RMNP. Evergreen forest covers 71.28 km2 (17,614 acres) of the site which totals 90.25% of the total land cover.","soils":"The soil order found at the Rocky Mountain National Park site is mollisol, a soil family characterized as loamy-skeletal - mixed - superactive Ustic haplocryolls.","vegetation":"The dominant vegetation in the lower elevation areas of RMNP are characteristic of the lower montane ecosystem and include an open canopy of ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa), juniper (Juniperus sp.), and Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii). Higher elevation vegetation has a tighter canopy dominated by Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var.latifolia). Stands of quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) are scattered through the landscape."},"geographic":{"boundaries":"POLYGON ((-105.546735154 40.275626467, -105.547052175 40.27562043, -105.547052175 40.275620608, -105.54704946 40.276122877, -105.547036702 40.276123124, -105.546572541 40.276131953, -105.546572491 40.276138691, -105.546566567 40.276138795, -105.546560277 40.276741288, -105.546560264 40.276743522, -105.546553926 40.278734911, -105.54625551 40.278715468, -105.544770155 40.278618686, -105.544738463 40.278616618, -105.544746873 40.277080842, -105.544747195 40.277022133, -105.54506666 40.277016064, -105.545067101 40.277001174, -105.545106345 40.275745048, -105.545106556 40.275664321, -105.545106556 40.275664214, -105.545108871 40.275664169, -105.546257708 40.275642296, -105.546569833 40.275636349, -105.546575982 40.275636234, -105.546576029 40.275629658, -105.546576029 40.275629496, -105.546735154 40.275626467))","coordinates":"POINT (-105.54592 40.27591)","country":["United States of America"],"elevation":{"avg":2742,"min":2454,"max":3042,"unit":"msl"},"size":{"value":4648,"unit":"ha"},"relatedLocations":null},"focusDesignScale":{"experiments":{"design":"mainly experimentation","scale":"beyond catchment scale"},"observations":{"design":"mainly observation","scale":"beyond catchment"},"observedProperties":[{"label":"DNA sequence","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/21400"},{"label":"above ground biomass","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22025"},{"label":"air temperature","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22035"},{"label":"atmospheric parameter","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/20937"},{"label":"biological parameter","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/20940"},{"label":"chemical parameter","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/10333"},{"label":"ecosystem parameter","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/20939"},{"label":"genetic parameter","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/20942"},{"label":"heat flux","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22130"},{"label":"land cover","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22142"},{"label":"landscape parameter","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/20943"},{"label":"latent heat","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22154"},{"label":"leaf area index","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22157"},{"label":"ozone concentration","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22178"},{"label":"plant diversity","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22191"},{"label":"precipitation intensity","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/22204"},{"label":"soil carbon dioxyde flux","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/21939"},{"label":"soil moisture content","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/10039"},{"label":"soil parameter","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/20944"},{"label":"species abundance","uri":"http:\/\/vocabs.lter-europe.net\/EnvThes\/10018"}]},"infrastructure":{"accessibleAllYear":true,"accessType":null,"allPartsAccessible":null,"maintenanceInterval":null,"permanentPowerSupply":false,"operation":{"permanent":false,"notes":null,"siteVisitInterval":null},"notes":null,"collection":null,"data":{"policy":{"url":null,"rights":null,"notes":null}}},"relatedResources":null,"projectRelated":{"lter":{"lterSiteClassification":null}}}}