Articles | Volume 15, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-169-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-169-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
29 Jan 2019
Research article |
| 29 Jan 2019
| 29 Jan 2019
Precipitation δ18O on the Himalaya–Tibet orogeny and its relationship to surface elevation
Hong Shen
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 48109, USA
Christopher J. Poulsen
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 48109, USA
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- What Controls the Skill of General Circulation Models to Simulate the Seasonal Cycle in Water Isotopic Composition in the Tibetan Plateau Region? X. Shi et al. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JD037048
- Satellite-Based Distribution of Inverse Altitude Effect of Global Water Vapor Isotopes: Potential Influences on Isotopes in Climate Proxies G. Yang et al. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15184533
25 citations as recorded by crossref.
- The effects of diachronous surface uplift of the European Alps on regional climate and the oxygen isotopic composition of precipitation D. Boateng et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-14-1183-2023
- Cenozoic paleoelevation history of the Lunpola Basin in Central Tibet: New evidence from volcanic glass hydrogen isotopes and a critical review L. Li et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2022.104068
- Organic Molecular Paleohypsometry: A New Approach to Quantifying Paleotopography and Paleorelief M. Hren & W. Ouimet https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.665324
- A modeling framework (WRF-Landlab) for simulating orogen-scale climate-erosion coupling H. Shen et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cageo.2020.104625
- Estimation of evaporation losses based on stable isotopes of stream water in a mountain watershed Z. Sun et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11631-021-00452-8
- Responses of sedimentary δ2Halk values to environmental changes as revealed by different plant responses to altitude and altitude-related temperatures Y. Bai et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.138087
- Headwater Flow Geochemistry of Mount Everest (Upper Dudh Koshi River, Nepal) P. Chevallier et al. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.00351
- Low elevation and humid climate in the Eocene Gerze basin, central Tibet: Insights from multi-proxy isotopic analyses X. Liu et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105547
- Limits of oxygen isotope palaeoaltimetry in Tibet A. Farnsworth et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2023.118040
- Seasonality of precipitation isotopes associated with water vapor budget: A hierarchical clustering-based zoning in China H. Jie et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosres.2025.107970
- Spatiotemporal patterns of coexisting plant water uptake in ecologically vulnerable areas along the southeast margin of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau G. Chen et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.134645
- Reconstructing early Eocene (∼55 Ma) paleogeographic boundary conditions for use in paleoclimate modelling Z. He et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-019-9366-2
- Millennial pulses of ore formation and an extra-high Tibetan Plateau Y. Li et al. https://doi.org/10.1130/G49911.1
- Upward and outward growth of north-central Tibet: Mechanisms that build high-elevation, low-relief plateaus L. Li & C. Garzione https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adh3058
- Timing and mechanisms of Tibetan Plateau uplift L. Ding et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-022-00318-4
- Indication capability for karst development elevation by knickpoints in Daba Mountain (Southwest China) J. Zhang et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13146-024-00922-z
- Late Oligocene paleosols in the Haltang Basin of northeastern Tibetan Plateau and their implications for the early extent of the Asian monsoon Z. Zhang et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2025.112952
- Aridification signatures from fossil pollen indicate a drying climate in east-central Tibet during the late Eocene Q. Yuan et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-2255-2020
- Lower-altitude of the Himalayas before the mid-Pliocene as constrained by hydrological and thermal conditions C. Chen et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116422
- Comment on “Revised paleoaltimetry data show low Tibetan Plateau elevation during the Eocene” P. Valdes et al. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aax8474
- How Can Climate Models Be Used in Paleoelevation Reconstructions? S. Botsyun & T. Ehlers https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.624542
- The competing effects of terrestrial evapotranspiration and raindrop re-evaporation on the deuterium excess of continental precipitation Z. Xia & M. Winnick https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2021.117120
- Climate variability over the past 100 years in Myanmar derived from tree-ring stable oxygen isotope variations in Teak N. Pumijumnong et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-019-03036-y
- What Controls the Skill of General Circulation Models to Simulate the Seasonal Cycle in Water Isotopic Composition in the Tibetan Plateau Region? X. Shi et al. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JD037048
- Satellite-Based Distribution of Inverse Altitude Effect of Global Water Vapor Isotopes: Potential Influences on Isotopes in Climate Proxies G. Yang et al. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15184533
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 06 Jul 2026
Short summary
The stable isotopic composition of water (δ18O) preserved in terrestrial sediments has been used to reconstruct surface elevations. The method is based on the observed decrease in δ18O with elevation, attributed to rainout during air mass ascent. We use a climate model to test the δ18O–elevation relationship during Tibetan–Himalayan uplift. We show that δ18O is a poor indicator of past elevation over most of the region, as processes other than rainout are important when elevations are lower.
The stable isotopic composition of water (δ18O) preserved in terrestrial sediments has been used...
