Synergistic effects of climate forcings from three oceans on the reserve of “Atmospheric water tower” over the Tibetan Plateau
Ren, Pengjie, Yu, Wusheng, Lewis, Stephen, Ma, Yaoming, Dang, Yuanyuan, Zhong, Lei, Zhang, Zhuanxia, Liu, Yong, Luo, Lun, Jing, Zhaowei, Zhang, Jingyi, Guo, Rong, Wang, Qiaoyi, and Lei, Ziran (2026) Synergistic effects of climate forcings from three oceans on the reserve of “Atmospheric water tower” over the Tibetan Plateau. Journal of Hydrology, 666. 134785.
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Abstract
The water vapor reserve over the Tibetan Plateau, known as the “atmospheric water tower,” significantly influences the spatial patterns and trends of surface water resources in the region and surroundings. However, the reserve of the “atmospheric water tower” has not been precisely quantified, and how climate forcings from three oceans (i.e., the North Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans) influence variations in the reserve remain unclear. Here, we investigate interannual variations in the reserve over the Tibetan Plateau during 1951–2022 using ERA5 data. The results show that the climatological mean reserve of the “atmospheric water tower” is (25.76 ± 3.83) × 106 kg s−1 and the reserve gradually decreased from 1951 to 1973, but gradually increased after 1973. A major shift of the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) around 1973 coincides with this trend of the reserve. We further demonstrate that climatic forcings including AMO, Indian Ocean Basin-Wide (IOBW), and El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) jointly drive the increasing trend in the reserve after 1973; however, the effect of the AMO on the reserve became relatively weaker after 1994 as the influence of ENSO became stronger. Clearly, the dominant climatic forcing for the increasing trend of the reserve has gradually changed from the North Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean over time. Our findings reveal a previously unrecognized transition in the dominant climate forcings for the reserve, moving beyond a static view to a dynamic one. We provide a new framework for predictions of regional climate and water resource changes under global warming.
| Item ID: | 90762 |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Article (Research - C1) |
| ISSN: | 0022-1694 |
| Keywords: | Atmospheric water tower, Reserve, Tibetan Plateau, Water vapor flux |
| Copyright Information: | © 2025 Elsevier B.V. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies. |
| Date Deposited: | 07 May 2026 01:10 |
| FoR Codes: | 37 EARTH SCIENCES > 3707 Hydrology > 370704 Surface water hydrology @ 100% |
| SEO Codes: | 18 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT > 1803 Fresh, ground and surface water systems and management > 180399 Fresh, ground and surface water systems and management not elsewhere classified @ 100% |
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