Climate data analysis in Austrian National Parks

The goal of the climate data analysis is to document climate-related changes in Austrian national parks over the past few decades and to investigate their potential impacts on relevant environmental parameters. At the same time, the analysis aims to identify existing data gaps that are significant for the long-term monitoring of these protected areas, with the aim of addressing them in a targeted manner. For the analysis, existing data from representative weather stations in all six national parks are systematically reviewed, processed, and evaluated. Additionally, various abiotic parameters are to be considered, including air temperature, precipitation, snow cover, wind conditions, and water runoff. For example, snow cover trends can be examined using remote sensing data, or conclusions can be drawn regarding potential flood frequencies. The selection of relevant parameters is carried out in close coordination with the Research Working Group, in which colleagues from each national park are represented. This coordination, together with the determination of the temporal resolution of the datasets, forms the basis for the subsequent, well-founded evaluation. In the long term, the plan is to include additional indicators, such as data from pollen analyses or avifauna, to analyze potential correlations between climate change and ecological developments.