A precipitation isotopic response in 2014-2015 to moisture transport
changes in the central Himalayas
Abstract
The effect of moisture transport on precipitation stable isotopes (δ18O
and d-excess) in the central Himalayas is still unclear, although
crucial to understand the climatic archives recorded in, e.g., ice
cores. Here we present measurements of stable isotopes in precipitation
at two stations (Yadong and Pali) in the central Himalayas during
2014-2015. Combined with simulations from the dispersion model FLEXPART,
we investigate possible effects on precipitation stable isotopes related
to changes in moisture sources and convections in the region. Here we
show that precipitation stable isotopes and convective activities are
different between 2014 and the El Niño year 2015 in Yadong Valley. Our
results show that enriched 18O and high d-excess in precipitation during
the 2015 monsoon season compared to 2014 is accompanied by a change in
δ18O lapse rate as an outcome of changes in upstream convection which
alters δ18O through kinetic fractionation. During 2015, isotopic
variations are linked to larger contributions of moisture from the
Arabian Sea and the Indian continent, as well as lesser from the Bay of
Bengal (BoB). Outgoing longwave radiation and moisture flux divergence
analysis further confirms that contribution from continental evaporation
dominates the moisture supply in the central Himalayas with a lesser
contribution from convection over the BoB during the 2015 monsoon
season, compared with 2014. These findings provide insights into
climatic interpretations of paleo-isotopic archives regarding responses
to changes in moisture transport to the central Himalayas.