LOCATION BOMBER NM
Established Series
REV: GWC
12/2014
BOMBER SERIES
The Bomber series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in siliceous alluvium over gypsiferous coarse-loamy eolian deposits. These nearly level soils are on drainageways on fan piedmonts. Slopes range from 0 to 3 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 9 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 64 degrees F.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-gypseous, hypergypsic, thermic Typic Haplogypsids
TYPICAL PEDON: Bomber silty clay rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted)
Ayz--0 to 7 inches (0 to 18 cm); brown (7.5YR 5/4) silty clay, brown (7.5YR 4/4), moist; 45 percent clay; moderate medium granular structure; hard, very firm, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; common very fine and many fine roots throughout; carbonate, finely disseminated throughout and common fine irregular gypsum masses on faces of peds; violently effervescent, 22 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 3 percent gypsum; slightly alkaline, pH 7.7; electrical conductivity 11.0 dS/m (mmhos/cm); moderately saline; abrupt smooth boundary.
Byyz1--7 to 12 inches (18 to 29 cm); light gray (10YR 7/2) gypsiferous loam, brown (10YR 5/3), moist; 22 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; many very fine and common fine roots throughout; common fine dendritic tubular pores; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; strongly effervescent, 11 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 86 percent gypsum; moderately alkaline, pH 7.9; electrical conductivity 9.0 dS/m (mmhos/cm); moderately saline; clear smooth boundary.
Byyz2--12 to 18 inches (29 to 45 cm); 10 percent gray (10YR 5/1) and 90 percent very pale brown (10YR 8/2) gypsiferous silt loam, 10 percent dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) and 90 percent very pale brown (10YR 7/3), moist; 16 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine roots throughout; common fine dendritic tubular pores; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; strongly effervescent, 9 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 67 percent gypsum; moderately alkaline, pH 8.3; electrical conductivity 19.0 dS/m (mmhos/cm); strongly saline; gradual smooth boundary.
Byyz3--18 to 28 inches (45 to 70 cm); 40 percent very pale brown (10YR 8/2) and 60 percent gray (2.5Y 6/1) gypsiferous loam, 40 percent light gray (10YR 7/2) and 60 percent gray (2.5Y 5/1), moist; 16 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine roots throughout; few very fine dendritic tubular pores; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; strongly effervescent, 11 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 79 percent gypsum; strongly alkaline, pH 8.5; electrical conductivity 17.0 dS/m (mmhos/cm); strongly saline; clear smooth boundary.
Byyz4--28 to 44 inches (70 to 110 cm); gray (10YR 6/1) gypsiferous very fine sandy loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2), moist; 12 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine roots throughout; few very fine dendritic tubular pores; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; violently effervescent, 18 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 75 percent gypsum; moderately alkaline, pH 8.3; electrical conductivity 22.0 dS/m (mmhos/cm); strongly saline; gradual smooth boundary.
Byyz5--44 to 60 inches (110 to 152 cm); light gray (10YR 7/1) gypsiferous very fine sandy loam, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2), moist; 10 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; moderately hard, firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine roots throughout; few very fine dendritic tubular pores; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; strongly effervescent, 7 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 90 percent gypsum; moderately alkaline, pH 8.1; electrical conductivity 17.0 dS/m (mmhos/cm); strongly saline.
TYPE LOCATION: Otero County, New Mexico; about 7.1 miles north and 0.4 miles west of Holloman Air Force Base main gate; located about 2,100 feet east and 1360 feet north of the southwest corner of sec. 12, T. 16S, R. 8E. (Public Land Survey location); USGS quad Malone Draw; Latitude: 32 degrees, 56 minutes, 7.3 seconds N; Longitude: 106 degrees, 4 minutes, 35.1 seconds W, NAD 83; UTM 0399370 E, 3644635 N, UTM Zone 13.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Typic aridic soil moisture regime. The moisture control section is usually dry in all parts more than three-fourths of the time that the soil temperature exceeds 41 degrees F. at 20 inches.
Mean annual soil temperature: 66 to 72 degrees F.
Clay content in the control section: 18 to 24 percent
Percent gypsum: 65 to 90 percent
Electrical conductivity: 4 to 25 mmhos/cm
Ayz horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 5 to 8 dry, 4 to 7 moist
Chroma: 1 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: loam, clay loam, silt loam, silty clay loam, silty clay, clay
Clay: 15 to 60 percent
Gypsum: 2 to 10 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline
Salinity: moderately saline to strongly saline
Byyz horizons
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR, 10YR, 2.5Y
Value: 5 to 8 dry, 4 to 7 moist
Chroma: 1 to 6, dry or moist
Texture: gypsiferous loamy sand, gypsiferous sandy loam, gypsiferous fine sandy loam, gypsiferous very fine sandy loam, gypsiferous loam, gypsiferous silt loam
Clay: 8 to 27 percent
Gypsum: 60 to 95 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline
Salinity: moderately saline to strongly saline
COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Bomber soils are on drainages on fan piedmonts and receive additional run on moisture. Slope is 0 to 3 percent. These soils formed from clayey alluvium over coarse-loamy gypsiferous eolian deposits. Elevation ranges from 3,970 to 4,280 ft. The mean annual precipitation is 8 to 12 inches. Precipitation falls mostly during the months of July through September. The mean annual air temperature is 62 to 70 degrees F. The frost-free period is 200 to 240 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Corvus,
Matador,
Nasa,
Tornado and
Yesum soils. Corvus soils have petrogypsic horizons between 5 and 20 inches and are on relict dunes and fan piedmonts. Matador soils have salic horizons and are in similar positions. Tornado soils are greater than 40 percent clay in the particle size control section, have mixed mineralogy and are in drainages. Nasa soils have a petrogypsic horizon between 20 and 40 inches and are on fan piedmonts. Yesum soils have a gypsic horizon within 7 inches from the surface (Leptic) and are on fan piedmonts.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderate to moderately rapid. Runoff is low. The soil is flooded occasionally for very brief periods following intense thunderstorms.
USE AND VEGETATION: The major uses are military activities and wildlife habitat. Native vegetation is alkali sacaton, tobosa, vine mesquite, fourwing salt bush with scattered iodine bush. Bomber soils have very high production due to run on moisture.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: South central New Mexico, limited to the Tularosa Basin and surrounding piedmonts. MLRA 42-2. Limited extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, NM688, 2014. The name comes from the extensive Air Force exercises conducted in the area.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizon and features recognized in this pedon are:
Particle-size control section - the zone from 10 to 40 inches (Byzz1, Byzz2, Byzz3, and Byzz4 horizons)
Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 7 inches (Ayz horizon)
Gypsic horizon - the zone from 7 to 60 inches (Byyz horizons)
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Twelfth Edition, 2014.
Revised for the correlation of White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico; October, 2014, NMS
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.