---
DOAJ_listed: '1'
OA_place: publisher
OA_type: gold
PlanS_conform: '1'
_id: '22567'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: Most soil hydraulic information used in Earth System Models (ESMs) is derived
    from pedo-transfer functions that use easy-to-measure soil attributes to estimate
    hydraulic parameters. This parameterization relies heavily on soil texture, but
    overlooks the critical role of soil structure originated by soil biophysical activity.
    Soil structure omission is pervasive also in sampling and measurement methods
    used to train pedotransfer functions. Here we show how systematic inclusion of
    salient soil structural features of biophysical origin affect local and global
    hydrologic and climatic responses. Locally, including soil structure in models
    significantly alters infiltration-runoff partitioning and recharge in wet and
    vegetated regions. Globally, the coarse spatial resolution of ESMs and their inability
    to simulate intense and short rainfall events mask effects of soil structure on
    surface fluxes and climate. Results suggest that although soil structure affects
    local hydrologic response, its implications on global-scale climate remains elusive
    in current ESMs.
article_number: '522'
article_processing_charge: No
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Simone
  full_name: Fatichi, Simone
  id: cf8e546b-a9b0-11f0-a43b-aa89ed1b56d6
  last_name: Fatichi
- first_name: Dani
  full_name: Or, Dani
  last_name: Or
- first_name: Robert
  full_name: Walko, Robert
  last_name: Walko
- first_name: Harry
  full_name: Vereecken, Harry
  last_name: Vereecken
- first_name: Michael H.
  full_name: Young, Michael H.
  last_name: Young
- first_name: Teamrat A.
  full_name: Ghezzehei, Teamrat A.
  last_name: Ghezzehei
- first_name: Tomislav
  full_name: Hengl, Tomislav
  last_name: Hengl
- first_name: Stefan
  full_name: Kollet, Stefan
  last_name: Kollet
- first_name: Nurit
  full_name: Agam, Nurit
  last_name: Agam
- first_name: Roni
  full_name: Avissar, Roni
  last_name: Avissar
citation:
  ama: Fatichi S, Or D, Walko R, et al. Soil structure is an important omission in
    Earth System Models. <i>Nature Communications</i>. 2020;11. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z">10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z</a>
  apa: Fatichi, S., Or, D., Walko, R., Vereecken, H., Young, M. H., Ghezzehei, T.
    A., … Avissar, R. (2020). Soil structure is an important omission in Earth System
    Models. <i>Nature Communications</i>. Springer Nature. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z">https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z</a>
  chicago: Fatichi, Simone, Dani Or, Robert Walko, Harry Vereecken, Michael H. Young,
    Teamrat A. Ghezzehei, Tomislav Hengl, Stefan Kollet, Nurit Agam, and Roni Avissar.
    “Soil Structure Is an Important Omission in Earth System Models.” <i>Nature Communications</i>.
    Springer Nature, 2020. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z">https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z</a>.
  ieee: S. Fatichi <i>et al.</i>, “Soil structure is an important omission in Earth
    System Models,” <i>Nature Communications</i>, vol. 11. Springer Nature, 2020.
  ista: Fatichi S, Or D, Walko R, Vereecken H, Young MH, Ghezzehei TA, Hengl T, Kollet
    S, Agam N, Avissar R. 2020. Soil structure is an important omission in Earth System
    Models. Nature Communications. 11, 522.
  mla: Fatichi, Simone, et al. “Soil Structure Is an Important Omission in Earth System
    Models.” <i>Nature Communications</i>, vol. 11, 522, Springer Nature, 2020, doi:<a
    href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z">10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z</a>.
  short: S. Fatichi, D. Or, R. Walko, H. Vereecken, M.H. Young, T.A. Ghezzehei, T.
    Hengl, S. Kollet, N. Agam, R. Avissar, Nature Communications 11 (2020).
das_tickbox: '1'
date_created: 2026-07-27T12:30:24Z
date_published: 2020-01-27T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-08-06T08:24:35Z
day: '27'
ddc:
- '550'
doi: 10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z
extern: '1'
external_id:
  pmid:
  - '31988306'
fulldoi: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '        11'
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- open_access: '1'
  url: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-14411-z
month: '01'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
pmid: 1
publication: Nature Communications
publication_identifier:
  eissn:
  - 2041-1723
publication_status: published
publisher: Springer Nature
quality_controlled: '1'
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
title: Soil structure is an important omission in Earth System Models
tmp:
  image: /images/cc_by.png
  legal_code_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode
  name: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0)
  short: CC BY (4.0)
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
volume: 11
year: '2020'
...