Where Land Slides, Trying to Learn Why

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Water bottle in hand, Dennis Staley crouched over a patch of ground, cleared away surface soil with a finger and poured a couple of drops on the exposed layer.

ON LOCATION Jason Kean, left, and Dennis Staley, scientists
with the United States Geological Survey, exploring the terrain above
Santa Barbara, Calif.

Dr. Staley and a colleague, Jason Kean, researchers with the United States Geological Survey, were taking a break from their work one recent morning in Mission Canyon just above Santa Barbara to offer a show and tell on the interaction of soil and water.

“It will soak in on the surface,” Dr. Staley said. “But just below the surface it’s going to bead up.” Sure enough, the water drops were still visible, as if they had been spilled on a tabletop. “So that enhances the amount of runoff that naturally comes off these slopes,” he said.

Read the New York Times story - “Where Land Slides, Trying to Learn Why.”