Soil moisture levels affect how much heat and water is released from the Earth's surface. By studying this relationship, researchers found that changes in soil moisture can impact air temperature and precipitation. They used different data sources to estimate key factors like how often different soil moisture conditions occur and how sensitive evaporation is to soil moisture. They discovered that a large portion of the Earth's land is in a transitional state for soil moisture for much of the year. Changes in soil moisture can lead to temperature changes of up to 1.1-1.3 degrees Celsius, and in transitional areas, this can be as high as 6-7 degrees Celsius. This shows how important soil moisture is for the Earth's climate and can help improve climate models.