Variations of δ¹⁸O in precipitation along vapor transport paths

Abstract

Three sampling cross sections along the south path starting from the Tropics through the vapor passage in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau to the middle-low reaches of the Yangtze River, the north path from West China, via North China, to Japan under the westerlies, and the plateau path from South Asia over the Himalayas to the northern Tibetan Plateau, are set up, based on the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)/WMO global survey network and sampling sites on the Tibetan Plateau. The variations, and the relationship with precipitation and temperature, of the δ¹⁸O in precipitation along the three cross sections are analyzed and compared. Along the south path, the seasonal differences of mean δ¹⁸O in precipitation are small at the stations located in the Tropics, but increase markedly from Bangkok towards the north, with the δ¹⁸O in the rainy season smaller than in the dry season. The δ¹⁸O values in precipitation fluctuate on the whole, which shows that there are different vapor sources. Along the north path, the seasonal differences of the mean δ¹⁸O in precipitation for the stations in the west of Zhengzhou are all greater than in the east of Zhengzhou. During the cold half of the year, the mean δ¹⁸O in precipitation reaches its minimum at Ürümqi with the lowest temperature due to the wide, cold high pressure over Mongolia, then increases gradually with longitude, and remains at roughly the same level at the stations eastward from Zhengzhou. During the warm half of the year, the δ¹⁸O values in precipitation are lower in the east than in the west, markedly influenced by the summer monsoon over East Asia. Along the plateau path, the mean δ¹⁸O values in precipitation in the rainy season are correspondingly high in the southern parts of the Indian subcontinent, and then decrease gradually with latitude. A sharp depletion of the stable isotopic compositions in precipitation takes place due to the very strong rainout of the stable isotopic compositions in vapor in the process of lifting over the southern slope of the Himalayas. The low level of the δ¹⁸O in precipitation is from Nyalam to the Tanggula Mountains during the rainy season, but δ¹⁸O increases persistently with increasing latitude from the Tanggula Mountains to the northern Tibetan Plateau because of the replenishment of vapor with relatively heavy stable isotopic compositions originating from the inner plateau. During the dry season, the mean δ¹⁸O values in precipitation basically decrease along the path from the south to the north. Generally, the mean δ¹⁸O in precipitation during the rainy season is lower than in the dry season for the regions controlled by the monsoons over South Asia or the plateau, and opposite for the regions without a monsoon or with a weak monsoon.