The NSF is financing a new investigation into this issue

Oct 24, 2011 10:58 GMT  ·  By
Researchers are currently trying to gain a deeper understanding of how the planet's water cycle operates
   Researchers are currently trying to gain a deeper understanding of how the planet's water cycle operates

The US National Science Foundation (NSF) is funding investigators from the Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) in a new study meant to assess the intricacies of Earth's water cycle in detail. The work could help address issues such as drought, which is currently threatening huge surfaces.

According to researchers, we currently fear drought because we don't have an exact understanding of the mechanisms governing its spread. By learning more about how water circulates through habitats, we may become able to figure out more details about the origins of drought.

For this purpose, the Penn State team has already installed scientific measurement instruments in the Susquehanna Shale Hills Observatory, which is one of only six Critical Zone Observatories located throughout the United States.

The research team wants to track the way water moves through this complex ecosystem. They want to identify how much of the chemical is inputed into the system, how much is removed, and how all of this happens.

“What we're trying to do is build experimental test beds across the United States and we're also working with several European Critical Zone Observatory test beds, to understand the cycle of water in detail,” Penn State professor of civil and environmental engineering Chris Duffy explains.

“We have very sophisticated sensors at Shale Hills. We use things like laser precipitation monitors. They're infrared lasers that measure droplets; in fact, [they] tell us the type and amount of rainfall, whether it's rain or snow or sleet, and allow us to get accurate numbers on the incoming rainfall,” he adds.

In addition, a tall tower overlooking the entire area is outfitted with instruments precise enough to allow the research team to measure evaporation through the entire area. Penn State meteorology professor Ken Davis says that the vast majority of evaporated vapors is detected by the instruments.

Another objective the team has is to measure the amount of water that flows through the trees themselves, especially the bark and leaves. Plants are the main consumers of water inside the ecosystems they occupy.

“Usually, it's the largest fraction of water that leaves this watershed. When you're working with trees, it's hard to measure all the water being transpired from water vapor in the air,” adds Penn State professor of woody plant physiology David Eissenstat, who is a member of the research team.

Ultimately, the data collected from these studies will be used to better gage the influence of global warming and climate change on various regions across our planet.