Mass, momentum and energy transfer mechanisms at the land-atmosphere interface – 
interweaving experimental and modeling approaches
Kathleen M. Smits, Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Colorado School of Mines, Golden CO 80401, e-mail: ksmits@mines.edu

	The shallow subsurface immediately below the land-atmosphere interface plays a critical 
role in local, regional, and global scale water balances as well as the transport of 
nutrients and contaminants. Water and energy fluxes in unsaturated soils are affected 
by atmospheric conditions and soil thermal and hydraulic properties, all of which are 
strongly coupled. However, most standard models rarely consider this strong coupling, 
resulting in limited capabilities to predict water fluxes, flow pathways and water 
distribution.  Even common practices such as understanding evaporation dynamics from 
homogeneous soils or water distribution after a heavy rainfall has proven to be 
difficult with standard models. Recently, advances have been made in refining energy 
and mass transfer theories through an integrated treatment of the atmospheric boundary 
layer and the land surface. In this lecture, I will introduce how the shallow 
subsurface and the atmosphere interact, provide insights into mass and thermal flux 
process interactions and demonstrate how to implement these processes into modeling 
efforts.  The research discussed in this talk encompasses an integration of 
experimental investigations involving test systems under a hierarchy of scales and 
improved models.