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Global green wave shifts north and east

Environmental Science research
Photo by WikiImages on Pixabay · Pixabay License
Research area:Remote sensingEcologyClimate variability and models

What the study found

The study found that the global "green wave" centroid, a metric for the seasonal movement of vegetation across Earth, shifts northward during both boreal and austral summer. The authors also report an accelerating eastward shift and a decreasing trajectory amplitude.

Why the authors say this matters

The authors conclude that tracking the green wave's centroid reveals how regional changes in land dynamics affect the global functioning of Earth's terrestrial biosphere. They also note that the trajectory summarizes global phenological dynamics and directional trends.

What the researchers tested

The researchers proposed a way to quantify global phenology, the seasonal timing of plant activity, by tracking the centroid of the green wave using satellite data and Earth system model data. They compared the resulting trajectory across datasets and against expectations based on earlier reports of global greening.

What worked and what didn't

The centroid moved northward in both summer periods, rather than showing a northward shift in boreal summer and a southward shift in austral summer as the authors had hypothesized. The austral summer northward shift was consistently larger than the boreal summer shift across datasets, the eastward shift accelerated, and the amplitude of the trajectory decreased; this decrease is projected to intensify through this century.

What to keep in mind

The abstract does not describe detailed limitations of the approach. It also does not provide uncertainty values, specific model names, or information about how many datasets were used.

Key points

  • The green wave centroid shifts northward during both boreal and austral summer.
  • The austral summer northward shift is consistently larger than the boreal summer shift.
  • The green wave trajectory shows an accelerating eastward shift.
  • The amplitude of the trajectory is decreasing and is projected to decrease further this century.
  • The study uses satellite data and Earth system model data to track global phenology.

Disclosure

Research title:
Global green wave shifts north and east
Authors:
Miguel D. Mahecha, Guido Kraemer, Martin Reinhardt, David Montero, Fabian Gans, Ana Bastos, Hannes Feilhauer, Ida Flik, Chaonan Ji, Teja Kattenborn, Mirco Migliavacca, Milena Mönks, Johannes Quaas, Sebastian Sippel, Sophia Walther, Sebastian Wieneke, Christian Wirth, Gustau Camps-Valls
Institutions:
Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center For Remote Sensing (United States), Center for Scalable Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, Center for Scalable Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, Center for Scalable Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, European Commission, GeoInformation (United Kingdom), German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres, Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Leipzig University, Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, Universitat de València, University of Freiburg
Publication date:
2026-02-23
DOI:
10.1073/pnas.2515835123
OpenAlex record:
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Image credit:
Photo by WikiImages on Pixabay · Pixabay License
AI provenance: This post was generated by gpt-5.4-mini (OpenAI). The original authors did not write or review this post.

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