Seasonal variations of stable isotope in precipitation and moisture transport at Yushu,eastern Tibetan Plateau

Precipitation δ ¹⁸O at Yushu, eastern Tibetan Plateau, shows strong fluctuation and lack of clear seasonality. The seasonal pattern of precipitation stable isotope at Yushu is apparently different from either that of the southwest monsoon region to the south or that of the inland region to the north. This different seasonal pattern probably reflects the shift of different moisture sources. In this paper, we present the spatial comparison of the seasonal patterns of precipitation δ ¹⁸O, and calculate the moisture transport flux by using the NCAR/NCEP reanalysis data. This allows us to discuss the relation between moisture transport flux and precipitation δ ¹⁸O. This study shows that both the southwest monsoon from south and inland air mass transport from north affected the seasonal precipitation δ ¹⁸O at Yushu, eastern Tibetan Plateau. Southwest monsoon brings the main part of the moisture, but southwest transport flux is weaker than in the southern part of the Tibetan Plateau. However, contribution of the inland moisture from north or local evaporation moisture is enhanced. The combined effect is the strong fluctuation of summer precipitation δ ¹⁸O at Yushu and comparatively poor seasonality. Supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2005CB422002), and National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grand Nos. 40671043, 40571039 and 40121101)