Novel Approach to Quantify Nitrogen Mineralization and Nitrous Oxide Emissions in Semiarid Cropping Systems

Principal Investigator: Rajan Ghimire

Project Summary:
Nitrogen (N) cycling is one of the most researched yet poorly understood process in agroecosystems. This research aims to investigate N cycling in semiarid cropping systems and quantify nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions, a potent greenhouse gas that has a global warming potential 310 times greater than carbon dioxide (CO2), using a state-of-art in-situ CO2 and N2O monitoring system. This research is expected to provide much-needed information on N cycling in semiarid cropping systems and help New Mexico farmers to optimize N management, which increases agronomic production while minimizing environmental footprints through reduced N2O emissions.