Movable rainfall shelters protect agricultural fields and measurement devices, meaning crane scales can measure percolated water.

When you hear the words “rainfall shelter,” it’s likely you think of a gazebo in the park or a shack at the corner bus stop.  If you’re an agricultural scientist, you have a different idea.  You can learn about that different idea in an article in the 2003 edition of the Encyclopedia of Water Science. The article describes the movable shelter, mechanisms, and sensors that are used to protect a research plot from direct rainfall.  The research plot can contain lysimeters, used to measure the percolation properties of soil.  Hook a lysimeter up to a crane scale and you can get a measurement of water content.

For further information visit ddr.nal.usda.gov.

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