PROJECT BACKGROUND
Deep in the Kalahari Desert, hot winds carry sand across the dunes of the savanna. In this parched climate, scientists dig deep to study the influence of climate change on soil and plant dynamics.
LOCATION: The researchers are in the southern part of Africa in the country of Botswana - in one of the most arid biomes, the savanna. They visit the Kalahari Transect (KT), which stretches across the countries of South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Zambia. In the north, the frequent rainfall supplies water to the soils and vegetation. In the south, deep in the heart of the Kalahari, active sand dunes rise one after the other as far as the eye can see. THE MISSION: Excavate entire tree, shrub, and grass root systems and collect soil and root samples along the KT with the goal of measuring carbon stored belowground and predicting how it will respond to a changing climate. THE TEAM: Join scientists from the University of Colorado, UCLA, the University of Virginia, Princeton, and the University of Botswana and US high school science teachers on their expedition into the KT of southern Africa. |
VIDEOS!!LESSON PLANS
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This project was supported through grant #DEB 0717451 to PIs Mladenov, D'Odorico, Okin, and Caylor from the National Science Foundation http://www.nsf.gov/
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