A Climatological Interpretation of Precipitation δ 18 O across Siberia and Central Asia

• Published in: Water
• Main Authors: Tao Wang, Ting-Yong Li, Jian Zhang, Yao Wu, Chao-Jun Chen, Ran Huang, Jun-Yun Li, Si-Ya Xiao, Tatiana Artemevna Blyakharchuk
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020
• Subjects: precipitation δ 18 o; Eurasian Zonal Circulation; North Atlantic Oscillation; moisture sources; Siberia and Central Asia; Hydraulic engineering; TC1-978; Water supply for domestic and industrial purposes; TD201-500; Ice; ice core; North Atlantic; North Atlantic oscillation; permafrost; Siberia
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/w12082132; https://doaj.org/article/577d2336b89e4839a2caa439d9afb0a6

Siberia and Central Asia are located at middle to high latitudes, encompassing a large landlocked area of the Eurasian continent and vast tracts of permafrost, which are sensitive to global climate change. Here, we investigated the data from 15 Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation (GNIP) stations to clarify the relationship between precipitation δ 18 O (δ 18 O P ) and the local temperature and precipitation amount on the monthly, seasonal, and annual timescales. Three main conclusions as following: (1) On the monthly time scale, the variation in δ 18 O P is mainly controlled by the “temperature effect”. (2) The weighted average value of precipitation δ 18 O (δ 18 O w ) exhibited “temperature effect” over 60° N–70° N. However, δ 18 O w was dominated by multiple factors from 40° N to 60° N (e.g., the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and water vapor source changes). (3) The variations of δ 18 O W can be attributed to the changes in pathway of the westerly dominated by the NAO at annual timescale. Therefore, it is possible to reconstruct the histories of past atmospheric circulations and water vapor sources in this region via δ 18 O in geologic archives, e.g., speleothem and ice core records.