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USGS CLIM-MET Stations

Introduction

The CLIM-MET meteorological stations are implemented under the auspices of the American Drylands Project, which seeks to understand how climate (such as temperature; precipitation; wind direction and strength) and human activities affect geologic processes (such as weathering; erosion; deposition) that modify the landscape.


Description

The CLIM-MET stations are meteorological/geological stations that are designed to function in remote areas for long periods of time without human intervention. These stations measure meteorological and wind-erosion parameters and automatically record data at regular intervals. Mojave stations have equipment that allows data to be retrieved in real time via a system of radio-telemetry and satellite internet. Data at Canyonlands stations is stored on site and retrieved four times per year. Calibrations are applied and the data are checked for validity in the office and then are stored on this website for current and future analysis by our scientists and cooperators.


Objectives

  1. At ecologically sensitive sites in the Southwest, determine the distribution and types of surficial deposits and the processes responsible for the deposits
  2. Contribute to understanding the distribution of vegetation in the Southwest in terms of climatic variables, composition of substrates, and vulnerability to wind erosion
  3. Use ground-based studies linked to remote sensing methods to detect dust sources and plumes, examine vegetation changes at sensitive sites, and distinguish between mineral dust and chemical aerosols and their role in haze generation
  4. Provide information and interpretations to federal, state, and local agencies, as well as to Native American governments, for their land-use planning and management of resources


Strategy

Stations measure meteorological and wind-erosion parameters under varying climatic and land-use conditions to detect and describe ongoing landscape changes. Combined with historic and other data, CLIM-MET data can provide inputs into regional climatic models that describe how the Southwest will respond to future climatic conditions. The project develops models that describe how these processes operate under different conditions of climate land use. Meteorological measurements and repeat photography support studies of processes and deposits and provide calibration of regional and sub-regional change-detection mapping of vegetation and aeolian deposits using remote-sensing techniques.


Products

  1. Data sets of meteorological observations (that help define climatic variability), landscape responses, and hydroclimatology
  2. Repeat photography of landscape change
  3. Collection of saltating material in traps, measuring and recording the rates of saltation. Meteorological data taken in parallel help describe how surfaces are depleted and what forces support or impede such saltation
  4. Collection of dust samples for many types of studies, including aeolian processes, human disturbances in the desert, soil genesis, ecosystem function, and groundwater chemistry

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Page Last Modified: Thu 4-Aug-2011 13:15:20 MDT