Past, Current and Future Processes in the Earth Critical Zone

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Earth's Critical Zone (ECZ) integrates the surface and near‐surface environment where interactions between biosphere, pedosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and shallow lithosphere play a fundamental role in sustaining life. In this view, there is a need to describe and model the geochemical processes of the ECZ (e.g., rock weathering, sediment soil formation, element mobility solubility in natural water) at multiple spatial and temporal scales to track the past, current and future status of ecosystems, also in relations to environmental and climate changes. The characterization of these processes allows to face global social challenges such as environmental quality, ecosystems equilibria, human health, sustainable development, availability of resources, and water use and storage. We invite contributions to this multidisciplinary topic dealing with rock weathering, sediment and soil geochemistry, hydrogeology and hydro-geochemistry and more in general Critical Zone-relevant geological processes to steward the life-sustaining ECZ in the past, in the current day and into the future. Emphasis will be given to studies that address issues about:

• low temperature mineralogical and geochemical processes in natural environments;
• isotope fractionations and element partitioning between lithosphere, pedosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere;
• role of the Critical Zone in achieving sustainable development goals;
• impacts of human activities on the Critical Zone processes;
• past and future trends;
• ecosystems health and dynamics.

Contributes emphasizing innovative methods and approaches, as well as combination of multiple techniques are welcome, and researches by young scientists are encouraged.

Dr. Gianluca Bianchini
Dr. Claudio Natali
Dr. Chiara Marchina
Dr. Valentina Brombin
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Environments environments	3.5	5.7	2014	22.8 Days	CHF 1800	Submit
Geosciences geosciences	2.4	5.3	2011	23.5 Days	CHF 1800	Submit
Minerals minerals	2.2	4.1	2011	18 Days	CHF 2400	Submit
Quaternary quaternary	2.3	3.3	2018	43.4 Days	CHF 1600	Submit
Water water	3.0	5.8	2009	17.5 Days	CHF 2600	Submit

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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14 pages, 1607 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Global NDVI-LST Correlation: Temporal and Spatial Patterns from 2000 to 2024

by Ehsan Rahimi, Pinliang Dong and Chuleui Jung

Environments 2025, 12(2), 67; https://doi.org/10.3390/environments12020067 - 17 Feb 2025

Viewed by 739

Abstract

While numerous studies have investigated the NDVI-LST relationship at local or regional scales, existing global analyses are outdated and fail to incorporate recent environmental changes driven by climate change and human activity. This study aims to address this gap by conducting an extensive [...] Read more.

While numerous studies have investigated the NDVI-LST relationship at local or regional scales, existing global analyses are outdated and fail to incorporate recent environmental changes driven by climate change and human activity. This study aims to address this gap by conducting an extensive global analysis of NDVI-LST correlations from 2000 to 2024, utilizing multi-source satellite data to assess latitudinal and ecosystem-specific variability. The MODIS dataset, which provides global daily LST data at a 1 km resolution from 2000 to 2024, was used alongside MODIS-derived NDVI data, which offers global vegetation indices at a 1 km resolution and 16-day temporal intervals. A correlation analysis was performed by extracting NDVI and LST values for each raster cell. The analysis revealed significant negative correlations in regions such as the western United States, Brazil, southern Africa, and northern Australia, where increased temperatures suppress vegetation activity. A total of 38,281,647 pixels, or 20% of the global map, exhibited statistically significant correlations, with 80.4% showing negative correlations, indicating a reduction in vegetation activity as temperatures rise. The latitudinal distribution of significant correlations revealed two prominent peaks: one in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Southern Hemisphere and another in the temperate zones of the Northern Hemisphere. This study uncovers notable spatial and latitudinal patterns in the LST-NDVI relationship, with most regions exhibiting negative correlations, underscoring the cooling effects of vegetation. These findings emphasize the crucial role of vegetation in regulating surface temperatures, providing valuable insights into ecosystem health, and informing conservation strategies in response to climate change. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Past, Current and Future Processes in the Earth Critical Zone)

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17 pages, 5303 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Carbon Soil Mapping in a Sustainable-Managed Farm in Northeast Italy: Geochemical and Geophysical Applications

by Gian Marco Salani, Enzo Rizzo, Valentina Brombin, Giacomo Fornasari, Aaron Sobbe and Gianluca Bianchini

Environments 2024, 11(12), 289; https://doi.org/10.3390/environments11120289 - 14 Dec 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 989

Abstract

Recently, there has been increasing interest in organic carbon (OC) certification of soil as an incentive for farmers to adopt sustainable agricultural practices. In this context, this pilot project combines geochemical and geophysical methods to map the distribution of OC contents in agricultural [...] Read more.

Recently, there has been increasing interest in organic carbon (OC) certification of soil as an incentive for farmers to adopt sustainable agricultural practices. In this context, this pilot project combines geochemical and geophysical methods to map the distribution of OC contents in agricultural fields, allowing us to detect variations in time and space. Here we demonstrated a relationship between soil OC contents estimated in the laboratory and the apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) measured in the field. Specifically, geochemical elemental analyses were used to evaluate the OC content and relative isotopic signature in collected soil samples from a hazelnut orchard in the Emilia–Romagna region of Northeastern Italy, while the geophysical Electromagnetic Induction (EMI) method enabled the in situ mapping of the ECa distribution in the same soil field. According to the results, geochemical and geophysical data were found to be reciprocally related, as both the organic matter and soil moisture were mainly incorporated into the fine sediments (i.e., clay) of the soil. Therefore, such a relation was used to create a map of the OC content distribution in the investigated field, which could be used to monitor the soil C sequestration on small-scale farmland and eventually develop precision agricultural services. In the future, this method could be used by farmers and regional and/or national policymakers to periodically certify the farm’s soil conditions and verify the effectiveness of carbon sequestration. These measures would enable farmers to pursue Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) incentives for the reduction of CO₂ emissions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Past, Current and Future Processes in the Earth Critical Zone)

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15 pages, 3429 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Soil Organic Carbon Estimation in Ferrara (Northern Italy) Combining In Situ Geochemical Analyses and Hyperspectral Remote Sensing

by Gian Marco Salani, Michele Lissoni, Gianluca Bianchini, Valentina Brombin, Stefano Natali and Claudio Natali

Environments 2023, 10(10), 173; https://doi.org/10.3390/environments10100173 - 4 Oct 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2574

Abstract

This study investigated whether surface soil organic carbon (SOC) content could be estimated using hyperspectral data provided by the Italian Space Agency PRISMA satellite. We collected 100 representative topsoil samples in an area of 30 × 30 Km² in the province of [...] Read more.

This study investigated whether surface soil organic carbon (SOC) content could be estimated using hyperspectral data provided by the Italian Space Agency PRISMA satellite. We collected 100 representative topsoil samples in an area of 30 × 30 Km² in the province of Ferrara (Northern Italy), estimated their SOC content and other soil properties through thermo-gravimetric analysis, and matched these to the spectra of the sampled areas that were measured by PRISMA on 7 April 2020. A tentative model was created for SOC estimation using ordinary least-squares (OLS) regression and an artificial neural network (ANN). Repeated k-fold cross-validation of the OLS and ANN models yielded R² values of 0.64 and 0.49, respectively. The performance of the models was inferior to that obtained from the literature using similar modeling techniques in relatively small areas (up to 3 × 3 Km²) and characterized by restricted SOC variability (0.2–2.1 wt%). However, our data were collected over a wider area with high SOC content variability (0.7–9.3 wt%); consequently, significant variations were observed over a spatial scale of just a few meters. Therefore, this work shows the importance of testing remote sensing techniques for SOC measurements in more complex areas than those reported in the existing literature. Furthermore, our study sheds light on the geolocation errors and missing data of PRISMA. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Past, Current and Future Processes in the Earth Critical Zone)

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17 pages, 5918 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Soil Organic Carbon Depletion in Managed Temperate Forests: Two Case Studies from the Apennine Chain in the Emilia-Romagna Region (Northern Italy)

by Valentina Brombin, Gian Marco Salani, Mauro De Feudis, Enrico Mistri, Nicola Precisvalle and Gianluca Bianchini

Environments 2023, 10(9), 156; https://doi.org/10.3390/environments10090156 - 9 Sep 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3090

Abstract

Forest soils contain a large amount of organic carbon (OC); therefore, small changes in these ecosystems have effects on climate. In this study, variation in the quantity of C pools that occurred in one year in the soil of temperate forests managed by [...] Read more.

Forest soils contain a large amount of organic carbon (OC); therefore, small changes in these ecosystems have effects on climate. In this study, variation in the quantity of C pools that occurred in one year in the soil of temperate forests managed by two farms in the Apennine chain (Emilia-Romagna Region) was investigated using elemental and isotopic C analyses of soil samples collected in 2020 and 2021. In one year, soil from the Branchicciolo (BRA) farm lost organic matter as shown by the decrease in C contents and the less negative C isotopic signatures (¹³C/¹²C), whereas the C contents and C isotopic signatures remained almost stable during time in the soil from the Beghelli (BEG) farm. This cannot be related to thinning interventions, as much more forest material was removed from the BEG forest than from the BRA forest (60% and 25%, respectively). Therefore, other causes should be considered. The BRA forest was at a lower altitude than the BEG forest; thus, it was more affected by C depletion due to the warmer temperature. Moreover, the sandy soil in the BRA forest was less prone to sequestering organic matter than the soil in the BEG forest, which was characterized by phyllosilicates (including vermiculite) and zeolites (clinoptinolite) having high C sequestration capacity. This work showed the different impacts of the pedo-climatic conditions in two nearby farms, which should be considered in planning appropriate silvicultural management for OC sequestration. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Past, Current and Future Processes in the Earth Critical Zone)

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26 pages, 22988 KiB  

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Coherence of Bangui Magnetic Anomaly with Topographic and Gravity Contrasts across Central African Republic

by Polina Lemenkova and Olivier Debeir

Minerals 2023, 13(5), 604; https://doi.org/10.3390/min13050604 - 27 Apr 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3502

Abstract

The interactions between the geophysical processes and geodynamics of the lithosphere play a crucial role in the geologic structure of the Earth’s crust. The Bangui magnetic anomaly is a notable feature in the lithospheric structure of the Central African Republic (CAR) resulting from [...] Read more.

The interactions between the geophysical processes and geodynamics of the lithosphere play a crucial role in the geologic structure of the Earth’s crust. The Bangui magnetic anomaly is a notable feature in the lithospheric structure of the Central African Republic (CAR) resulting from a complex tectonic evolution. This study reports on the coherence in the geophysical data and magnetic anomaly field analysed from a series of maps. The data used here include raster grids on free-air altimetric gravity, magnetic EMAG2 maps, geoid EGM2008 model and topographic SRTM/ETOPO1 relief. The data were processed to analyse the correspondence between the geophysical and geologic setting in the CAR region. Histogram equalization of the topographic grids was implemented by partition of the raster grids into equal-area patches of data ranged by the segments with relative highs and lows of the relief. The original data were compared with the equalized, normalized and quadratic models. The scripts used for cartographic data processing are presented and commented. The consistency and equalization of topography, gravity and geoid data were based using GMT modules ‘grdfft’ and ‘grdhisteq’ modules. Using GMT scripts for mapping the geophysical and gravity data over CAR shows an advanced approach to multi-source data visualization to reveal the relationships in the geophysical and topographic processes in central Africa. The results highlighted the correlation between the distribution of rocks with high magnetism in the central part of the Bangui anomaly, and distribution of granites, greenstone belts, and metamorphosed basalts as rock exposure. The correspondence between the negative Bouguer anomaly (<−80 mGal), low geoid values (<−12 m) and the extent of the magnetic anomaly with extreme negative values ranging from −1000 to −200 nT is identified. The integration of the multi-source data provides new insights into the analysis of crustal thicknesses and the average density of the Earth in CAR, as well as the magnitude of the magnetic fields with notable deviations caused by the magnetic flux density in the Bangui area related to the distribution of mineral resources in CAR. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Past, Current and Future Processes in the Earth Critical Zone)

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17 pages, 4435 KiB  

Open AccessArticle

Fulvic Acid from Chestnut Forest as an Added Qualities to Spring Water: Isolation and Characterization from Fiuggi Waters

by Enrica Allevato, Vittorio Vinciguerra, Silvia Rita Stazi, Francesco Carbone, Cristiano Zuccaccia, Giuseppe Nano and Rosita Marabottini

Minerals 2022, 12(8), 1019; https://doi.org/10.3390/min12081019 - 13 Aug 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2041

Abstract

The aquifer of “mineral” water, historically known for its curative properties, is an identifying characteristic of the Anticolana valley. This area hosted a coppice chestnut forest for a long time. Under the forest, there is an important aquifer, historically renowned and widely recognized [...] Read more.

The aquifer of “mineral” water, historically known for its curative properties, is an identifying characteristic of the Anticolana valley. This area hosted a coppice chestnut forest for a long time. Under the forest, there is an important aquifer, historically renowned and widely recognized for preventing renal stone formation and or facilitating their expulsion. This mineral water pre- vents the formation of calcium oxalate and phosphate crystals in the kidney and promotes their dissolutions through soluble calcium complexes. The forest environment soil is particularly rich in humification products owing to the interaction of the rainwater–litter–soil system. The fulvic fraction is soluble in water under all pH conditions and enriches the water basin. We aimed to test these hypotheses and assess how the coppice chestnut forest is involved in fulvic acid production. Fulvic fractions isolated and purified from soil samples and mineral water (550 μg L⁻¹) were analyzed by GC-MS, FTIR, and NMR. Data from different sources were compared, showing sufficient similarities to state that the fulvic acids isolated from the water come from the processes that take place between the stems and the chestnut litter. The chestnut forest provides enrichment to water quality, which is a distinctive piece of information in defining water enhancement strategies, establishing soil management and designating sustainable forest management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Past, Current and Future Processes in the Earth Critical Zone)
(This article belongs to the Section Environmental Mineralogy and Biogeochemistry)

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