A Biosphere 2 rainforest experiment reveals soils release more volatile organic compounds into the atmosphere during drought.
A Biosphere 2 rainforest experiment reveals soils release more volatile organic compounds into the atmosphere during drought.
Microbes are doing a lot under the soil surface that can't be seen with the naked eye – from sequestering carbon to building the foundation of Earth's crust. But even tiny microbes are feeling the stress of a hotter, drier future.
According to a new study by University of Arizona researchers, published in Nature Microbiology, soil microbes release more volatile organic compounds into the atmosphere in response to drought stress.
The study is just one part of the B2 Water, Atmosphere, and Life Dynamics project, which brought over 90 researchers from around the world to the University of Arizona's enclosed rainforest at Biosphere 2 to conduct a controlled drought experiment and better understand what happens to the world's ecosystems when water is scarce.
Read more at University of Arizona
Image: The Biosphere 2 facility in Oracle, Arizona, at sunset. (Credit: Laura Meredith via University of Arizona)
