New test traces underground forest carbon

A novel carbon-tracking method offers scientists a way to solve one of the big mysteries of what forests do with their enormous flows of carbon, according to an international research team.

A belt of evergreens at northern latitudes plays a big role in the global carbon cycle. Kyle Joly

The technique, in which researchers strip a ring of bark off trees, reveals that tree photosynthesis drives much of the flow of carbon dioxide from forest soil, says Peter Högberg of the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Ume.