Li et al. (2026) Spatiotemporal Variability and Dominant Driving Factors of Soil Moisture in the Yellow River Basin from 1982 to 2024

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

Identification

• Journal: Agronomy
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-04-12
• Authors: Liang Li, Honghui Sang, Qianya Yang, Xinyu Zhao, Qingbao Pei, Xiaoyun Wang
• DOI: 10.3390/agronomy16080791

Research Groups

Not available from the provided text.

Short Summary

This study analyzed 43 years of data to assess soil moisture dynamics in the Yellow River Basin, revealing a statistically significant basin-wide decline, spatial variability, and the identification of key climatic drivers, highlighting the risk of ecosystems approaching tipping points.

Objective

• To analyze soil moisture dynamics in the Yellow River Basin over 43 years (1982–2024), identify its dominant drivers, and characterize its spatial and temporal variability.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Yellow River Basin (YRB)
• Temporal Scale: 43 years (1982–2024), analyzed across weekly, monthly, and annual scales

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Generalized additive modeling (GAM)
• Data sources: Historical soil moisture data (specific source not detailed in the provided text)

Main Results

• A statistically significant basin-wide soil moisture (SM) decline was observed across weekly, monthly, and annual scales.
• Grid-scale SM slopes ranged from −2.26 × 10⁻⁴ to 8.32 × 10⁻⁵ m³ m⁻³ month⁻¹.
• Non-farm areas retained higher SM than cultivated lands, with a distinct upstream-to-downstream variability pattern.
• Alpine headwaters showed moistening, while mid- and lower-catchments experienced pervasive drying.
• Transitional landscapes are approaching tipping points, risking shifts into persistently wetter or drier stable states.
• Generalized additive modeling identified surface net solar radiation (29.4%), soil temperature (25.3%), and vapor pressure deficit (23.0%) as dominant drivers across multiple temporal scales.
• Actual evapotranspiration emerged as a significant driver on the weekly scale, particularly within the center of the basin.

Contributions

• Enhances process-based understanding of soil moisture variability in the Yellow River Basin.
• Provides a scientific foundation for adaptive water-resource management and targeted climate-adaptation interventions in the YRB.
• Identifies critical tipping points in transitional landscapes, highlighting future risks for ecosystem stability.

Funding

Not available from the provided text.

Citation

@article{Li2026Spatiotemporal,
  author = {Li, Liang and Sang, Honghui and Yang, Qianya and Zhao, Xinyu and Pei, Qingbao and Wang, Xiaoyun},
  title = {Spatiotemporal Variability and Dominant Driving Factors of Soil Moisture in the Yellow River Basin from 1982 to 2024},
  journal = {Agronomy},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.3390/agronomy16080791},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy16080791}
}