March 2016

Improved Water Supply Forecasts Using Soil Moisture Data

HydraProbe used to improve water supply forecast from 3 SNOTEL sites in Idaho over traditional antecedent conditions using the principle component forecast model Much of the water in the Western United States used for irrigation, municipal supplies and hydro-electric production originates as winter snow pack at higher elevations. Since the early 1900s, the correlation between […]

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Soil Moisture Applications and Practices Using the HydraProbe Soil Moisture Sensor

Over the past ten years, environmental monitoring has become increasingly important. Environmental factors such as climate change, dwindling water resources, and threatened habitats are driving the need to monitor the environment and implement better policies to protect it. Many natural processes in the environment are driven by or in some ways related soil hydrological processes.

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Stevens HydraProbe Helps in Landslide Research

Each year during the wet season we hear news reports about landslides in America and abroad. Sometimes these events happen in unpopulated areas but unfortunately they also occur in areas where people live, causing property damage and taking lives. But what causes these events and what can be done about them? That’s what Dr. Burns,

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HydraProbe Field Portable Used to Validate the Soil Moisture Active Passive Satellite Data in Manitoba

The calibration and validation of remotely sensed soil moisture products relies upon an accurate source of ground truth data. The primary method of providing this ground truth is to conduct intensive field campaigns with manual surface soil moisture sampling measurements, which utilize gravimetric sampling, soil moisture probes, or both, to estimate the volumetric soil water

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OSU Researchers Deploy Stevens Equipment in Study of Green Infrastructure Treatment for Groundwater Runoff

Stormwater runoff pollution is a serious issue that faces almost every urban and suburban environment. In older city infrastructure, runoff from roofs, parking lots, and streets flows directly into the sewer system and must be handled by the municipal wastewater treatment facility, increasing the amount of work the system must undertake. For the past 30

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NRCS Urban Soil Primer

The Urban Soil Primer is intended to give planning officials and people who live in urban areas an introduction to soils. It provides information important in planning and managing land resources in a manner that helps to prevent or mitigate problems associated with sedimentation, contamination, runoff, and structural failure. In non-technical language, this publication describes

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The Role of Soil Moisture on our Climate, Weather and Global Warming

Global warming is a topic that has received much attention in the media, especially during the hot days of summer. The process by which carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere prevents the escape of thermal energy into outer space is known as the greenhouse effect. The higher the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere the

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Introduction to Soil Surveys for Agronomic Use

The USDA’s Introduction to Soil Surveys for Agronomic Use, entitled “From the Surface Down”, is an introduction to soil types, horizons, and how they are measured. The intent of this publication is to increase user understanding of soils and acquaint them with the contents of a soil survey and supplemental interpretations that are important to

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Soil Geomorphology and Identification

When working with or studying the soil, it’s important to know what type of soil is being examined. Each type of soil has different characteristics, and will have different effects on water infiltration rates, water holding capacity, evapotranspiration rate, and other soil characteristics. Soil sensors are one popular way of measuring soil moisture, salinity, temperature

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Stevens Enhances Groundwater Remediation Effectiveness

The Stevens HydraProbe is now being used to monitor the progress of a new groundwater pollution clean up method called phytoremediation. Phytoremediation is the method by which trees are used to pull contamination out of groundwater. Remediation of contaminated aquifers can take many years to complete. The need for clean, healthy rivers, lakes and streams

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Stevens Water and US Farm Bill Helps Farmers Optimize Crop Irrigation & Fertilization

Agriculture is a major element for survival of the human race and of the economic system. 42 percent of the world’s laborers are employed in agriculture, making it by far the most common occupation. With agriculture using approximately 60 percent of available freshwater withdrawals, concerns continue to grow over farmers implementing water conservation practices. Increasing

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