Contribution of cross-barrier moisture transport to precipitation in the upper indus river basin

Abstract

The upper Indus River basin is characterized by biseasonal heavy precipitation falling on the foothills of major mountain ranges (Hindu Kush, Karakorm, Himalayas). Numerical studies have confirmed the importance of topography for the triggering of precipitation and investigated the processes responsible for specific events, but a systematic and cross-seasonal analysis has yet to be conducted. Using ERA5 reanalysis data and statistical methods, we show that more than 80% of the precipitation variability is explained by southerly moisture transport at 850 and 700 hPa, along the Himalayan foothills. We conclude that most of the precipitation is generated by the forced uplift of a cross-barrier flow. This process explains both wet seasons, despite different synoptic conditions, but is more important in winter. The precipitation signal is decomposed into the contribution of each altitude and each variable (wind and moisture), which exhibit different seasonality. The winter wet season is dominated by moisture transport at higher altitude, and is triggered by an increase in wind. By contrast, the summer wet season is explained by an increase in moisture at both altitudes, while wind is of secondary importance. Selected CMIP6 climate models are able to represent the observed links between precipitation and southerly moisture transport, despite important seasonal biases that are due to a misrepresentation of the seasonality in the magnitude of the southerly wind component.