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Recent changes to Arctic river discharge

Author

Listed:
  • Dongmei Feng

    (University of Massachusetts)

  • Colin J. Gleason

    (University of Massachusetts)

  • Peirong Lin

    (Princeton University)

  • Xiao Yang

    (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

  • Ming Pan

    (Princeton University
    University of California San Diego)

  • Yuta Ishitsuka

    (University of Massachusetts)

Abstract

Arctic rivers drain ~15% of the global land surface and significantly influence local communities and economies, freshwater and marine ecosystems, and global climate. However, trusted and public knowledge of pan-Arctic rivers is inadequate, especially for small rivers and across Eurasia, inhibiting understanding of the Arctic response to climate change. Here, we calculate daily streamflow in 486,493 pan-Arctic river reaches from 1984-2018 by assimilating 9.18 million river discharge estimates made from 155,710 satellite images into hydrologic model simulations. We reveal larger and more heterogenous total water export (3-17% greater) and water export acceleration (factor of 1.2-3.3 larger) than previously reported, with substantial differences across basins, ecoregions, stream orders, human regulation, and permafrost regimes. We also find significant changes in the spring freshet and summer stream intermittency. Ultimately, our results represent an updated, publicly available, and more accurate daily understanding of Arctic rivers uniquely enabled by recent advances in hydrologic modeling and remote sensing.

Suggested Citation

  • Dongmei Feng & Colin J. Gleason & Peirong Lin & Xiao Yang & Ming Pan & Yuta Ishitsuka, 2021. "Recent changes to Arctic river discharge," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-27228-1
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27228-1
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mathis Loïc Messager & Bernhard Lehner & Günther Grill & Irena Nedeva & Oliver Schmitt, 2016. "Estimating the volume and age of water stored in global lakes using a geo-statistical approach," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 7(1), pages 1-11, December.
    2. Aiguo Dai & Dehai Luo & Mirong Song & Jiping Liu, 2019. "Arctic amplification is caused by sea-ice loss under increasing CO2," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, December.
    3. Mathis Loïc Messager & Bernhard Lehner & Charlotte Cockburn & Nicolas Lamouroux & Hervé Pella & Ton Snelder & Klement Tockner & Tim Trautmann & Caitlin Watt & Thibault Datry, 2021. "Global prevalence of non-perennial rivers and streams," Nature, Nature, vol. 594(7863), pages 391-397, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Jinlong Li & Genxu Wang & Chunlin Song & Shouqin Sun & Jiapei Ma & Ying Wang & Linmao Guo & Dongfeng Li, 2024. "Recent intensified erosion and massive sediment deposition in Tibetan Plateau rivers," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    2. J. E. Vonk & N. J. Speetjens & A. E. Poste, 2023. "Small watersheds may play a disproportionate role in arctic land-ocean fluxes," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-3, December.

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