A new method of snowmelt sampling for water stable isotopes. Issue 22 (15th July 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Penna, D.; Ahmad, M.; Birks, S. J.; Bouchaou, L.; Brenčič, M.; Butt, S.; Holko, L.; Jeelani, G.; Martínez, D. E.; Melikadze, G.; Shanley, J. B.; Sokratov, S. A.; Stadnyk, T.; Sugimoto, A.; Vreča, P.
• Is Part Of: Hydrological processes. Volume 28:Issue 22(2014:Mar.)
• Page Start: 5637
• Page End: 5644
• Publication Date: 2014-07-15
• Subjects: Hydrology -- Periodicals; Hydrology -- Research -- Periodicals; Hydrologic models -- Periodicals; Hydrological forecasting -- Periodicals; 631.432
• DOI: 10.1002/hyp.10273
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0885-6087

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main"> <title>Abstract</title> <p>We modified a passive capillary sampler (PCS) to collect snowmelt water for isotopic analysis. Past applications of PCSs have been to sample soil water, but the novel aspect of this study was the placement of the PCSs at the ground‐snowpack interface to collect snowmelt. We deployed arrays of PCSs at 11 sites in ten partner countries on five continents representing a range of climate and snow cover worldwide. The PCS reliably collected snowmelt at all sites and caused negligible evaporative fractionation effects in the samples. PCS is low‐cost, easy to install, and collects a representative integrated snowmelt sample throughout the melt season or at the melt event scale. Unlike snow cores, the PCS collects the water that would actually infiltrate the soil; thus, its isotopic composition is appropriate to use for tracing snowmelt water through the hydrologic cycle. The purpose of this Briefing is to show the potential advantages of PCSs and recommend guidelines for constructing and installing them based on our preliminary results from two snowmelt seasons. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.</p> </abstract>