Climate at ecologically relevant scales: A new temperature and soil moisture logger for long-term microclimate measurement

0510448 - BÚ 2020 RIV NL eng J - Journal Article
Wild, Jan - Kopecký, Martin - Macek, Martin - Šanda, M. - Jankovec, J. - Haase, T.
Climate at ecologically relevant scales: A new temperature and soil moisture logger for long-term microclimate measurement.
Agricultural and Forest Meteorology. Roč. 268, April 15 (2019), s. 40-47. ISSN 0168-1923. E-ISSN 1873-2240
R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA17-19376S; GA ČR(CZ) GA17-13998S; GA TA ČR TA01021283
Institutional support: RVO:67985939
Keywords : microclimate * soil moisture * sensor
OECD category: Ecology
Impact factor: 4.651, year: 2019
Method of publishing: Limited access

Climate measurements are needed at a scale at which organisms live and die. Currently available climate sensors, however, are not well suited for long-term field measurements at such a scale. We have therefore developed a new temperature and moisture logger, the Temperature-Moisture-Sensor (TMS), which we designed for a wide range of ecological applications. The device mimics a small herbaceous plant. Its belowground part houses a patented, proprietary soil moisture sensor working on the time-domain transmission principle. Air, surface and soil temperatures are measured simultaneously by three independent sensors. The TMS data logger has a large memory and long battery life, so it is suitable for taking long-term microclimate measurements in the field. Witha data acquisition interval of 15 min, it has sufficient memory to last for almost 15 years. The device has provided microclimate measurements in a wide range of environmental conditions and has also performed well in controlled laboratory settings. The device can therefore be used to build extensive tailored field measurement networks providing crucial data about microclimate conditions shaping biological processes in the face of climate change.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0302701