Aerenson et al. (2026) Precipitation Over the Contiguous United States Is Coming From Farther Away Than in the Past

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Geophysical Research Letters
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-07-15
• Authors: Travis Aerenson, Daniel Thompson McCoy, Patrick W. Keys, D. Caulton
• DOI: 10.1029/2026gl122565

Research Groups

• Department of Atmospheric Science, University of Colorado Boulder
• National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR)

Short Summary

This study investigates decadal trends in atmospheric moisture transport over the contiguous United States using 35 years of reanalysis data, revealing that water vapor is traveling farther before precipitating and less from terrestrial sources.

Objective

• Investigate decadal trends in atmospheric moisture transport and its implications for future water resource governance

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Continental scale (contiguous United States)
• Temporal Scale: Decadal (35 years)

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Atmospheric moisture tracking applied to reanalysis data
• Data sources: 35 years of reanalysis data

Main Results

• Water vapor is traveling farther over longer periods before precipitating in various watershed regions within CONUS.
• Less atmospheric moisture is coming from terrestrial sources.

Contributions

• Provides evidence for a trend predicted by theory and models, with implications for future water resource governance.

Funding

• This research was supported by the National Science Foundation (Grant Number: NSF-AGS 1924977)

Citation

@article{Aerenson2026Precipitation,
  author = {Aerenson, Travis and McCoy, Daniel Thompson and Keys, Patrick  W. and Caulton, D.},
  title = {Precipitation Over the Contiguous United States Is Coming From Farther Away Than in the Past},
  journal = {Geophysical Research Letters},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1029/2026gl122565},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1029/2026gl122565}
}