UM Rosenstiel School-led study has important implications for soil fertility in Amazon Basin
A new study by researchers at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and ATMO Guyane quantified the amount of Saharan dust reaching the Amazon to better understand how dust could impact soil fertility in the region. Intense tropical weathering and local biomass burning have both contributed to nutrient-poor soil in the Amazon Basin.
The research team analyzed 15 years of daily measurements of African dust transported in trade winds and collected at a coastal research station in Cayenne, French Guiana. The results showed that significant quantities of dust reach the heart of the Amazon Basin and are deposited there.
“African dust provides an important source of nutrients to enhance Amazonian soil fertility,” said Joseph Prospero, professor emeritus at the UM Rosenstiel School and lead author of the study.
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