Wu et al. (2026) Wind stilling shapes grassland water use efficiency by enhancing soil moisture retention

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Identification

• Journal: Science Advances
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-05-13
• Authors: H B Wu, Congsheng Fu, Philippe Ciais, Z. A. Mekonnen, Lingling Zhang, Qing Zhu, Jiafu Mao, Jianyao Chen, Dagang Wang, Guishan Yang
• DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aee4995

Research Groups

Not specified in the provided text.

Short Summary

This study demonstrates that declining wind speeds enhance the ecosystem water use efficiency ($\text{WUE}_{\text{eco}}$) of global grasslands by reducing evaporative water loss and increasing carbon uptake.

Objective

• To investigate the extent and underlying mechanisms of the influence of wind speed on the ecosystem water use efficiency ($\text{WUE}_{\text{eco}}$) of grasslands.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Global (grasslands covering >40% of Earth's vegetated surface).
• Temporal Scale: From the 1960s to the present, including future climate projections.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Earth system models (ESMs).
• Data sources: Site observations, satellite data, and wind manipulation experiments.

Main Results

• Negative Sensitivity: A consistent negative sensitivity of grassland $\text{WUE}_{\text{eco}}$ to wind speed was identified.
• Mechanistic Pathway: Declining wind speeds $\rightarrow$ reduced evaporative water loss $\rightarrow$ improved soil moisture $\rightarrow$ promoted stomatal opening $\rightarrow$ enhanced carbon uptake.
• Quantitative Impact: Wind speed changes account for 7.7% to 25.7% of $\text{WUE}_{\text{eco}}$ increases under historical and future climates.
• Driver Hierarchy: Wind is the second most important climatic driver of $\text{WUE}{\text{eco}}$, following atmospheric $\text{CO}2$.
• Model Discrepancy: Earth system models underestimate observed wind speed declines, implying that future $\text{WUE}_{\text{eco}}$ and drought resilience may be higher than current projections.

Contributions

The research establishes wind speed as a critical regulator of grassland $\text{WUE}_{\text{eco}}$ and reveals a systematic underestimation of wind speed trends in current Earth system models, which has significant implications for predicting future grassland drought resilience.

Funding

Not specified in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Wu2026Wind,
  author = {Wu, H B and Fu, Congsheng and Ciais, Philippe and Mekonnen, Z. A. and Zhang, Lingling and Zhu, Qing and Mao, Jiafu and Chen, Jianyao and Wang, Dagang and Yang, Guishan},
  title = {Wind stilling shapes grassland water use efficiency by enhancing soil moisture retention},
  journal = {Science Advances},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1126/sciadv.aee4995},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aee4995}
}