Dryland self-expansion enabled by land–atmosphere feedbacks

Koppa, Akash, Keune, Jessica, Schumacher, Dominik L., Michaelides, Katerina, Singer, Michael ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6899-2224, Seneviratne, Sonia I. and Miralles, Diego G. 2024. Dryland self-expansion enabled by land–atmosphere feedbacks. Science 385 (6712) , pp. 967-972. 10.1126/science.adn6833

PDF - Accepted Post-Print Version Download (6MB)

Abstract

Dryland expansion causes widespread water scarcity and biodiversity loss. Although the drying influence of global warming is well established, the role of existing drylands in their own expansion is relatively unknown. In this work, by tracking the air flowing over drylands, we show that the warming and drying of that air contributes to dryland expansion in the downwind direction. As they dry, drylands contribute less moisture and more heat to downwind humid regions, reducing precipitation and increasing atmospheric water demand, which ultimately causes their aridification. In ~40% of the land area that recently transitioned from a humid region into a dryland, self-expansion accounted for >50% of the observed aridification. Our results corroborate the urgent need for climate change mitigation measures in drylands to decelerate their own expansion.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Earth and Environmental Sciences
Publisher:	American Association for the Advancement of Science
ISSN:	0036-8075
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	26 July 2024
Date of Acceptance:	18 July 2024
Last Modified:	30 Aug 2024 11:01
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/170951

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item