LOCATION HERMES                  NM

Established Series
Rev. GC/WWJ
12/2014

HERMES SERIES

The Hermes series consists of moderately deep, well drained, moderately permeable soils formed in gypsiferous lacustrine sediments. These nearly level soils are on relict lakebeds on basin floors. Slope ranges from 0 to 5 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 9 inches and the mean annual temperature is about 64 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-gypseous, hypergypsic, thermic Typic Petrogypsids

TYPICAL PEDON: Hermes loam -- rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)

An--0 to 3 inches (0 to 8 cm); light brown (7.5YR 6/3) loam, brown (7.5YR 4/3), moist; 20 percent clay; moderate coarse subangular blocky parts to moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; few very fine roots throughout; few very fine irregular pores; common fine irregular carbonate masses throughout; strongly effervescent, 8 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 6 percent gypsum; slightly alkaline, pH 7.4; electrical conductivity 2.8 dS/m (mmhos/cm); very slightly saline; sodium adsorption ratio 27.0; abrupt smooth boundary.

Bnyy1--3 to 13 inches (8 to 33 cm); white (10YR 8.5/1) gypsiferous sand, white (10YR 8/1), moist; 3 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, very firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; few very fine roots throughout; few fine irregular pores; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; very slightly effervescent, 2 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 73 percent gypsum; slightly alkaline, pH 7.8; electrical conductivity 2.3 dS/m (mmhos/cm); very slightly saline; sodium adsorption ratio 35.0; gradual smooth boundary.

Bnyy2--13 to 23 inches (33 to 58 cm); white (10YR 8.5/1) gypsiferous sand, white (10YR 8/1), moist; 5 percent clay; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, very firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; few very fine roots throughout; few medium irregular pores; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; very slightly effervescent, 2 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 87 percent gypsum; slightly alkaline, pH 7.7; electrical conductivity 2.5 dS/m (mmhos/cm); very slightly saline; sodium adsorption ratio 22.0; abrupt smooth boundary.

Bnyym1--23 to 35 inches (58 to 89 cm); 5 percent light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) and 95 percent white (10YR 9.5/1), 5 percent yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) and 95 percent white (10YR 9/1), moist; massive; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; strongly effervescent, 9 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 96 percent gypsum; slightly alkaline, pH 7.6; electrical conductivity 2.7 dS/m (mmhos/cm); very slightly saline; sodium adsorption ratio 83.0; diffuse smooth boundary.

Bnyym2--35 to 50 inches (89 to 127 cm); white (10YR 9.5/1), white (10YR 9/1), moist; massive; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; strongly effervescent, 8 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 92 percent gypsum; slightly alkaline, pH 7.6; electrical conductivity 3.2 dS/m (mmhos/cm); very slightly saline; sodium adsorption ratio 89.0; abrupt smooth boundary.

Cnyy--50 to 60 inches (127 to 152 cm); 10 percent light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) and 90 percent white (10YR 9/1) gypsiferous sand, 10 percent yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) and 90 percent white (10YR 8.5/1), moist; 3 percent clay; massive; moderately hard, firm, nonsticky, nonplastic; carbonate, finely disseminated and many fine irregular gypsum crystals throughout; very slightly effervescent, 4 percent calcium carbonate equivalent and 73 percent gypsum; slightly alkaline, pH 7.7; electrical conductivity 2.3 dS/m (mmhos/cm); very slightly saline; sodium adsorption ratio 100.0.

TYPE LOCATION: Otero County, New Mexico. Approximately 7.2 miles East and 7 miles North of White Sands Missile Range Headquarters; 1152 feet South and 110 feet East of the Southwest corner of Section 17, Township 21 South, Range 6 East; USGS topographic quadrangle White Sands NE, NAD83; 32 degrees 28 minutes 53.17 seconds North latitude and 106 degrees 21 minutes 24.32 seconds West longitude; UTM 372,516 meters East, 3594,612 meters North, 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.

Mean annual soil temperature: 66 to 72 degrees F.

Depth to gypsic horizon: 0 to 3 inches

Depth to petrogypsic horizon: 20 to 40 inches

Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 3 to 8 percent

An horizon
Hue: 7.5YR, 10YR
Value: 6 to 7 dry, 4 to 5 moist
Chroma: 3 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: very fine sandy loam, gypsiferous loam, loam
Clay: 12 to 20 percent
Reaction: slightly to moderately alkaline

Bnyy horizons
Hue: 10YR, 2.5Y
Value: 8 to 9.5 dry, 7 to 8.5 moist
Chroma: 1 to 3, dry or moist
Texture: gypsiferous sand, gypsiferous loamy sand
Clay: 3 to 8 percent
Gypsum: 70 to 96 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline
Salinity: very slightly saline to slightly saline
Sodicity: > 13

Bnyym horizons
Cemented: gypsum
Hardness: extremely hard to indurated
Thickness: 23 to 50 inches, continuous

Cnyy horizon
Hue: 10YR, 2.5Y
Value: 6 to 9.5 dry, 5 to 8.5 moist
Chroma: 1 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: gypsiferous sand, gypsiferous loamy sand
Clay: 0 to 5 percent
Gypsum: 70 to 100 percent
Salinity: very slightly saline to slightly saline

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Nasa series. Nasa soils have more than 8 percent clay in the control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Hermes soils are on relict lakebeds on basin floors. These soils formed in gypsiferous lacustrine deposits. Slope is 0 to 5 percent. The mean annual air temperature is 64 to 70 degrees F. The mean annual precipitation is 8 to 12 inches.P recipitation falls mostly during the months of July through September. The driest months are March and April. Precipitation during the months of January, February, and March is less than 13 percent of the total. Elevation ranges from 3,920 to 4,000 feet. The frost-free period is 180 to 240 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Basso, Copia, Elizario, Jato, Loki, Mcnew, Talos and Peligro soils. Basso and Talos soils have argillic horizons and calcic horizons.
Copia soils are sandy and are on coppice dunes. Elizario and Mcnew soils have calcic horizons and are on slightly depressed and slightly higher positions respectively of the alluvial flat of the basin floor. Jato and Loki soils have calcic horizons above the gypsic horizon.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderate. Runoff is negligible to low. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used for military exercises and weapons testing. Vegetation is of the desert shrub type and consists of gyp dropseed, hairy crinklemat, Torreys joint fir, gyp monopod, 4 wing saltbush, mesquite, and gyp scorpionweed.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Trans-Pecos of Texas and southern New Mexico; LRR D, MLRA 42; small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Update Soil Survey of White Sands Missile Range; Otero County, New Mexico; 2014.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

Particle-size control section: The zone from 10 to 40 inches. (By1, By2, and Cy1, and Cy2 horizons)

Ochric epipedon - the zone from 0 to 3 inches (An horizon)

Gypsic horizon - the zone from 3 to 23 inches (Bnyy horizons)

Petrogypsic horizon - the zone from 23 to 50 inches (Bnyym horizons)

Hermes: Hermes was the Greek god of shepherds. In the early 1950s, Hermes was tested at White Sands Missile Range as a surface to surface ballistic missile that later became the Redstone missile.

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

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.