Soil Moisture - Sensors
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Soil Moisture - Sensors
Protocol
Students will develop a calibration curve and use it to determine soil water content at depths of 10 cm, 30 cm, 60 cm, and 90 cm from meter readings of four soil moisture sensor blocks.
Supporting Protocols
Protocols to help in completion of the main protocol
Students install soil moisture sensors and temperature probes and connect them to a Davis Soil Moisture and Temperature Station. Data are logged every 15 minutes and periodically students transfer these data to a computer and report them to GLOBE.
Students install soil moisture sensors and temperature probes and connect them to a Davis Soil Moisture and Temperature Station. Data are logged every 15 minutes and periodically students transfer these data to a computer and report them to GLOBE.
Students log atmosphere data using a Davis automated weather station. A weather station is setup to measure and record atmospheric measurements at 15 minute intervals. These measurements are transferred to your school's computer and then submitted to GLOBE via email data entry.
Students will use a technique chosen by their teacher to expose a soil profile for characterization.
Field Guides
Step-by-step instructions for collection data according to the protocols.
Important: The Grass Green-Up Data Sheet located in the Grass Green-Up Protocol Field Guide below is incorrect, download the the correct data sheet.
Data Sheets
Sheets to be filled out during data collection
Learning Activities
Activities to help students learn more about the instruments and protocols
Students discover that soil properties such as moisture and temperature can vary considerably across a single landscape.
Students make mud pies by adding water to the various soil components, letting them dry and observing the pie's characteristics.
Students are introduced to the basic concepts of how water passes through soil in an activity which illustrates the scientific method. More advanced students investigate the effects of soil characteristics on water infiltration and the chemistry of water that has passed through soil
Beginning students are introduced to the basic concepts of how water passes through soil in an activity which illustrates the scientific method. More advanced students investigate the effects of soil characteristics on water infiltration and the chemistry of water that has passed through soil
Students collect, describe and compare soils from their own backyards.
Students will understand the geologic phenomena of weathering and erosion. These processes, along with deposition, shape our landforms and contribute to the development of parent material in the soil formation process.
Students simulate environmental conditions in order to determine the key factors that affect the decomposition of organic material in soil.
Students explore soil moisture by weighing and drying sponges and then they explore their soil samples in the same way.
Teams of students play a game in which they gather data and distort the values of certain measurements. They then estimate the values of the measurements taken by other teams and try to detect their errors.
An activity which highlights the importance of learning about the soils on Earth. In this activity students explore some of the many uses of soils, learn the five soil-forming factors, and gain a better understanding of how little of Earth's surface is covered in soil.