Mohammed Abd Elbasit checking Vaisala equipment placed on the roof of the Arid Land Research Center.
Vaisala's research on desertification processes
Arid land studies in Japan
Although Japan is not an arid region, the Arid Land Research Center (ALRC) at the Tottori University plays an active role in arid land studies. The mandate of the ALRC is to conduct research on desertification and to help people in arid areas to develop sustainable agricultural practices.
The ALRC have been using a modified version of the Vaisala RAINCAP® sensor to measure the rainfall kinetic energy (KE) and drop size distribution (DSD). These measurements give a good indication of the rainfall erosivity (the ability of rainfall to cause erosion).
"We have carried out these measurements under both simulated rainfall and natural rainfall conditions. Even today, rainfall microstructure is not very well understood. With the help of the robust Vaisala instrumental techniques, we are hoping to eliminate some of the uncertainty regarding these measurements, and to develop a better understanding of rainfall erosivity," says Mohamed Abd Elbasit, a PhD student at the ALRC Water Resources Laboratory in Japan.
For more information about Vaisala's solutions:
www.vaisala.com
