Soil Water Pressure and Flow in Amazonian Agroforest

Measurements from a 1998-1999 study in central Amazonia track water fluxes in microaggregated tropical soils beneath tree crops. Data includes repeated high-temporal-resolution readings of soil matrix pressure and moisture content at multiple depths down to 5 meters. The research was conducted by Embrapa Amazônia Ocidental near Manaus, Brazil.

Use Cases

• Analyzing percolation rates after rainfall events using soil moisture content measurements at sub-hourly intervals.
• Modeling the threshold for water flow initiation based on soil matrix pressure (suction) data.
• Studying the impact of soil bulk density on water flux slowdown below 0.9 meters.
• Investigating nutrient loss and accumulation patterns linked to rapid water flow dynamics in the topsoil.

Strengths

• High temporal resolution with measurement intervals of 30 minutes or less, capturing short-term dynamics.
• Detailed spatial profiling with measurements taken at several depths down to 5 meters.
• Study provides concrete findings, such as water percolating to 0.9m within 2 hours of a 48mm rainfall event.

Limitations

• Key metadata conflicts exist: the last updated date is listed as both 1999-12-31 and 2026-03-13.
• Specific column names, row counts, and total dataset size are unknown across all platforms.
• Data is from a single location and two-year period, limiting geographical and temporal generalizability.

Provenance

Source

Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuaria (Embrapa)-Amazônia Ocidental.

Collection Method

Repeated field measurements of soil matrix pressure and soil moisture content at several depths.

Time Range

1998 to 1999

Freshness

2026-03 13 01:11:08.958280

Geography

29 km North of Manaus, Brazil (3° 8' S, 59° 52' W, 40-50 m above sea level).