News tagged with surface soil

Soviet find of water on the Moon in the 1970s ignored by the West

(Phys.org) -- In August 1976 Luna 24 landed on the moon and returned to Earth with samples of rocks, which were found to contain water, but this finding was ignored by scientists in the West.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Jun 01, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (39) | comments 40 | with audio podcast report

USDA irrigation research: Good to the last drop

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists are ensuring that farmers in the Pacific Northwest are benefiting from every drop of crop irrigation water.

Space & Earth / Environment

created May 23, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Dung beetle diversity affects Florida livestock producers

Dung beetles are important to healthy cattle pasture ecosystems as they provide for nutrient recycling, removal of waste products from the soil surface and assist in the reduction of pestiferous flies.

Biology / Ecology

created Mar 06, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Wood chips help curb nitrate leaching

(PhysOrg.com) -- Wood chips can significantly stem nitrate flow from crop fields into the surrounding watershed, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) study.

Biology / Ecology

created Feb 20, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

The path less traveled: Research is driving solutions to improve unpaved roads

A Kansas State University graduate student sees the unpaved road ahead, and it's filled with biomaterial.

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Jan 10, 2012 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0

LRO observes final lunar eclipse of the year

(PhysOrg.com) -- Orbiting 31 miles above the lunar surface, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft will get a "front-row seat" to the total lunar eclipse on Dec. 10, 2011.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Dec 09, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

New NASA missions to investigate how Mars turned hostile

(PhysOrg.com) -- Maybe because it appears as a speck of blood in the sky, the planet Mars was named after the Roman god of war. From the point of view of life as we know it, that's appropriate. The Martian ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Nov 18, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (7) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Planting depth's effect on container-grown trees

Many landscape trees are started in-ground, then sold as bare-root ''liners'' to producers who plant them in large containers to grow. To minimize wind damage and to facilitate transport from potting areas ...

Biology / Ecology

created Nov 17, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Researchers examine way to undercut dust emissions

There is literally a way to undercut dust emissions in the very driest parts of the Pacific Northwest's Columbia Plateau region, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientist.

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jul 14, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Researchers study pesticide pathways into the atmosphere

When soil moisture levels increase, pesticide losses to the atmosphere through volatilization also rise. In one long-term field study, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists found that herbicide volatilization ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jul 12, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Record snowfalls causing high waters in Great Plains

Summers on the Great Plains are usually characterized by a lack of water. But flooding in several states has reversed that trend -- and it might not be the last of the high waters for 2011, according to a Kansas State University ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Jul 07, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

New data reveals how storms are triggered in the Sahel

In the Sahel, the frequency of storms increases when soil moisture varies over a few kilometers. Such contrasts cause air circulation between dry and humid areas, contributing to the development of storms. ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Jun 21, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Phosphate sorption characteristics of European alpine soils

Soil chemistry plays an important role in the composition of surface waters. In areas with limited human activities, properties of catchment soils directly relate to the exported nutrients to surface waters. Phosphate sorption ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jun 14, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Researchers make major step in improving forecasts of weather extremes such as floods, droughts

(PhysOrg.com) -- Moisture and heat fluctuations from the land surface to the atmosphere form a critical nexus between surface hydrology and atmospheric processes, especially those relevant to rainfall. While current theory ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Jun 05, 2011 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (3) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

ESA's water mission keeps tabs on dry spring soils

Western Europe's exceptionally dry spring is clear to see in maps generated using data from SMOS. While these maps offer an interesting view of the stark difference in soil moisture compared to a year ago, ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created May 13, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0