New Mexico Geological Society Annual Spring Meeting — Abstracts

A study was conducted in the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge to remotely identify soil map unit boundaries using root zone soil moisture derived from the Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL) model over the course of several moisture events. Some boundaries identified using the SEBAL code do not appear to correlate with current landform or previously identified soil map unit boundaries. Field validation of one transect crossing several of the unexplained boundaries indicated that the amount and distribution of calcium carbonate varied and may influence the identification of boundaries using root zone soil moisture. The objective of this study is to determine if changes in calcium carbonate content correlate with changes in soil hydrologic properties.

Particle size distribution analysis of samples containing carbonate and with carbonate removed show there is a significant increase in the percentage of clay-sized particles in a soil when carbonate has been removed. The pedogenically induced changes in apparent soil texture has considerable implications on soil hydrological properties including saturated and unsaturated hydraulic conductivity and moisture retention. These results suggest that changes in soil physical properties can be reflected in soil hydrologic properties identified using the SEBAL code.