 |
| Titel |
High-resolution observations of stable oxygen and hydrogen isotopes in Northern California rainfall events |
| VerfasserIn |
Randy Apodaca, Nabil Saad, Eric Crosson, Kevin Simonin, Todd Dawson |
| Konferenz |
EGU General Assembly 2010
|
| Medientyp |
Artikel
|
| Sprache |
Englisch
|
| Digitales Dokument |
PDF |
| Erschienen |
In: GRA - Volume 12 (2010) |
| Datensatznummer |
250043134
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Zusammenfassung |
| The regulation of Earth’s climate and its ability to sustain life are critically linked to water as
it exists in all three of its phases (gas, liquid, and solid). Earth’s water cycle, its movement
between the hydrosphere, biosphere, and the atmosphere, and how it undergoes phase
changes, is incredibly complex. While we continue to gain insight into the water cycle,
there remains considerable uncertainty in predicting the impacts of future climate
change on fresh water supplies and the welfare of life on our planet. This uncertainty
exists, in large part, because of a scarcity of highly-resolved spatial and temporal
observations of Earth’s hydrology. One proven tool for observing the dynamics of
the water cycle on our planet is stable isotope analysis of water. Differences in
the thermodynamic properties of the isotopologues of water lead to differences in
the isotope ratios (18O/16O and D/H) in different environmental water reservoirs.
Variations in isotope ratios, in conjunction with meteorological observations, can be
used to trace water as it is cycled and to characterize and identify condensed water
sources.
Here, we present an accurate and easy-to-deploy technique for making real-time,
high-resolution, multi-source water isotope measurements during rainfall events. The
measurement technique combines high-precision isotope measurements, made by a
commercially available cavity ring-down spectrometer (CRDS), with an environmental
interface capable of sampling water vapor, surface water, and precipitation. The
environmental interface, coupled with the CRDS analyzer is compact, light-weight, and
ideally suited for making mobile measurements. Additionally, we present detailed analysis of
spatially and temporally resolved isotope ratios of water observed during rainfall events in
Northern California. Lastly, we utilize the high-resolution water isotope observations
to shed light on the origin and history of the precipitation and discuss the great
potential for using such observations for parameterizing and interpreting isotopic
equilibration models, catchment-scale hydrologic models, and global climate models. |
|
|
|
|
|
|