This is one of the pictures the year has left. In it, two Muslim militiamen armed with machetes are registering a Christian in the Miskine neighborhood, in Bangui (Central African Republic), December 13, 2013. About 1,600 and 3,000 French soldiers already there of the African MISCA international mission were not able to stop violence and chaos. Both in this case and in other armed conflicts, there ...[Read More]
Monday paper: A dual isotope approach to isolate soil carbon pools of different turnover times
Torn, M. S., Kleber, M., Zavaleta, E. S., Zhu, B., Field, C. B., Trumbore, S. E. 2013. A dual isotope approach to isolate soil carbon pools of different turnover times. Biogeosciences, 10, 8067-8081. DOI: 10.5194/bg-10-8067-2013. Abstract Soils are globally significant sources and sinks of atmospheric CO2. Increasing the resolution of soil carbon turnover estimates is important for predicting the ...[Read More]
Monday paper: Combined use of stable isotopes and fallout radionuclides as soil erosion indicators in a forested mountain site, South Korea
Meusburger, K., Mabit, L., Park, J.-H., Sandor, T., Alewell, C. 2013. Combined use of stable isotopes and fallout radionuclides as soil erosion indicators in a forested mountain site, South Korea. Biogeosciences 10, 5627-5638. DOI: 10.5194/bg-10-5627-2013, 20133 Abstract The aim of this study is to assess and to validate the suitability of the stable nitrogen and carbon isotope signature as soil e ...[Read More]
Cold soil in the groove
Often, soils from cold regions, such as Arctic soils, show polygonal forms in their surface. These polygons are formed because of the freeze-thaw cycle, characteristic of permafrost. What is permafrost? Permafrost is a subsurface soil layer which stays permanently frozen (below 0 oC) during long periods of time, usually more than two consecutive years. Most extensive permafrost areas can be found ...[Read More]