Patty Guerra

Sensor Provides Cheap, Smart Way to Monitor How Much Water Crops Need

January 24, 2025

Image depicts a scene of grass, sidewalks and a large UCM at UC Merced.

As water becomes an ever more precious and unpredictable resource, particularly in the Central Valley, finding ways to precisely irrigate crops is a valuable tool in the fight against climate change. Climate shifts have triggered more frequent and more severe droughts that have reduced the...

Traffic is shown along a stretch of Bellevue Road near UC Merced.

UC Merced Lands Grant for Making Roads Safer for Bicyclists, Pedestrians

A major route to UC Merced could soon begin to be much safer under a project to install, test and assess several bike lane and other safety interventions. The Bellevue Road safety project will be...

An electric vehicle charger on the UC Merced campus is shown.

Study Urges New Approach to Energy Planning

The world of energy is changing so quickly that the processes used for planning can’t keep up. UC Merced electrical engineering Professor Sarah Kurtz took part in a study that showed how...

UC Merced students hold a drone at a recent competition.

New Aerospace Engineering Major Links UC Merced to Skyrocketing Industry

The newest major in UC Merced's School of Engineering is one of the most exciting subjects in - and out of - this world. Aerospace engineering, one of the fastest-growing industries in the...

Gov. Gavin Newsom discusses upcoming federal and state solar projects with other officials.

New Canal Project Expands on UC Merced Solar Research

Federal and state government officials journeyed to the western corner of Merced County on Thursday to announce a new project to place solar panels on the water in the Delta-Mendota Canal. The...

UC Merced bioengineering Professor Eva de Alba and postdoctoral scholar Meenakshi Sharma are pictured.

UC Merced Researchers Analyze How Inflammation Works on a Molecular Level

Inflammation is the process by which the human immune system responds to injury and stimulates tissue repair and healing. But it can become a chronic condition, leading to health concerns such as...

An almond orchard with irrigation lines is pictured.

Water Risks to Agriculture: Too Little and Too Much

Water is among the most precious resources on the planet. Some areas don't get enough; some get too much. And climate change is driving both of those circumstances to ever-growing extremes....

Professor Hyeran Jeon is pictured with her MoCA lab group.

UC Merced's 40th CAREER Award Funds Computer Efficiency Research

Professor Hyeran Jeon has received a CAREER award for her research into computer efficiency. She is the 40th researcher from UC Merced to earn a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation...

An irrigation water delivery canal in the San Joaquin Valley of California,

An Invisible Water Surcharge: Climate Warming Increases Crop Water Demand in the San Joaquin Valley's Groundwater-Dependent Irrigated Agriculture

University of California researchers from the USDA-funded Secure Water Future project recently found that increases in crop water demand explain half of the cumulative deficits of the agricultural...

Jennifer Pett-Ridge addresses dozens of attendees at the Roads to Removal symposium at UC Merced.

'Roads to Removal' Symposium Looks at Opportunities to Fight Climate Change

Discussions around climate change often center around the bad news - the planet is warming, weather is getting more extreme, resources are increasingly scarce. But there also is cause for...