A new technique using dissolved noble gas tracers sheds light on how water moves through an aquifer, with implications for water resources and their vulnerability to climate change.
Instruments and techniques: monitoring
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Big Benefits from Experimental Watersheds
Scientific insights from the Agricultural Research Service’s long-term study sites underpin dozens of models and research methods that guide global land management and conservation practices.
Posted inNews
New Classification System for Lakes Forecasts a Warming Trend
Researchers devised a system of nine thermal categories for lakes and estimate that 79% of northern frigid lakes could become warmer types.
Posted inScience Updates
A Digital Mayfly Swarm Is Emerging
Low-cost, open-source data collectors and a suite of collaborative online tools are making big leaps in the field of watershed monitoring.
Posted inScience Updates
Mapping and Monitoring Soil Moisture in Forested Landscapes
Monitoring Forest Soil Moisture for a Changing World; Ann Arbor, Michigan, 15–17 May 2018
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Are Sediment Pulses Generated?
A new long-term flume experiment shows that bed load gravel travels downstream in recurring, 10-hour pulses even when water flow and sediment supply are constant.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Mesquite Trees Gain a Competitive Edge in Arid Arizona
A new study shows that mesquites employ hydraulic redistribution to move water between soil layers in the savannas of Santa Rita.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Cosmic Ray Neutrons Reveal Mountain Snowpacks
The first application of aboveground neutron sensing to evaluate alpine snowpacks indicates that this method can reliably detect average snow depth and water content across intermediate distances.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Detecting Gas Leaks with Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
A Norwegian team develops an improved, cost-effective method to detect chemical discharges under the sea.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Boulders Limit Transport of Sand and Gravel in Steep Rivers
Mountain rivers and streams actively reshape landscapes by eroding material from uplands and depositing it in lowlands. Scientists can now predict this transport in very steep streams.