Major Hydrologic Features of the Southeast Water Cycle

Parts of the water cycle like precipitation and evaporaiton interact with vegetation and human environments.

Major Hydrologic Features of the Southeast Water Cycle

A researcher points to an empty vial. A box of more vials and a cooler sit to the side.

Stream Water Sampling Kit

WHONDRS Sampling Kits and Detailed Protocols Enable Coordination and Consistency in Sampling
Methodology. Shown is a stream water sampling kit that can be sent to anyone in the world interested in being involved with the project. The kit was designed to be simple and quick to use (sampling takes ~10 minutes), and it minimizes contamination by introducing the sample through a septum instead of opening the collection vials. These features make the kit amenable for use by both scientists and the public via citizen science efforts.

Subsurface Biogeochemical Research Test Beds

Subsurface Biogeochemical Research (SBR) test beds span the watershed continuum, from small headwater systems to a high-order main-stem river. Major field infrastructure in the test beds is complemented with fine-scale mechanistic efforts.

Watershed Landscape

Collaborating Across Environmental Science Domains. Terrestrial Ecology, Watershed Sciences, and Coastal Systems make up the three domains of the BER Environmental System Science program.

Multiple layers of mud with a root layer on top and pebble layer on the bottom.

Bank of East River in Colorado

Section of river bank from the East River, near Crested Butte, Colorado.

Two cows graze in a flat field with mountains in the background.

Mountain Hydroclimate Supports People and Animals

East River Watershed, Crested Butte, Colo.

A group of researchers with tools stand in a river.

River Corridor Watershed Researchers

Installation of an aquifer tube to monitor the hydrological exchange of river water and groundwater and associated biogeochemical processes in the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River. This work is supported by the Subsurface Biogeochemical Research activity.

View of a valley with a river and flowers.

East River Catchment

Meandering stream in East River Catchment, Gunnison County, Colorado. One hypothesis is that hyporheic zone flow through organic carbon–rich sediments between meanders may have a large impact on integrated carbon cycling in the river basin. This occurrence suggests the need to capture hydrological and biogeochemical gradients at the fine scale (<1 m) and then upscale these gradients to the larger kilometer scale length of the river. Clearly a computational challenge, this process will require a new terrestrial modeling software framework.