Earth Rover Program is a not-for-profit organisation developing new, low-cost technologies for “seeing” into the soil.

We aim to assess a wide range of soil properties, such as volume, structure, moisture and, we hope, accurate proxies for carbon and nutrient content.

There is more carbon stored in soil than in all biomass and the atmosphere combined

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Seismology's Untapped Potential

The Earth Rover Program deploys a highly developed and dispatchable set of technologies which, to our astonishment, turn out never to have been used for this purpose.

Seismology is a mature science in which billions have been invested, mostly by the oil and gas industry. It has become so accurate that you can use it to tell whether an apple is ripe (as starch turns to sugar, vibrations passing through the apple are distorted in different ways). It has become so cheap that an advanced geophone can now be purchased for $80. We believe it will soon become cheaper still.

But, amazingly, it has not yet been adapted to assess the type, quality and health of soil. Soil, until now, has been treated as “noise”: the stuff seismologists need to see past when they’re looking at rocks. Yet it turns out to be perfectly suited for seismological enquiry.

empowering farmers

Our ultimate aim? To empower farmers, fostering the capability to sustain high yields while minimising interventions.

Imagine that farmers everywhere, regardless of their size and income, were able to peer into the ground beneath their feet. Imagine they could quickly assess the soil’s quality and health, and see what might be lacking. Imagine that this new insight allowed them to develop, to a much greater degree than is possible today, bespoke farming techniques tailored to the unique properties of their land. And, in doing so, to maintain high yields while minimising their interventions.

empowering farmers

Our ultimate aim? To empower farmers, fostering the capability to sustain high yields while minimising interventions.

Crop yields are projected to drop by 10% globally by 2050, and up to 50% in some regions

Soil, until now, has been treated as “noise”: the stuff seismologists need to see past when they’re looking at rocks.

Yet it turns out to be perfectly suited for seismological enquiry.

99% of the calories that we consume globally come from food grown in soil

Seismological soil insights

Using Seismology to revolutionise agriculture.

We are currently conducting proof-of-concept trials, which are turning out extremely well. The next stage involves building research and operational ERP hubs around the world, and collaborating with partners and stakeholders to apply these technologies across diverse soil types and contexts, to create a wide range of benchmarks. Then we will find the most effective ways of making these techniques accessible to anyone who wants to use them.

More about the science

Seismological soil insights

Using Seismology to revolutionise agriculture.

More about the science

Why the Earth Rover Program?

While billions of dollars have been spent on the Mars Rover Program, which seeks to characterise the surface of that planet, we think it’s high time we understood a little more about our own.

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