Overview of Traceability Analysis

This chapter provides an overview of the traceability framework as a method for identifying the key sources of uncertainty in land carbon cycle modeling. The analytical framework is built upon derivations of the matrix equation introduced in Chapter 1. This framework provides a systematic way to decompose the uncertainty of land carbon cycle projections into traceable components. Thus, traceability analysis can facilitate the understanding of carbon cycling, its drivers and controlling processes within a model and across models with different carbon-cycle structures, external climate forcings, and scientific assumptions. This chapter also introduces several examples to demonstrate the application of traceability analysis to model evaluation.