The measurement of ambient air moisture stable isotope composition for the accurate estimation of evaporative losses.

ABSTRACT: Accurate estimation of evaporative losses from a water body, using the Craig-Gordon model and the stable hydrogen and oxygen isotope composition of water, requires knowledge of the stable isotope composition of ambient air moisture. This is rarely measured in the field, and it is usually estimated assuming that recent rainfall remains in isotopic equilibrium with atmospheric moisture. However, the ambient air moisture stable isotope composition may vary significantly at different heights above the water body. In this study, we set up outdoor pan evaporation experiments and simultaneously measured the stable isotope composition of ambient moisture in the atmosphere at three different heights. Using these measurements, we calculated evaporative losses, compared them with the observed losses

SUBMITTER: Adsiz C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10336789 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature