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The importance of soil resource to global food supply and climate change mitigation by carbon sequestration are the two most important factors for the constantly growing interest in global soil research. In view of its growing recognition as an important natural resource, the United Nations has declared 2015 as the “International Year of Soils” in the 68th Session of its General Assembly. With population increase, world hunger, water stress, and climate change, global crop production are continuously under stress to meet future demands. The global crop production will have to be doubled by 2050 to meet the population’s projected demands. Thus, the pressure on soil resources is bound to increase and they need to be managed wisely. “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” Assessing soil data is essential in monitoring soil attributes, evaluating changes related to soil quality, judging soil resources, and improving crop yields. The conventional soil analysis can provide accurate measurements for a limited number of samples due to the cost, time, and labor analysis, which leads to inadequate spatial field data and restricts the resolution of the prescription maps. The development of soil sensors and technologies can improve agricultural systems by providing a rapid, in situ, and innovative characterization and measurement of soil properties over current methods. In this chapter, we will explore the agriculture sensors and technologies used in precision agriculture, agribusiness and discuss how these tools can optimize crops and increase the world’s capacity to feed future populations. |
