Skip to Main Content
-
Seasonal patterns in acidity of precipitation and their implications for forest stream ecosystems
Author(s): James W. Hornbeck; Gene E. Likens; John S. Eaton
Date: 1976
Source: In: Dochinger, L. S.; Seliga, T. A., eds. Proceedings of the first international symposium on acid precipitation and the forest ecosystem; Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-23. Upper Darby, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 597-609
Publication Series: General Technical Report (GTR)
Station: Northeastern Research Station
PDF: View PDF (517.89 KB)Note: This article is part of a larger document. View the larger documentDescription
Data collected since 1965 at a network of 9 stations in the northeastern United States show that precipitation is most acid in the growing season (May-September) and least acid in winter (December-February). For the Hubbard Brook station in New Hampshire, where the mean hydrogen ion content of precipitation ranges between 46 μeq/l in winter and 102 μeq/l in summer, the seasonal pattern in acidity correlates closely with seasonal differences in sulfur deposition from the atmosphere. As summer precipitation passes through the forest canopy, hydrogen ion concentrations are lowered by an average of 90 percent, primarily as a result of exchange with other cations. In winter the hydrogen ion content of incident precipitation is lowered from a mean of 50 μeq/l to a mean of 25 μeq/l during storage in the snowpack.Publication Notes
- Check the Northern Research Station web site to request a printed copy of this publication.
- Our on-line publications are scanned and captured using Adobe Acrobat.
- During the capture process some typographical errors may occur.
- Please contact Sharon Hobrla, shobrla@fs.fed.us if you notice any errors which make this publication unusable.
- We recommend that you also print this page and attach it to the printout of the article, to retain the full citation information.
- This article was written and prepared by U.S. Government employees on official time, and is therefore in the public domain.
Citation
Hornbeck, James W.; Likens, Gene E.; Eaton, John S. 1976. Seasonal patterns in acidity of precipitation and their implications for forest stream ecosystems. In: Dochinger, L. S.; Seliga, T. A., eds. Proceedings of the first international symposium on acid precipitation and the forest ecosystem; Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-23. Upper Darby, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station. 597-609Related Search
- Hydrogen ion input to the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire, during the last decade
- Acidic precipitation at a site within the northeastern conurbation
- Acid precipitation effects on soil pH and base saturation of exchange sites
XML: View XML
Show More
Show Fewer
https://www.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/pubs/11469