[en] A close relation between atmospheric neutrons near the ground surface and soil moisture contents is presented. From continuous recordings of neutron fluxes observed at six different locations distributed vertically from 3 m above the ground to 40 cm underground depth, significant decreases in neutron flux are found in response to rainfalls. The amounts of the decreases vary systematically with depth and exhibit a peak near the 20 cm underground depth, where the neutron response to rainfall is characterized by a rate of 0.2 %/mm. The recovery time to the initial flux level before rainfall becomes long with increasing depth, reflecting the time variation of the depth dependence on soil moisture content. (author)