IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v15y2024i1d10.1038_s41467-024-50690-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Fiber-optic seismic sensing of vadose zone soil moisture dynamics

Author

Listed:
  • Zhichao Shen

    (California Institute of Technology
    Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

  • Yan Yang

    (California Institute of Technology)

  • Xiaojing Fu

    (California Institute of Technology)

  • Kyra H. Adams

    (California Institute of Technology)

  • Ettore Biondi

    (California Institute of Technology)

  • Zhongwen Zhan

    (California Institute of Technology)

Abstract

Vadose zone soil moisture is often considered a pivotal intermediary water reservoir between surface and groundwater in semi-arid regions. Understanding its dynamics in response to changes in meteorologic forcing patterns is essential to enhance the climate resiliency of our ecological and agricultural system. However, the inability to observe high-resolution vadose zone soil moisture dynamics over large spatiotemporal scales hinders quantitative characterization. Here, utilizing pre-existing fiber-optic cables as seismic sensors, we demonstrate a fiber-optic seismic sensing principle to robustly capture vadose zone soil moisture dynamics. Our observations in Ridgecrest, California reveal sub-seasonal precipitation replenishments and a prolonged drought in the vadose zone, consistent with a zero-dimensional hydrological model. Our results suggest a significant water loss of 0.25 m/year through evapotranspiration at our field side, validated by nearby eddy-covariance based measurements. Yet, detailed discrepancies between our observations and modeling highlight the necessity for complementary in-situ validations. Given the escalated regional drought risk under climate change, our findings underscore the promise of fiber-optic seismic sensing to facilitate water resource management in semi-arid regions.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhichao Shen & Yan Yang & Xiaojing Fu & Kyra H. Adams & Ettore Biondi & Zhongwen Zhan, 2024. "Fiber-optic seismic sensing of vadose zone soil moisture dynamics," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-50690-6
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50690-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-50690-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-024-50690-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Todd M. Scanlon & Kelly K. Caylor & Simon A. Levin & Ignacio Rodriguez-Iturbe, 2007. "Positive feedbacks promote power-law clustering of Kalahari vegetation," Nature, Nature, vol. 449(7159), pages 209-212, September.
    2. Nielsen, David C. & Vigil, Merle F. & Benjamin, Joseph G., 2009. "The variable response of dryland corn yield to soil water content at planting," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 330-336, February.
    3. A. Park Williams & Benjamin I. Cook & Jason E. Smerdon, 2022. "Rapid intensification of the emerging southwestern North American megadrought in 2020–2021," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 12(3), pages 232-234, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ferreira, A.S. & Raposo, E.P. & Viswanathan, G.M. & da Luz, M.G.E., 2012. "The influence of the environment on Lévy random search efficiency: Fractality and memory effects," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 391(11), pages 3234-3246.
    2. Marina E Wosniack & Marcos C Santos & Ernesto P Raposo & Gandhi M Viswanathan & Marcos G E da Luz, 2017. "The evolutionary origins of Lévy walk foraging," PLOS Computational Biology, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(10), pages 1-31, October.
    3. Wang, Yuhan & Lewis, David J., 2024. "Wildfires and climate change have lowered the economic value of western U.S. forests by altering risk expectations," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    4. Convertino, M., 2011. "Neutral metacommunity clustering and SAR: River basin vs. 2-D landscape biodiversity patterns," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 222(11), pages 1863-1879.
    5. Sarah E. Null & Harrison Zeff & Jeffrey Mount & Brian Gray & Anna M. Sturrock & Gokce Sencan & Kristen Dybala & Barton Thompson, 2024. "Storing and managing water for the environment is more efficient than mimicking natural flows," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-13, December.
    6. Benjamin, J.G. & Nielsen, D.C. & Vigil, M.F. & Mikha, M.M. & Calderon, F., 2015. "Cumulative deficit irrigation effects on corn biomass and grain yield under two tillage systems," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 107-114.
    7. Cai, Fu & Zhang, Yushu & Mi, Na & Ming, Huiqing & Zhang, Shujie & Zhang, Hui & Zhao, Xianli, 2020. "Maize (Zea mays L.) physiological responses to drought and rewatering, and the associations with water stress degree," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    8. Margiana Petersen-Rockney, 2022. "Farmers adapt to climate change irrespective of stated belief in climate change: a California case study," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 173(3), pages 1-23, August.
    9. Knipper, Kyle & Yang, Yun & Anderson, Martha & Bambach, Nicolas & Kustas, William & McElrone, Andrew & Gao, Feng & Alsina, Maria Mar, 2023. "Decreased latency in landsat-derived land surface temperature products: A case for near-real-time evapotranspiration estimation in California," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 283(C).
    10. Saseendran, S.A. & Nielsen, D.C. & Ahuja, L.R. & Ma, L. & Lyon, D.J., 2013. "Simulated yield and profitability of five potential crops for intensifying the dryland wheat-fallow production system," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 175-192.
    11. Nauta, Johannes & Simoens, Pieter & Khaluf, Yara, 2022. "Group size and resource fractality drive multimodal search strategies: A quantitative analysis on group foraging," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 590(C).
    12. Fernandez-Bou, Angel Santiago & Rodriguez-Flores, Jose M. & Ortiz-Partida, J. Pablo & Fencl, Amanda & Classen-Rodriguez, Leticia & Yang, Vivian & Williams, Emily & Schull, Val Zayden & Dobbin, Kristin, 2024. "Cropland repurposing as a tool for water sustainability and a just socioenvironmental transition in California: Review and Best Practices," OSF Preprints bvfsm, Center for Open Science.
    13. Meron, Ehud, 2012. "Pattern-formation approach to modelling spatially extended ecosystems," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 234(C), pages 70-82.
    14. Chengyi Huang & Sjoerd Willem Duiker & Liangji Deng & Conggang Fang & Weizhong Zeng, 2015. "Influence of Precipitation on Maize Yield in the Eastern United States," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(5), pages 1-15, May.
    15. King, Elizabeth G. & Franz, Trenton E., 2016. "Combining ecohydrologic and transition probability-based modeling to simulate vegetation dynamics in a semi-arid rangeland," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 329(C), pages 41-63.
    16. Brianda Hernandez Rosales & Alexandra Lutz, 2023. "Assessing the Feasibility of Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting for Food Production in Northwestern Arizona on the Hualapai Indian Reservation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-16, February.
    17. Souza, João V.R.S. & Saad, João C.C. & Sánchez-Román, Rodrigo M. & Rodríguez-Sinobas, Leonor, 2016. "No-till and direct seeding agriculture in irrigated bean: Effect of incorporating crop residues on soil water availability and retention, and yield," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 170(C), pages 158-166.
    18. Renee Obringer & Dave D. White, 2023. "Leveraging Unsupervised Learning to Develop a Typology of Residential Water Users’ Attitudes Towards Conservation," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 37(1), pages 37-53, January.
    19. Parihar, C.M. & Jat, S.L. & Singh, A.K. & Ghosh, A. & Rathore, N.S. & Kumar, B. & Pradhan, S. & Majumdar, K. & Satyanarayana, T. & Jat, M.L. & Saharawat, Y.S. & Kuri, B.R. & Saveipune, D., 2017. "Effects of precision conservation agriculture in a maize-wheat-mungbean rotation on crop yield, water-use and radiation conversion under a semiarid agro-ecosystem," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 306-319.
    20. Wu, Bingyan & Ma, Dengke & Shi, Yu & Zuo, Guanqiang & Chang, Feng & Sun, Mengqing & Yin, Lina & Wang, Shiwen, 2024. "Optimizing tillage practice based on water supply during the growing season in wheat and maize production in northern China," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 300(C).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:15:y:2024:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-024-50690-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.