USAP-DC

{"dp_type": "Dataset", "free_text": "Soil Moisture"}

[{"awards": "1343649 Levy, Joseph", "bounds_geometry": ["POLYGON((162.852 -77.6111,162.9893 -77.6111,163.1266 -77.6111,163.2639 -77.6111,163.4012 -77.6111,163.5385 -77.6111,163.6758 -77.6111,163.8131 -77.6111,163.9504 -77.6111,164.0877 -77.6111,164.225 -77.6111,164.225 -77.65331,164.225 -77.69552,164.225 -77.73773,164.225 -77.77994,164.225 -77.82215,164.225 -77.86436,164.225 -77.90657,164.225 -77.94878,164.225 -77.99099,164.225 -78.0332,164.0877 -78.0332,163.9504 -78.0332,163.8131 -78.0332,163.6758 -78.0332,163.5385 -78.0332,163.4012 -78.0332,163.2639 -78.0332,163.1266 -78.0332,162.9893 -78.0332,162.852 -78.0332,162.852 -77.99099,162.852 -77.94878,162.852 -77.90657,162.852 -77.86436,162.852 -77.82215,162.852 -77.77994,162.852 -77.73773,162.852 -77.69552,162.852 -77.65331,162.852 -77.6111))"], "date_created": "Thu, 01 Jan 2015 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "The PIs propose to quantify the hillslope water, solute, and carbon budgets for Taylor Valley in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, using water tracks to investigate near-surface geological processes and challenge the paradigm that shallow groundwater is minimal or non-exixtant. Water tracks are linear zones of high soil moisture that route shallow groundwater downslope in permafrost dominated soils. Four hypotheses will be tested: 1) water tracks are important pathways for water and solute transport; 2) water tracks transport more dissolved silica than streams in Taylor Valley indicating they are the primary site of chemical weathering for cold desert soils and bedrock; 3) water tracks that drain highland terrains are dominated by humidity-separated brines while water tracks that drain lowland terrains are dominated by marine aerosols; 4) water tracks are the sites of the highest terrestrial soil carbon concentrations and the strongest CO2 fluxes in Taylor Valley and their carbon content increases with soil age, while carbon flux decreases with age. To test these hypotheses the PIs will carry out a suite of field measurements supported by modeling and remote sensing. They will install shallow permafrost wells in water tracks that span the range of geological, climatological, and topographic conditions in Taylor Valley. Multifrequency electromagnetic induction sounding of the upper ~1 m of the permafrost will create the first comprehensive map of soil moisture in Taylor Valley, and will permit direct quantification of water track discharge across the valley. The carbon contents of water track soils will be measured and linked to global carbon dynamics.\n\nNon-science majors at Oregon State University will be integrated into the proposed research through a new Global Environmental Change course focusing on the scientific method in Antarctica. Three undergraduate students, members of underrepresented minorities, will be entrained in the research, will contribute to all aspects of field and laboratory science, and will present results at national meetings.\n", "east": 164.225, "geometry": ["POINT(163.5385 -77.82215)"], "keywords": "Antarctica; Chemistry:soil; Chemistry:Soil; Critical Zone; Dry Valleys; Permafrost; Sample/collection Description; Sample/Collection Description; Well Measurements", "locations": "Dry Valleys; Antarctica", "north": -77.6111, "nsf_funding_programs": null, "persons": "Levy, Joseph", "project_titles": "Cryptic Hydrology of the McMurdo Dry Valleys: Water Track Contributions to Water and Geochemical Budgets in Taylor Valley, Antarctica", "projects": [{"proj_uid": "p0000407", "repository": "USAP-DC", "title": "Cryptic Hydrology of the McMurdo Dry Valleys: Water Track Contributions to Water and Geochemical Budgets in Taylor Valley, Antarctica"}], "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -78.0332, "title": "Cryptic Hydrology of the McMurdo Dry Valleys: Water Track Contributions to Water and Geochemical Budgets in Taylor Valley, Antarctica", "uid": "600139", "west": 162.852}, {"awards": "1045215 Gooseff, Michael", "bounds_geometry": ["POLYGON((160 -77.25,160.5 -77.25,161 -77.25,161.5 -77.25,162 -77.25,162.5 -77.25,163 -77.25,163.5 -77.25,164 -77.25,164.5 -77.25,165 -77.25,165 -77.375,165 -77.5,165 -77.625,165 -77.75,165 -77.875,165 -78,165 -78.125,165 -78.25,165 -78.375,165 -78.5,164.5 -78.5,164 -78.5,163.5 -78.5,163 -78.5,162.5 -78.5,162 -78.5,161.5 -78.5,161 -78.5,160.5 -78.5,160 -78.5,160 -78.375,160 -78.25,160 -78.125,160 -78,160 -77.875,160 -77.75,160 -77.625,160 -77.5,160 -77.375,160 -77.25))"], "date_created": "Wed, 01 Jan 2014 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Intellectual Merit: Until recently, wetted soils in the Dry Valleys were generally only found adjacent to streams and lakes. Since the warm austral summer of 2002, numerous \"wet spots\" have been observed far from shorelines on relatively flat valley floor locations and as downslope fingers of flow on valley walls. The source of the water to wet these soils is unclear, as is the spatial and temporal pattern of occurrence from year to year. Their significance is potentially great as enhanced soil moisture may change the thermodynamics, hydrology, and erosion rate of surface soils, and facilitate transport of materials that had previously been stable. These changes to the soil active layer could significantly modify permafrost and ground ice stability within the Dry Valleys. The PIs seek to investigate these changes to address two competing hypotheses: that the source of water to these ?wet spots? is ground ice melt and that the source of this water is snowmelt. The PIs will document the spatiotemporal dynamics of these wet areas using high frequency remote sensing data from QuickBird and WorldView satellites to document the occurrence, dimensions, and growth of wet spots during the 2010-\u00ad11 and 2011-\u00ad12 austral summers. They will test their hypotheses by determining whether wet spots recur in the same locations in each season, and they will compare present to past distribution using archived imagery. They will also determine whether spatial snow accumulation patterns and temporal ablation patterns are coincident with wet spot formation. Broader impacts: One graduate student will be trained on this project. Findings will be reported at scientific meetings and published in peer reviewed journals. They will also develop a teaching module on remote sensing applications to hydrology for the Modular Curriculum for Hydrologic Advancement and an innovative prototype project designed to leverage public participation in mapping wet spots and snow patches across the Dry Valleys through the use of social media and mobile computing applications.\n", "east": 165.0, "geometry": ["POINT(162.5 -77.875)"], "keywords": "Antarctica; Climate; Critical Zone; Dry Valleys; Radar; Soil Moisture", "locations": "Dry Valleys; Antarctica", "north": -77.25, "nsf_funding_programs": null, "persons": "Gooseff, Michael N.", "project_titles": "EAGER: Are the Dry Valleys Getting Wetter? A Preliminary Assessment of Wetness Across the McMurdo Dry Valleys Landscape", "projects": [{"proj_uid": "p0000471", "repository": "USAP-DC", "title": "EAGER: Are the Dry Valleys Getting Wetter? A Preliminary Assessment of Wetness Across the McMurdo Dry Valleys Landscape"}], "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -78.5, "title": "Are the Dry Valleys Getting Wetter? A Preliminary Assessment of Wetness Across the McMurdo Dry Valleys Landscape", "uid": "600131", "west": 160.0}, {"awards": "0838850 Gooseff, Michael", "bounds_geometry": ["POLYGON((-163.3 -77.62,-163.202 -77.62,-163.104 -77.62,-163.006 -77.62,-162.908 -77.62,-162.81 -77.62,-162.712 -77.62,-162.614 -77.62,-162.516 -77.62,-162.418 -77.62,-162.32 -77.62,-162.32 -77.631,-162.32 -77.642,-162.32 -77.653,-162.32 -77.664,-162.32 -77.675,-162.32 -77.686,-162.32 -77.697,-162.32 -77.708,-162.32 -77.719,-162.32 -77.73,-162.418 -77.73,-162.516 -77.73,-162.614 -77.73,-162.712 -77.73,-162.81 -77.73,-162.908 -77.73,-163.006 -77.73,-163.104 -77.73,-163.202 -77.73,-163.3 -77.73,-163.3 -77.719,-163.3 -77.708,-163.3 -77.697,-163.3 -77.686,-163.3 -77.675,-163.3 -77.664,-163.3 -77.653,-163.3 -77.642,-163.3 -77.631,-163.3 -77.62))"], "date_created": "Tue, 01 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT", "description": "Two models have been proposed to describe controls over microbial biogeography. One model proposes that microbes are ubiquitously distributed across the global environment, and that environmental conditions select for taxa physiologically adapted to local physical conditions. An alternative model predicts that dispersal is the important limitation to the distribution of microorganisms and that spatial heterogeneity of microbial communities is a result of both dispersal and local environmental limitations. According to both models, spatial heterogeneity of microbial communities may be especially pronounced in extreme ecosystems where the environmental selection for organisms with suitable physiology is most strongly manifest. We propose that Antarctic terrestrial environments are ideal places to examine microbial biogeography for 3 reasons: 1) the pristine nature and remoteness of Antarctica minimizes the prevalence of exotic species dispersed through human vectors; 2) the extreme conditions of Antarctic environments provide a strong environmental filter which limits the establishment of non-indigenous taxa; and 3) extreme heterogeneity in the terrestrial environment provides natural gradients of soil conditions (temperature, water and nutrient availability). In the proposed research we will investigate the influence of snow on the composition and spatial distribution of soil microbial communities and linked biogeochemical cycling in the McMurdo Dry Valleys. We will conduct fieldwork at the landscape scale (repeated remote sensing to characterize snow distribution), at the valley and patch scales (quantify snow patch ablation, microbial communities and biogeochemical cycling in subnivian soils). We hypothesize that snow patches play an important role in structuring the spatial distribution of soil microbial communities and their associated ecosystem functioning because of the physical and hydrological influences that snow patches have on the soil environment. The research will contribute to greater public awareness of the importance of polar research to fundamental questions of biology, ecology and hydrology through direct linkages with International Antarctic Institute public outreach activities, including dissemination of web-based learning units on environmental science and microbiology, targeted as resources for secondary and post-secondary educators. Three graduate students, one postdoctoral scholar and multiple undergraduates will participate in the research activities.\n", "east": -162.32, "geometry": ["POINT(-162.81 -77.675)"], "keywords": "Antarctica; Critical Zone; Mps-1 Water Potential Sensor; Physical Properties; Soil Moisture; Soil Temperature", "locations": "Antarctica", "north": -77.62, "nsf_funding_programs": null, "persons": "Gooseff, Michael N.", "project_titles": "Collaborative Research: The Role of Snow Patches on the Spatial Distribution of Soil Microbial Communities and Biogeochemical Cycling in the Antarctic Dry Valleys", "projects": [{"proj_uid": "p0000489", "repository": "USAP-DC", "title": "Collaborative Research: The Role of Snow Patches on the Spatial Distribution of Soil Microbial Communities and Biogeochemical Cycling in the Antarctic Dry Valleys"}], "repo": "USAP-DC", "repositories": "USAP-DC", "science_programs": null, "south": -77.73, "title": "The Role of Snow Patches on the Spatial Distribution of Soil Microbial Communities and Biogeochemical Cycling in the Antarctic Dry Valleys", "uid": "600100", "west": -163.3}]

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