Spatial and temporal variations in precipitation and cloud interception in the Sierra Nevada of central California
Abstract
Spatial and temporal variations in patterns of precipitation and cloud interception were studied for a period of 14 months in the Sierra Nevada of central California. 14 fully automated sampling stations, located at elevations from 800 to 2400 m, were utilized in the study. Both precipitation and cloud interception were observed to increase with elevation. Cloudwater deposition increased at higher elevations due both to a greater frequency of cloud interception and higher wind speeds. Cloudwater deposition, caused primarily by the interception of clouds associated with cold fronts approaching from the north or north-west, is most important at elevations above 1500 m; however, the interception of highly polluted winter "Tule" fogs, lifting above the floor of the San Joaquin Valley, appears to be an important mechanism for cloudwater deposition at lower elevation sites. Observed and estimated hydrological and chemical inputs to the passive cloudwater collectors used in the study were substantial, suggesting that cloud interception may contribute significantly to the same inputs for exposed conifers in the region.
Additional Information
This journal is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY 4.0) License. Manuscript received 25 September 1989; in final form 26 April 1991. We are grateful to the National Park Service for granting access to the monitoring sites in both Yosemite and Sequoia Parks. We also would like to acknowledge the assistance of members of the Research staff at Sequoia National Park and the Resource Management staff at Yosemite National Park who helped us to select the sites. John Lee is gratefully acknowledged for development of the data-loggers used in the study. Finally, we would like to thank J. William Munger, Dieter Gunz, Jochen Kraft, and Julie Kern Collett who frequently provided field assistance during the project. This work was funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB contract #A6-185-32).Attached Files
Published - j.1600-0889.1991.t01-4-00005.x.pdf
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 59481
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20150813-105952229
- A6-185-32
- California Air Resources Board (CARB)
- Created
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2015-08-14Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-10Created from EPrint's last_modified field