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Network motifs shape distinct functioning of Earth’s moisture recycling hubs

Author

Listed:
  • Nico Wunderling

    (Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact, Research (PIK), Member of the Leibniz Association
    Stockholm University
    High Meadows Environmental Institute, Princeton University)

  • Frederik Wolf

    (Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact, Research (PIK), Member of the Leibniz Association)

  • Obbe A. Tuinenburg

    (Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University)

  • Arie Staal

    (Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University)

Abstract

Earth’s hydrological cycle critically depends on the atmospheric moisture flows connecting evaporation to precipitation. Here we convert a decade of reanalysis-based moisture simulations into a high-resolution global directed network of spatial moisture provisions. We reveal global and local network structures that offer a new view of the global hydrological cycle. We identify four terrestrial moisture recycling hubs: the Amazon Basin, the Congo Rainforest, South Asia and the Indonesian Archipelago. Network motifs reveal contrasting functioning of these regions, where the Amazon strongly relies on directed connections (feed-forward loops) for moisture redistribution and the other hubs on reciprocal moisture connections (zero loops and neighboring loops). We conclude that Earth’s moisture recycling hubs are characterized by specific topologies shaping heterogeneous effects of land-use changes and climatic warming on precipitation patterns.

Suggested Citation

  • Nico Wunderling & Frederik Wolf & Obbe A. Tuinenburg & Arie Staal, 2022. "Network motifs shape distinct functioning of Earth’s moisture recycling hubs," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-8, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:13:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-022-34229-1
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34229-1
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Arie Staal & Obbe A. Tuinenburg & Joyce H. C. Bosmans & Milena Holmgren & Egbert H. van Nes & Marten Scheffer & Delphine Clara Zemp & Stefan C. Dekker, 2018. "Forest-rainfall cascades buffer against drought across the Amazon," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 8(6), pages 539-543, June.
    2. Tsonis, A.A. & Roebber, P.J., 2004. "The architecture of the climate network," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 333(C), pages 497-504.
    3. Niklas Boers & Bedartha Goswami & Aljoscha Rheinwalt & Bodo Bookhagen & Brian Hoskins & Jürgen Kurths, 2019. "Complex networks reveal global pattern of extreme-rainfall teleconnections," Nature, Nature, vol. 566(7744), pages 373-377, February.
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