Factors controlling stable isotope composition of precipitation in arid
                        conditions: an observation network in the Tianshan Mountains, central
                        Asia

Wang, Shengjie; Zhang, Mingjun; Hughes, Catherine E.; Zhu, Xiaofan; Dong, Lei; Ren, Zhengguo; Chen, Fenli

doi:10.3402/tellusb.v68.26206

Cited by 81 publications

(73 citation statements)

References 41 publications

(38 reference statements)

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“…As stated in Wang et al . [], the precipitation stable isotopes in summer months are much more enriched than in winter months across the Tianshan Mountains (Figure ). Long‐term observations of isotopes in precipitation across westerlies‐dominated zones of the northern portion of Tibetan Plateau show that δ 18 O is enriched in summer and depleted in winter [ Tian et al ., ; Yao et al ., ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The rainout pathway from west to east, the large variation in latitude, and the temperature variation with elevation are all contributors to what may be perceived as an altitude effect. In our previous study [ Wang et al ., ], the altitude effect is only seen to be significant in summer, and the different climate conditions of the mountains near the northern slope and southern slope make it hard to relate variability to altitude alone.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this study, a recently compiled database of stable isotopes in precipitation across the Tianshan Mountains [ Wang et al ., ] was applied to investigate the effect of moisture source. As stated in Wang et al .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More importantly, due to the absence of an intensive observation network, detailed isotopic information about moisture transport has not been available in this westerly dominant region. In 2012, a 23‐station network for the measurement of stable isotopes in precipitation was established around the Tianshan Mountains in central Asia [ Wang et al ., ]. Recently, the regime of below‐cloud evaporation [ Wang et al ., ] and moisture recycling [ Wang et al ., ] in arid central Asia was assessed based on this event‐based database.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The effect of moisture source and synoptic conditions on precipitation isotopes in arid central Asia

et al. 2017

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The stable isotope composition of precipitation has been widely applied to trace moisture sources. In the westerly dominated areas of central Asia, the isotopic composition of precipitation significantly correlates with surface air temperature, and the temperature effect is widely accepted. However, the significance of isotopes in tracing water vapor source is not clear for this region, and a further investigation using event‐based observations is still needed. Based on a network around the Tianshan Mountains, the westerly regime of precipitation isotopes is investigated. Although the seasonality of precipitation isotopes for the northern and southern basins of the Tianshan Mountains is similar, the more arid climate and leeward landform of the southern basin lead to weak moisture transport and relatively enriched oxygen isotopes. Of the synoptic systems resulting in heavy precipitation, the central Asian vortex more commonly leads to depleted isotopic ratios in precipitation, which is related to the contribution of northerly moisture and/or surface moisture. The specific humidity‐adjusted Lagrangian diagnostic indicates that the heavy precipitation on the southern basin stations usually has relatively local moisture sources in this arid climate and that terrestrial moisture evaporated from Europe and central Asia, rather than marine moisture from the Atlantic Ocean, is more likely to be the direct moisture source. A sensitivity analysis for target height and adjusting threshold of specific humidity is also applied to the improved Lagrangian diagnostic. Overall, the findings were unaffected by different conditions, and the moisture was more likely to be locally sourced, as indicated by higher specific humidity thresholds.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

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Section: Introductionmentioning

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The effect of moisture source and synoptic conditions on precipitation isotopes in arid central Asia

et al. 2017

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“…That said, recycling may increase d-excess values of precipitation downwind, if accompanied by a progressive increase in the amount of recycled moisture and a decrease in relative humidity, as seen on the Tibetan Plateau [17]. [20,[29][30][31][32], and are shown in Supplementary Materials, Table S1. Interpolation was done using a spherical kriging algorithm in ArcGIS (Esri, Redlands, CA, USA).…”

Section: Synoptic-scale Spatial Patterns Of Deuterium Excessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Controls on Deuterium Excess across Asia

Bershaw

2018

Geosciences

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Deuterium excess (d-excess) is a second-order stable isotope parameter measured in meteoric water to understand both the source of precipitation and the evolution of moisture during transport. However, the interpretation of d-excess patterns in precipitation is often ambiguous, as changes in moisture source and processes during vapor transport both affect d-excess in non-unique ways. This is particularly true in Asia where continental moisture travels a long distance across diverse environments from unique moisture sources before falling as precipitation.

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Contribution of recycled moisture to precipitation in oases of arid central Asia: A stable isotope approach

Wang

Zhang

Che

et al. 2016

Water Resources Research

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Terrestrial moisture contributed by surface evaporation and transpiration, also known as recycled moisture, plays an important role in hydrological processes especially across arid central Asia. The stable hydrogen and oxygen isotopes can be used for water budget analysis to calculate the contribution of recycled moisture to precipitation between two locations along the moisture flow. Based on a three-component isotopic mixing model, the moisture recycling in oasis stations of arid central Asia during summer months is assessed. At large oases of Urumqi, the proportional contribution of recycled moisture to local precipitation is approximately 16.2%, and the mean proportions of surface evaporation and transpiration are 5.9% 6 1.5% and 10.3% 6 2.2%, respectively. At small oases like Shihezi and Caijiahu the contribution of recycled moisture is less than 5%, and the proportion of surface evaporation is much less than that of transpiration. The vegetative cover in arid central Asia is generally sparse, but the evapotranspiration contribution to precipitation cannot be ignored at the widely distributed oases. The oasis effect shows great variability depending on locations and water availability for evapotranspiration.

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Factors controlling stable isotope composition of precipitation in arid conditions: an observation network in the Tianshan Mountains, central Asia

Abstract: A B S T R A C TApproximately one-third of the Earth's arid areas are distributed across central Asia. The stable isotope composition of precipitation in this region is affected by its aridity, therefore subject to high evaporation and low precipitation amount.

Cited by 81 publications

References 41 publications

The effect of moisture source and synoptic conditions on precipitation isotopes in arid central Asia

The effect of moisture source and synoptic conditions on precipitation isotopes in arid central Asia

Controls on Deuterium Excess across Asia

Contribution of recycled moisture to precipitation in oases of arid central Asia: A stable isotope approach

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