Soil physics is the study of soil physical properties and processes. It is applied to management and prediction under natural and managed ecosystems. Soil physics deals with the dynamics of physical soil components and their phases

State of matter

States of matter are the distinct forms that different phases of matter take on. Solid, liquid and gas are the most common states of matter on Earth. However, much of the baryonic matter of the universe is in the form of hot plasma, both as rarefied interstellar medium and as dense...

 as solid

Solid

Solid is one of the three classical states of matter . It is characterized by structural rigidity and resistance to changes of shape or volume. Unlike a liquid, a solid object does not flow to take on the shape of its container, nor does it expand to fill the entire volume available to it like a...

s, liquid

Liquid

Liquid is one of the three classical states of matter . Like a gas, a liquid is able to flow and take the shape of a container. Some liquids resist compression, while others can be compressed. Unlike a gas, a liquid does not disperse to fill every space of a container, and maintains a fairly...

s, and gase

Gase

Gase is a village in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China....

s. It draws on the principles of physics

Physics

Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...

, physical chemistry

Physical chemistry

Physical chemistry is the study of macroscopic, atomic, subatomic, and particulate phenomena in chemical systems in terms of physical laws and concepts...

, engineering

Engineering

Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...

, and meteorology

Meteorology

Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the atmosphere. Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the 18th century. The 19th century saw breakthroughs occur after observing networks developed across several countries...

. It is especially important in this day and age because most farmers require an understanding of agroecosystems. Soil physics applies these principles to address practical problems of agriculture

Agriculture

Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

, ecology

Ecology

Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...

, and engineering.

Prominent soil physicists

• Edgar Buckingham (1867-1940)

The theory of gas diffusion in soil and vadose zone

Vadose zone

The vadose zone, also termed the unsaturated zone, is the portion of Earth between the land surface and the top of the phreatic zone i.e. the position at which the groundwater is at atmospheric pressure . Hence the vadose zone extends from the top of the ground surface to the water table...

 water flow in soil.

• Lorenzo A. Richards
  Lorenzo A. Richards
  Lorenzo Adolph Richards or known as Ren was one of the 20th century’s most influential minds in the field of soil physics. Richards was born on April 24, 1904, in the town of Fielding, Utah, and received a B.S. and M.A. degree in Physics from Utah State University...
  
   (1904-1993)

General transport of water in unsaturated soil, measurement of soil water potential using tensiometer

Tensiometer

A Tensiometer as it applies to physics is an instrument used to measure the surface tension of liquids.-Goniometer/Tensiometer:...

.

• John R. Philip
  John R. Philip
  John Robert Philip FRS was an Australian soil physicist, internationally recognized for his contributions to the understanding of movement of water, energy and gases...
  
   (1927-1999)

Analytical solution to general soil water transport, Environmental Mechanics.

• Amanullah Bhatti (1945-Present)

See also

• Agrophysics
  Agrophysics
  Agrophysics is a branch of science bordering on agronomy and physics,whose objects of study are the agroecosystem - the biological objects, biotope and biocoenosis affected by human activity, studied and described using the methods of physical sciences....
  
  
• Bulk density
  Bulk density
  Bulk density is a property of powders, granules and other "divided" solids, especially used in reference to mineral components , chemical substances, ingredients, foodstuff or any other masses of corpuscular or particulate matter. It is defined as the mass of many particles of the material...
  
  
• Capacitance probe
  Capacitance probe
  Capacitance sensors use capacitance to measure the dielectric permittivity of a surrounding medium.The configuration is like the neutron probe where an access tube made of PVC is installed in the soil. The probe consists of sensing head at fixed depth...
  
  
• Frequency domain sensor
  Frequency domain sensor
  Frequency domain sensor is an instrument developed for measuring soil moisture content. The instrument has an oscillating circuit, the sensing part of the sensor is embedded in the soil, and the operating frequency will depend on the value of soil's dielectric constant.There are two types of...
  
  
• Geotechnical engineering
  Geotechnical engineering
  Geotechnical engineering is the branch of civil engineering concerned with the engineering behavior of earth materials. Geotechnical engineering is important in civil engineering, but is also used by military, mining, petroleum, or any other engineering concerned with construction on or in the ground...
  
  
• Irrigation
  Irrigation
  Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
  
  
• Irrigation scheduling
  Irrigation scheduling
  Irrigation scheduling is the process used by irrigation system managers to determine the correct frequency and duration of watering.The following factors may be taken into consideration:...
  
  
• Neutron probe
  Neutron probe
  A neutron probe is a device used to measure the quantity of water present in soil.A typical neutron probe contains a pellet of americium-241 and beryllium. The alpha particles emitted by the decay of the americium collide with the light beryllium nuclei, producing fast neutrons...
  
  
• Porosity
  Porosity
  Porosity or void fraction is a measure of the void spaces in a material, and is a fraction of the volume of voids over the total volume, between 0–1, or as a percentage between 0–100%...
  
  
• Soil mechanics
  Soil mechanics
  Soil mechanics is a branch of engineering mechanics that describes the behavior of soils. It differs from fluid mechanics and solid mechanics in the sense that soils consist of a heterogeneous mixture of fluids and particles but soil may also contain organic solids, liquids, and gasses and other...
  
  
• Soil moisture
• Soil thermal properties
  Soil thermal properties
  The thermal properties of soil are a component of soil physics that has found important uses in engineering, climatology and agriculture. These properties influence how energy is partitioned in the soil profile...
  
  
• Time domain reflectometer
• Water content
  Water content
  Water content or moisture content is the quantity of water contained in a material, such as soil , rock, ceramics, fruit, or wood. Water content is used in a wide range of scientific and technical areas, and is expressed as a ratio, which can range from 0 to the value of the materials' porosity at...
  
  

External links

• SSSA Soil Physics Division