Results from measurements of emission of nitrogen oxides from soils at three North American ecosystems are presented. These measurements were conducted during the summer and fall of 1988 at (1) a grassland site near Nunn, Colorado, (2) a coastal marine environment at North Inlet, South Carolina and (3) a deciduous forest near Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Emission of NO was highest from the grassland soil (mean: 10.0 ng N m-2 s-1), intermediate at the forest area (mean: 0.28 ng N m-2 s-1) and lowest at the coastal site (mean: 0.034 ng N m-2 s-1). A comparison of the results from the present study with previous measurements indicates that NOx (NO+NO2) emission from grasslands and temperate forests are similar within each ecosystem independent of location. This suggests that simple approaches may be used to estimate soil emissions over wide areas.