The University of Nebraska–Lincoln has recently installed a neutron monitor, one of only three in the United States and the only one located outside the East Coast. This monitor corrects soil moisture readings that are crucial for agricultural decisions and monitoring climate change. Solar activity can disrupt another device, the cosmic ray neutron sensors, causing errors in the soil moisture data.
This spring, a neutron monitor was installed at the university’s Eastern Nebraska Research, Extension and Education Center near Mead, ensuring more accurate data. The monitor was designed by technologist Darin Desilets and funded by grants totaling $686,873. The real-time data from the monitor will be used by the space weather and hydrological communities.
Professor Trenton Franz, who leads the project, is also starting a new interdisciplinary collaboration between hydrologists and space weather scientists to advance the study of cosmic radiation. A planning conference will be held in October, funded by the National Science Foundation.
Solar flares can disrupt GPS systems and have national security implications, making accurate monitoring of space weather crucial. A more complete global monitoring network would help predict which areas on Earth might be affected. The goal is to create future scientific infrastructure to address these challenges and secure funding from federal agencies.
By bringing together two historically separate disciplines, the conference aims to work towards a future with combined low- and high-energy neutron detectors to better prepare for future solar events of significant strength.
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