| Facilities-Cooperative Flux Stations |
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GrazingLands Research Laboratory
A research lab of the
Agricultural Research Service,
United States Department of Agriculture.
Fort Reno Cooperative Flux Site
Grazinglands Research Lab SHAWMS Site
Department of Energy ARM/CART Site
Energy Balance Bowen Ratio (EBBR)
The Energy Balance Bowen Ratio (EBBR) system is a ground-based system using in situ sensors to estimate the vertical fluxes of sensible and latent heat at the local surface. EBBR systems will be installed at up to 15 grassland locations within the SGP CART Site. Flux estimates are made from observations of net radiation, soil heat flow, and the vertical gradients of temperature and relative humidity; these data are used in the Bowen ratio energy balance technique.
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Site
Soil Moisture/Soil Temperature Pilot Project
The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has taken leadership in remote monitoring of natural resources by establishing a Soil Moisture/Soil Temperature (SM/ST) Pilot Project (formerly called Global Climate Change Pilot Project) in 1990. Twenty-one sites have been established in nineteen states across the United States. These sites have been operating since 1992 using meteor burst communication techniques for obtaining remote site information.
There is currently no nationally coordinated system available to collect, interpret, integrate, and archive atmospheric and soil climatic data that are required for natural resource assessment and analysis and global change research. Soil moisture and soil temperature baseline information is critically needed to make better resource management decisions.
The SM/ST Pilot Project:
- Demonstrated the feasibility of a national, NRCS remote data collection system for gathering soil and atmospheric resource information.
- Continues to resolve existing technical challenges associated with sensor design, sensor interfaces for remote data transmission, and data management concerns.
- Successfully partnered with the six Regional Climate Centers across the U.S. to identify existing networks.
- Provides the SM/ST Pilot Project soil moisture and soil temperature information to users through the Internet, or a dial up, menu driven computer system.
