duricrust

[door-i-kruhst, dyoor-]

noun

1. a hard crust that forms on or in soil in semiarid climates owing to cementation of soil particles.

duricrust

/ ˈdjʊərɪˌkrʌst /

noun

1. another name for caliche

Word History and Origins

Origin of duricrust¹

< Latin dūr ( us ) hard + -i- + crust

Example Sentences

The mole needs friction from the soil to dig itself further, but it hasn't been able to get past the "cement-like duricrust" on Mars, so it just bounces in place.

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InSight seems to have been unlucky enough to land in a place where the soil is compacted into a harder material called a duricrust, says Matthew Golombek, a planetary scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Read more on Nature

The duricrust is both harder and possibly thicker than expected.

Read more on Nature