Learn all about oxygen isotopes and how they are used in climate studies
Published by Dr. Vidhya CHITTOOR VISWANATHAN, Impact Director at AquaSPE in Technology
Measurements of the ratio of Oxygen-18 to Oxygen-16 are often used to interpret changes inpaleoclimate. The isotopic composition of oxygenatomsin the Earth's atmosphere is99.759%16O,0.037%17Oand0.204%18O.[3] Becausewatermolecules containing the lighter isotope are slightly more likely toevaporateand fall asprecipitation,[4]freshwaterand polar ice on earth contains slightly less (0.1981%) of the heavy isotope18Othan air (0.204%) orseawater(0.1995%). This disparity allows analysis of temperature patterns via historicice cores. (Source : wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotopes_of_oxygen)
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Category: Technology
- Ecohydrology
- Hydrometeorology
- Surface-Groundwater Interaction
- Surface Energy Balance Algorithm For Land
- Surface Flow Analysis
- Isotope Hydrology
- Water Resources Management