Description: The Himalayan mountain range produces one of the steepest and largest rainfall gradients on Earth, with 〉3 m/yr rainfall difference over a ∼100 km distance. The Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) contributes more than 80% to the annual precipitation budget of the central Himalayas. The remaining 20% falls mainly during pre-ISM season. Understanding the seasonal cycle and the transfer pathways of moisture from precipitation to the rivers is crucial for constraining water availability in a warming climate. However, the partitioning of moisture into the different storage systems such as snow, glacier, and groundwater and their relative contribution to river discharge throughout the year remains under-constrained. Here, we present novel field data from the Kali Gandaki, a trans-Himalayan river, and use 4-year time series of river and rain water stable isotope composition (δ18O and δ2H values) as well as river discharge, satellite Global Precipitation Measurement amounts, and moisture source trajectories to constrain hydrological variability. We find that rainfall before the onset of the ISM is isotopically distinct and that ISM rain and groundwater have similar isotopic values. Our study lays the groundwork for using isotopic measurements to track changes in precipitation sources during the pre-ISM to ISM transition in this key region of orographic precipitation. Specifically, we highlight the role of pre-ISM precipitation, derived from the Gangetic plain, to define the seasonal river isotopic variability across the central Himalayas. Lastly, isotopic values across the catchment document the importance of a large well-mixed groundwater reservoir supplying river discharge, especially during the non-ISM season.

Description: Human activities have increasingly changed terrestrial particulate organic carbon (POC) export to the coastal ocean since the Industrial Age (19th century). However, the influence of human perturbations on the composition and flux of terrestrial biospheric and petrogenic POC sub-pools remains poorly constrained. Here, we examined 13C and 14C compositions of bulk POC and source-specific biomarkers (fatty acids, FA) from two nearshore sediment cores collected in the Pearl River-derived mudbelt, to determine the impacts of human perturbations of the Pearl River watershed on the burial of terrestrial POC in the coastal ocean over the last century. Our results show that although agricultural practices and deforestation during the 1930s–1950s increased C4 plant coverage in the watershed, the export fluxes of terrestrial biospheric and petrogenic POC remained rather unchanged; however, added perturbations since 1974, including increasing coal consumption, embankment and dam constructions caused massive export of both petrogenic POC and relatively fresh terrestrial biospheric POC from the river delta. Our data reveal that human activities substantially enhance the transfer of petrogenic POC and fresh biospheric POC to the coastal ocean after ca. 1974, with the latter process acting as an important sink for anthropogenic CO2.

Description: The products from the Stable Water Isotope Intercomparison Group, Phase 2, are currently used for numerous studies, allowing water isotope model-data comparisons with various isotope-enabled atmospheric general circulation model (AGCMs) outputs. However, the simulations under this framework were performed using different parameterizations and forcings. Therefore, a uniform experimental design with state-of-the-art AGCMs is required to interpret isotope observations rigorously. Here, we evaluate the outputs from three isotope-enabled numerical models nudged by three different reanalysis products and investigate the ability of the isotope-enabled AGCMs to reproduce the spatial and temporal patterns of water isotopic composition observed at the surface and in the atmospheric airborne water. Through correlation analyses at various spatial and temporal scales, we found that the model's performance depends on the model or reanalysis we use, the observations we compare, and the vertical levels we select. Moreover, we employed the stable isotope mass balance method to conduct decomposition analyses on the ratio of isotopic changes in the atmosphere. Our goal was to elucidate the spread in simulated atmospheric column δ18O, which is influenced by factors such as evaporation, precipitation, and horizontal moisture flux. Satisfying the law of conservation of water isotopes, this budget method is expected to explain various fractionation phenomena in atmospheric meteorological and climatic events. It also aims to highlight the spreads in modeled isotope results among different experiments using multiple models and reanalyses, which are primarily dominated by uncertainties in moisture flux and precipitation, respectively.

Description: Significant progress in permafrost carbon science made over the past decades include the identification of vast permafrost carbon stocks, the development of new pan‐Arctic permafrost maps, an increase in terrestrial measurement sites for CO〈jats:sub〉2〈/jats:sub〉 and methane fluxes, and important factors affecting carbon cycling, including vegetation changes, periods of soil freezing and thawing, wildfire, and other disturbance events. Process‐based modeling studies now include key elements of permafrost carbon cycling and advances in statistical modeling and inverse modeling enhance understanding of permafrost region C budgets. By combining existing data syntheses and model outputs, the permafrost region is likely a wetland methane source and small terrestrial ecosystem CO〈jats:sub〉2〈/jats:sub〉 sink with lower net CO〈jats:sub〉2〈/jats:sub〉 uptake toward higher latitudes, excluding wildfire emissions. For 2002–2014, the strongest CO〈jats:sub〉2〈/jats:sub〉 sink was located in western Canada (median: −52 g C m〈jats:sup〉−2〈/jats:sup〉 y〈jats:sup〉−1〈/jats:sup〉) and smallest sinks in Alaska, Canadian tundra, and Siberian tundra (medians: −5 to −9 g C m〈jats:sup〉−2〈/jats:sup〉 y〈jats:sup〉−1〈/jats:sup〉). Eurasian regions had the largest median wetland methane fluxes (16–18 g CH〈jats:sub〉4〈/jats:sub〉 m〈jats:sup〉−2〈/jats:sup〉 y〈jats:sup〉−1〈/jats:sup〉). Quantifying the regional scale carbon balance remains challenging because of high spatial and temporal variability and relatively low density of observations. More accurate permafrost region carbon fluxes require: (a) the development of better maps characterizing wetlands and dynamics of vegetation and disturbances, including abrupt permafrost thaw; (b) the establishment of new year‐round CO〈jats:sub〉2〈/jats:sub〉 and methane flux sites in underrepresented areas; and (c) improved models that better represent important permafrost carbon cycle dynamics, including non‐growing season emissions and disturbance effects.〈/jats:p〉