Deng et al. (2026) Hydrological implications of vegetation-associated precipitation recycling during peak growing season over the Loess Plateau

Identification

• Journal: Hydrology and earth system sciences
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-27
• Authors: Jiaxiang Deng, Quan Quan, Shuangcheng Tang, Hanbo Yang, Song Xiaoyu
• DOI: 10.5194/hess-30-5455-2026

Research Groups

• State Key Laboratory of Water Engineering Ecology and Environment in Arid Area, Xi’an University of Technology
• College of Hydraulic Science and Engineering, Yangzhou University
• Department of Hydraulic Engineering, School of Civil Engineering, Tsinghua University

Short Summary

This study examines the hydrological implications of vegetation-associated precipitation recycling during the peak growing season over the Loess Plateau. The results show that land-sourced moisture dominates the precipitation supply to the region, and internally recycled precipitation contributes 14.4% of total precipitation.

Objective

• To quantify the contribution of local evapotranspiration to regional precipitation and evaluate whether land-surface changes can meaningfully influence regional water resources.
• To investigate the hydrological effects of vegetation-associated moisture recycling during the peak growing season on the Loess Plateau.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: The study focuses on the Loess Plateau in northern China, with a spatial resolution of 0.25°.
• Temporal Scale: The analysis period covers July and August from 2000 to 2022.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: WAM-2layers atmospheric moisture-tracking model and Random Forest-enhanced Budyko framework.
• Data sources: ERA5 reanalysis dataset, GLEAM evapotranspiration dataset, HiQ-LAI leaf area index dataset, and MODIS LAI Collection 6.1.

Main Results

• Land-sourced moisture dominates the precipitation supply to the Loess Plateau, accounting for 86.5% of total growing-season precipitation.
• Internally recycled precipitation contributes 14.4% of total precipitation over the region, with a trend of -0.073 mm yr^-1.
• Vegetation-associated recycled precipitation has a limited effect on regional mean precipitation, evapotranspiration, and surface water availability.

Contributions

• This study provides new insights into the hydrological implications of vegetation-associated precipitation recycling during the peak growing season over the Loess Plateau.
• The results highlight the importance of considering land-sourced moisture in understanding regional precipitation patterns.

Funding

• National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant numbers 51879203 and 52109213)
• Chinese Academy of Sciences President's International Fellowship Initiative (grant number 2021VBA0014)

Citation

@article{Deng2026Hydrological,
  author = {Deng, Jiaxiang and Quan, Quan and Tang, Shuangcheng and Yang, Hanbo and Xiaoyu, Song},
  title = {Hydrological implications of vegetation-associated precipitation recycling during peak growing season over the Loess Plateau},
  journal = {Hydrology and earth system sciences},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.5194/hess-30-5455-2026},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-5455-2026}
}