Articles | Volume 20, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-573-2024
© Author(s) 2024. 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-20-573-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| Highlight paper
| 
18 Mar 2024
Research article | Highlight paper |
| 18 Mar 2024
| 18 Mar 2024
A past and present perspective on the European summer vapor pressure deficit
Viorica Nagavciuc
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Paleoclimate Dynamics Group, Climate Section, Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany
Faculty of Forestry, Ştefan cel Mare University, Suceava, 720229, Romania
Simon L. L. Michel
Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Planetary Physics (AOPP), Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
Daniel F. Balting
Paleoclimate Dynamics Group, Climate Section, Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany
Gerhard Helle
Section 4.3 Climate Dynamics and Landscape Evolution, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, 14473 Potsdam, Germany
Mandy Freund
Climate and Energy College, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia
Gerhard H. Schleser
Institute of Bio- and Geosciences IBG-3, Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52428 Jülich, Germany
David N. Steger
Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Basel, Basel, 4056, Switzerland
Gerrit Lohmann
Paleoclimate Dynamics Group, Climate Section, Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany
Physics Department, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
Monica Ionita
Paleoclimate Dynamics Group, Climate Section, Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, 27570 Bremerhaven, Germany
Faculty of Forestry, Ştefan cel Mare University, Suceava, 720229, Romania
Emil Racovita Institute of Speleology, Romanian Academy, Cluj-Napoca, 400006, Romania
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Cited
11 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Atelomixis: similarities and contrasts between a tropical and a temperate case study E. T-Krasznai et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-026-06321-w
- Hydroclimate variability in the Tropical Andes recorded by δ18O isotopes from a new network of Polylepis tarapacana tree-rings C. Álvarez et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2024.104503
- A long-term drought reconstruction based on oxygen isotope tree ring data for central and eastern parts of Europe (Romania) V. Nagavciuc et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-55-2025
- Patterns and drivers of Holocene moisture variability in mid-latitude eastern North America J. Salonen et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58685-7
- Beyond cloud cover: Low- and high-altitude clouds have distinct impacts on tree sap flow and transpiration S. Talvinen et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2026.111182
- Reconstruction of last millennium sea surface temperature on 1° grid using a random forest algorithm S. Michel et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2025.105279
- A strengthening earlywood-to-latewood carry-over dominates latewood formation under additive summer VPD–precipitation co-limitation in Mediterranean maritime pine A. Fierravanti et al. https://doi.org/10.3389/ffgc.2026.1882622
- Temperature extremes across elevation gradients: evidence from two German mountain observatories M. Ionita et al. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2025.1701260
- A Modeling Approach to Stomatal Conductance under Different Vapor Pressure Conditions N. Martínez-Jeraldo et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11538-026-01676-6
- Tree-ring width and δ18O-derived hydroclimatic reconstructions allow a distinction between soil and atmospheric drought in the Mountain Forests of Northeastern Iran Z. Foroozan et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-52364-3
- Multiscale modelling of European beech decline: the role of interannual climate variability and local environmental factors J. Lemaire et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-025-01767-4
11 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Atelomixis: similarities and contrasts between a tropical and a temperate case study E. T-Krasznai et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-026-06321-w
- Hydroclimate variability in the Tropical Andes recorded by δ18O isotopes from a new network of Polylepis tarapacana tree-rings C. Álvarez et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2024.104503
- A long-term drought reconstruction based on oxygen isotope tree ring data for central and eastern parts of Europe (Romania) V. Nagavciuc et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-55-2025
- Patterns and drivers of Holocene moisture variability in mid-latitude eastern North America J. Salonen et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58685-7
- Beyond cloud cover: Low- and high-altitude clouds have distinct impacts on tree sap flow and transpiration S. Talvinen et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2026.111182
- Reconstruction of last millennium sea surface temperature on 1° grid using a random forest algorithm S. Michel et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2025.105279
- A strengthening earlywood-to-latewood carry-over dominates latewood formation under additive summer VPD–precipitation co-limitation in Mediterranean maritime pine A. Fierravanti et al. https://doi.org/10.3389/ffgc.2026.1882622
- Temperature extremes across elevation gradients: evidence from two German mountain observatories M. Ionita et al. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2025.1701260
- A Modeling Approach to Stomatal Conductance under Different Vapor Pressure Conditions N. Martínez-Jeraldo et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11538-026-01676-6
- Tree-ring width and δ18O-derived hydroclimatic reconstructions allow a distinction between soil and atmospheric drought in the Mountain Forests of Northeastern Iran Z. Foroozan et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-52364-3
- Multiscale modelling of European beech decline: the role of interannual climate variability and local environmental factors J. Lemaire et al. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10342-025-01767-4
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 22 Sep 2026
Editorial statement
This paper presents the first gridded reconstruction of the summer (June, July, and August) vapor pressure deficit (VPD) for the past four centuries at the European level. The reconstruction shows that from the mid-1700s, a trend towards higher summer VPD occurred in Central Europe and the Mediterranean region, a trend that has continued through the observational period. The reconstruction is based on 26 European tree-ring oxygen isotope records .
This paper presents the first gridded reconstruction of the summer (June, July, and August)...
Short summary
The main aim of this paper is to present the summer vapor pressure deficit (VPD) reconstruction dataset for the last 400 years over Europe based on δ18O records by using a random forest approach. We provide both a spatial and a temporal long-term perspective on the past summer VPD and new insights into the relationship between summer VPD and large-scale atmospheric circulation. This is the first gridded reconstruction of the European summer VPD over the past 400 years.
The main aim of this paper is to present the summer vapor pressure deficit (VPD) reconstruction...
