Newsletter 4

Letter from the Director NEWS n late October of this year, the tour guides GeoTourism and I led 100 sixth- and seventh-grade Initiative Creates Istudents from Doolen Middle School on a tour of Biosphere 2. They were the first Partners in Science visitors to walk out on the catwalk overlooking t a time when many Southern Arizona the LEO (Landscape Evolution Observatory) attractions are experiencing a decline VOLUME I-7 FALL 2011 chamber, as construction had been initiated in visitors, Biosphere 2’s attendance only the day before. I encouraged the students A over the past four years has increased nearly to reach out and touch the new steel structure, 60%—from an all-time low of around pointing out that this grand experiment was 38,000 in 2007 to more than 97,000 in Travis Huxman, theirs to watch over the next decade; they Director, Biosphere 2 fiscal year 2010. A key to this increase has will be able to return often to take part in the been strategic brand repositioning, creative & UA Science: Flandrau 1 programs and experiments at Biosphere 2 as marketing and advertising initiatives, and they march on their educational journey, and some could even return the University of Arizona’s management as research scientists themselves one day. It is so exciting to discuss the and now ownership of Biosphere 2. This prospects of Biosphere 2 in such long-term language. The faculty and next fiscal year, two new partnerships staff have worked terribly hard to construct exciting new experiments between Biosphere 2 and other UA groups like LEO and to build excellence in our program. It feels great to and local businesses aim to attract even acknowledge their success. more visitors to Southern Arizona. First, Biosphere 2 has recently taken another big step forward. On July 1, under the direction of the UA College 2011, the University of Arizona acquired ownership of this unique of Science, UA Science Biosphere 2 and research facility as a result of two generous gifts: the donation of land UA Science Mt. Lemmon Skycenter are and the Biosphere 2 facilities on it by CDO Ranching & Development partnering with the Arizona-Sonora Desert and $20 million by the Philecology Foundation of Fort Worth, Texas, Museum and Kartchner Caverns State founded by Edward P. Bass. Together they provide us the means to do Parks to showcase Southern Arizona’s science that cannot be accomplished anywhere else and the support to unique scientific and natural wonders. This maintain our research, education activities and operations. “Geotourism” initiative will help position Tucson as a destination “Science City.” With these two gifts, the University of Arizona solidifies its position as a leader in the field of earth system science. The donations allow the The second partnership involves the UA university to focus the talent of our faculty members across campus on College of Agriculture, Life Sciences, key scientific grand challenges such as climate change, water and energy Biosphere 2 and the 19th annual Tucson sustainability, and public scientific literacy. As an institution, we can Marathon. Together they will promote strategically carry out long-term research in an experimental setting— health, fitness, education, science and the a research asset that no other institution can claim. environment around the “Science City” Tucson Marathon. With the addition of new We are extremely grateful to the Philecology Foundation and CDO racing events on the UA campus mall, the Ranching & Development for this amazing opportunity to expand on event will cover a full weekend, allowing our vision for transformational science at Biosphere 2 and the University visitors from all over to come enjoy Tucson’s of Arizona. n beautiful, early-December running weather. n INSIDE THIS ISSUE PAGE 2: LEO gains PAGE 3: Biosphere 2 PAGE 4: New water oasis PAGE 6: Flandrau Science momentum as steel is leads multi-institutional comes to Biosphere 2. Center’s newest traveling delivered to Biosphere 2. $1.35 million grant. exhibit. Featured Research Construction of LEO Is Underway fter years of anticipation, steel 10 columns nearly a half-meter thick, covered with“soil,” which is actually workers have begun to erect the fixed by steel plates to the floor of nothing more than ground volcanic Afirst columns for the Landscape the former Intensive Agricultural rock that erupted from Merriam Evolution Observatory at Biosphere Biome (IAB, the farm for the original Crater near Flagstaff, AZ. Over time, 2. Already, more than a dozen pieces Biosphere 2 project). Each structure this material will become a soil as of green-painted steel have arrived will slope 10 degrees and have a “soil” researchers introduce plants, such as by truck, some weighing as much as depth of one meter. Once completed, mesquites and grasses, to carefully 4,500 kilograms. each hillslope will include a custom- evaluate how biological systems affect designed personnel transporter that the water, carbon, and energy cycles. Once the first columns are bolted, will provide researchers access without construction workers will “box” the leaving a mark on the soil surface. The data gathered from the wealth structure using 12-meter beams, of sensors will allow researchers from snapping it all together using one-inch Each hillslope will contain over 1,000 several disciplines including soil, 2 bolts and enormous pins. Over time, individual sensors and over 500 water and environmental science; the bones of the landscape will fall into water and gas samplers, allowing for ecology and evolutionary biology; place, creating the first hillslope. densely-spaced measurements of water, geosciences; hydrology and water carbon and energy cycling. Sampling resources; atmospheric sciences; and The steel columns and girders will water and gas allows for the study of natural resources to refine computer become the skeleton for the first of geochemical processes, and for the models, helping to understand how three hillslopes. This construction VOLUME I-7 FALL 2011 use of chemical tracers to study water water, energy, and carbon move represents the culmination of years movement. Some of these sensors are through landscapes. Brendan Murphy, of implementation and design that custom-made for the project; others a research technician who worked with will, over the next year, create an will be off-the-shelf products that DeLong said, “LEO will help us model experimental structure that will help have been refined to meet the needs the processes by which water moves solve “grand challenges” in earth of this special project. For example, through the landscape into rivers and system science. a small-scale project in Biosphere 2 aquifers, where we can use it.” “As earth scientists,” said Steve called the mesquite/grass mesocosms helped define the best methods for Adding biological systems will help DeLong, assistant research professor researchers see how these elements co- and lead scientist, “we’re just starting designing and installing specialized carbon dioxide sensors within the LEO evolve with the topography. Together to learn how to use new technologies this will help researchers evaluate these to measure large-scale processes.” soil material. As Greg Barron-Gafford, an assistant research professor with the elements during future climatic shifts. The construction phase is a complex mesocosm experiment noted, “That Along with the construction, the undertaking. DeLong compares it to knowledge would directly feed into LEO project includes an outreach “building three ships in a bottle,” as our own carbon and water budget component that incorporates the entire structure must be guided analyses and would also feed a host of social media, including Facebook through a single door at the end of ecosystem models that do not capture and Twitter, short videos through the biome. Cranes, trailers, and other the entire story, and often mis-estimate YouTube and posted to Facebook, equipment must be threaded through ecosystem function, particularly in as well as photographs and blog that opening, along with the 12-meter- semiarid ecosystems.” posts under the LEO webpage (leo. long steel girders. The sensor list also includes load b2science.org). Additionally, the LEO ultimately will contain three cell sensors that will measure subtle project includes three live webcams hillslopes, each a steel box weighing changes in the massive weight of each that will show the public the 1 million kilograms and comprised structure as rain falls, and as water transformation of the former-IAB into of more than 10,500 individual steel flows, evaporates and is transpired from a new experimental space. n parts. Each hillslope will stand on the soil. Initially, the structures will be $1.35 Million Project Will Study Environmental Fate of New Munitions he Strategic Environmental Research and Development TProgram, a U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) environmental science and technology program, is funding a new $1.35-millon, 3-year project titled “Dissolution of NTO, DNAN and Insensitive Munitions Formulations and Their Fates in Soils.” NTO and The scale model of LEO designed by the UA College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. DNAN are explosive compounds designed to replace RDX and TNT. These compounds are VOLUME I-7 FALL 2011 more stable than traditional explosives and do not explode when heated, dropped or hit by a bullet. DoD is developing insensitive munitions to alleviate safety risks associated with 3 handling traditional explosives. This project seeks to evaluate the environmental fate

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