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    Original Research Papers

    Seasonal variations in the isotopic composition of near-surface water vapour in the eastern Mediterranean

    Authors:

    Alon Angert,

    Department of Environmental Sciences and Energy Research, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, IL
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    Jung-Eun Lee,

    Berkeley Atmospheric Sciences Center, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-4767, US
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    Dan Yakir

    Department of Environmental Sciences and Energy Research, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, IL; Berkeley Atmospheric Sciences Center, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-4767, US
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    Abstract

    Although the isotopic composition of precipitation is widely used in global climate change studies, use of water vapour isotopes is considerably more limited. Here we present the results from 9 yr of atmospheric vapour measurements in the Eastern Mediterranean, at a site in Israel. The measurements show a strong mean seasonal cycle of about 4‰ in 18O (peaking around July). This seasonality could not be adequately explained by changes in surface interactions or in air mass trajectories, as usually invoked for variations in local precipitation. We could explain this cycle only as a combination of three components: (1) rainout effects; (2) temperature and relative humidity control of the initial vapour and (3) seasonal variations in the vertical mixing across the top of the planetary boundary layer. This last component is emphasized in the current study, and it was shown to be a significant factor in the seasonal cycle features. The measurements were also compared with an isotope-enabled GCM (CAM2) run, which exhibited a markedly different seasonal cycle. Such comparisons with vapour isotopes data could help in constraining models better.

    How to Cite: Angert, A., Lee, J.-E. and Yakir, D., 2008. Seasonal variations in the isotopic composition of near-surface water vapour in the eastern Mediterranean. Tellus B: Chemical and Physical Meteorology, 60(4), pp.674–684. DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0889.2008.00357.x
      Published on 01 Jan 2008
    Peer Reviewed
     CC BY 4.0
     Accepted on 18 Mar 2008            Submitted on 28 Nov 2006

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