By Marc Oliva The Mediterranean Environmental Research Group, (GRAM) from the University of Barcelona has over 20 years of working experience in the field of the effects of forest fires on soil properties. In 1998 the doctoral thesis entitled “Fire effects on soil properties, the role of fire intensity” carried out by Xavier Úbeda emphasized the importance of fire intensity impa ...[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]
Soils at Imaggeo: Patterned sand
Alma de Groot, The Netherlands Dunes are wind-generated accumulations of sand particles present in desert or coastal land. Sand dunes have smooth and uniform forms, although geometry may be highly variable. The size of particles of sand dunes is highly concentrated around 0.2 mm in diameter due to wind transportation. The pattern showed in the picture is the result of the formation of aeolian dune ...[Read More]
Ladies and gentlemen: the Rolling Stones
Racetrack Playa is a plain without vegetation of a dry located above the northwestern side of Death Valley, in Death Valley National Park, Inyo County, CA, USA (click here to see in Google Maps). Although “playa” is the Spanish word for beach, it is also used in English to refer to a dry lake. Racetrack Playa occupies an area of 4.5 km (north-south) by 2 km (east-west) which is 1,130 m ...[Read More]