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Moisture transformation in Arctic warm airmass intrusions: process attribution with stable water isotopes
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  • Camilla Francesca Brunello,
  • Florian Gebhardt,
  • Annette Rinke,
  • Marina Duetsch,
  • Silvia Bucci,
  • Hanno Meyer,
  • Moein Mellat,
  • Martin Werner
Camilla Francesca Brunello
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Florian Gebhardt
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
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Annette Rinke
Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
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Marina Duetsch
University of Vienna
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Silvia Bucci
University of Vienna
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Hanno Meyer
Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
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Moein Mellat
Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research
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Martin Werner
Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research
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Abstract

Warm airmass intrusions (WAIs) from the mid-latitudes significantly impact the Arctic water budget. Here, we combine water vapor isotopes measurements from the MOSAiC expedition, with a Lagrangian-based process attribution diagnostic to track moisture origin and transformation in the central Arctic Ocean during two WAIs, under contrasting sea-ice concentrations (SIC). During winter with high SIC, two moisture states emerge: the local in-Arctic moisture, for which the isotope signal is influenced by kinetic processes in ice-cloud formation, is rapidly overprinted by low-latitude moisture advected poleward during WAI. In summer under low SIC, moisture is supplied through evaporation from land and ocean, with moisture distillation via liquid-cloud formation. The isotopic composition reflects the influence of higher humidity at the evaporation sites. Given the projected increase of frequency and duration of WAIs, our study contributes to assess process changes in the Arctic water cycle.