Soil temperature (DP1.00041.001)

Soil temperature is measured at various depths below the soil surface from approximately 2 cm down to 200 cm at non-permafrost sites (down to 300 cm at Alaskan sites). Soil temperature influences the rate of biogeochemical cycling, decomposition, and root and soil biota activity. In addition, soil temperature can impact the hydrologic cycle since it controls whether soil water is in a liquid or solid state. Measurements are made in vertical profiles consisting of up to nine depths in all five instrumented soil plots at each terrestrial site, and presented as 1-minute and 30-minute averages. Latency: Data collected in any given month are published during the second full week of the following month. This data product is not currently available at the PUUM site (Hawaii) due to the initial soil characterization indicating the soil was too shallow to allow the standard sensor to be installed. An alternative sensor was installed, but it is not currently compatible with the data processing pipeline. Future upgrades to the data processing pipeline will allow the data product to be produced, including retroactively, but this is not expected to occur soon. In the interim, raw sensor data are available upon request via the NEON Contact Form, but have not undergone any quality control, quality assurance, or data flagging. At four Alaskan sites (HEAL, BONA, TOOL, and BARR) the sensors experience frost heaving which regularly changes the measurement depths. New measurement depths are recorded when technician time and other priorities allow and depths are updated, but sensor depths may change between remeasuring events. In addition, the soil plots at HEAL have been subsiding faster than the surrounding area which may alter their representativeness of the overall site.