Researchers revisit an old theory about the ethereal patterns of vegetation that form in some arid landscapes.
soils
Tsunamis Leave a Telltale Chemical Trail
Researchers follow a trail of organic compounds in soil that reveals the 2011 Tohoku tsunami's path over the Japanese coastline, providing clues to how often tsunamis recur and where they travel.
Soil Bacteria Could Help Absorb Natural Gas Leaks
For the first time, new research examines the response of terrestrial soil microbes to a massive natural gas blowout and offers hope for new remediation strategies.
Map Reveals Hot Spots for Arctic Greenhouse Gas Emissions
By bringing together data on permafrost stability, soils, and other Arctic conditions, scientists have plotted where permafrost is vulnerable to collapse, which could release long-stored carbon.
Advancing Soil Carbon Cycle Science
Workshop to celebrate 2015–2024 International Decade of Soil; Boulder, Colorado, 14–16 March, 2016
Carbon Dioxide Frost May Keep Martian Soil Dusty
Temperature readings acquired from orbit show that Mars's surface gets cold enough at night to allow layers of solid carbon dioxide frost up to several hundred micrometers thick to build up near the equator.
Curiosity Sends Curious Water Data from Mars
The rover's neutron spectroscopy instrument hints at an unexpected trend: The upper soil levels in the layers of Gale Crater's Kimberley formation seem to hold more water-associated hydrogen.
How Much Dissolved Mercury Is Present in Streams?
The results of a new study suggest that an improved understanding of the processes mobilizing mercury in soils will be necessary to predict water quality impacts.
Seeking Knowledge in the Dust
The Batsheva de Rothschild Seminar on Atmospheric Dust, Dust Deposits (Loess) and Soils in Deserts and Desert Fringe: The Sahara-Sinai-Negev as an Analogue for the Global Arid Regions; Jerusalem and the Negev Desert, 14–19 October 2015
Permafrost Area Is Sensitive to Key Soil and Snow Physics
Accounting for key soil and snow variables shows a much higher impact on simulated permafrost area than uncertainties in land cover and climate data.