Micromorphological terms: The state of the art in soil microfabric research

• Published in: Eurasian soil science 2011-07, Vol.44 (7), p.739-752
• Main Authors: Gerasimova, M. I., Kovda, I. V., Lebedeva, M. P., Tursina, T. V.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Geotechnical Engineering & Applied Earth Sciences; Mineralogy and Micromorphology of Soils; Morphology; Soil mechanics; Soil microorganisms; Soil sciences; Soils
• ISSN: 1064-2293; 1556-195X
• DOI: 10.1134/S1064229311070052

The development of the terminology in the field of soil micromorphology reflected a well-known contradiction between two approaches—the genetic and interpretational versus the substantive and morphological-which ended with a compromise in the form of the international Handbook for Soil Thin Sections Description published in 1985. This handbook was widely used around the world. Later on, several changes were introduced into it, and it was updated in the new monograph by G. Stoops. Recently, a list of the main terms appeared on the Internet in 16 languages. The authors of this paper created the Russian version of these terms, which stimulated the further discussion of the nomenclature and concepts in the field of soil micromorphology in Russia. The comparative analysis of the micromorphological terminology presented in this paper may be useful for micromorphologists to improve the description and interpretation of thin sections and for a wider range of specialists in soil science and related sciences to adequately assess the options of using micromorphology in their research.