Atmospheric and Hydrospheric Sciences (A)
Session Sub-categoryHydrology & Water Environment (HW)
Session IDA-HW39
Title The Evolving Atmospheric Water Cycle: Feedbacks, Land-Atmosphere Links, and Hydrological Change
Short Title Atmospheric Water Cycle Change
Main Convener Name Yueyang Chen
Affiliation University of Auckland
Co-Convener 1 Name Hao Liang
Affiliation University of Auckland
Co-Convener 2 Name Chi Zhang
Affiliation The Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Session Language E
Scope Hydrological research has traditionally emphasized how precipitation is partitioned at the surface into evapotranspiration and runoff. Yet, more than half of global terrestrial evaporation returns as precipitation over land, underscoring the importance of atmospheric feedbacks that link land processes with regional and global water cycles. Human-driven changes, such as deforestation, irrigation, urbanization, and greenhouse gas emissions, alter both the surface partitioning of water and the atmospheric supply of moisture through complex feedbacks and teleconnections. These interactions fundamentally reshape the distribution and intensity of precipitation and the resilience of hydrological systems under climate change. This session invites studies that explore how the evolving atmospheric branch of the hydrological cycle responds to environmental and societal change. Topics include, but are not limited to: (i) quantifying land-atmosphere feedbacks associated with land-use and water-use change; (ii) applying hydroclimatic and diagnostic frameworks (e.g., Budyko, energy-water balance, moisture recycling ratios) to attribute climate and human influences on precipitation and evaporation; (iii) examining the implications of these feedbacks for hydrological extremes, water management, and climate adaptation. We welcome contributions integrating observations, isotopic and reanalysis datasets, back-trajectory and Lagrangian analyses, and coupled Earth-system or regional climate modeling. Studies that provide intercomparisons across scales or offer frameworks for synthesizing atmospheric and terrestrial hydrology are particularly encouraged.
Session Format Orals and Posters session