A deforestation-induced tipping point for the South American monsoon system

Niklas Boers; Norbert Marwan; Henrique M. J. Barbosa; Jürgen Kurths

doi:10.1038/srep41489

journal article Open Access Jan 25, 2017

A deforestation-induced tipping point for the South American monsoon system

Niklas Boers

Norbert Marwan

Henrique M. J. Barbosa

Jürgen Kurths

Scientific Reports Vol. 7 No. 1 · Springer Science and Business Media LLC

View at Publisher Save 10.1038/srep41489

Abstract

AbstractThe Amazon rainforest has been proposed as a tipping element of the earth system, with the possibility of a dieback of the entire ecosystem due to deforestation only of parts of the rainforest. Possible physical mechanisms behind such a transition are still subject to ongoing debates. Here, we use a specifically designed model to analyse the nonlinear couplings between the Amazon rainforest and the atmospheric moisture transport from the Atlantic to the South American continent. These couplings are associated with a westward cascade of precipitation and evapotranspiration across the Amazon. We investigate impacts of deforestation on the South American monsoonal circulation with particular focus on a previously neglected positive feedback related to condensational latent heating over the rainforest, which strongly enhances atmospheric moisture inflow from the Atlantic. Our results indicate the existence of a tipping point. In our model setup, crossing the tipping point causes precipitation reductions of up to 40% in non-deforested parts of the western Amazon and regions further downstream. The responsible mechanism is the breakdown of the aforementioned feedback, which occurs when deforestation reduces transpiration to a point where the available atmospheric moisture does not suffice anymore to release the latent heat needed to maintain the feedback.

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Details

Published: Jan 25, 2017
Vol/Issue: 7(1)
License: View

Authors

Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Member of the Leibniz Association, 14412 Potsdam, Germany.; University of Potsdam, Institute of Geosciences, 14469 Potsdam, Germany.

H

Henrique M. J. Barbosa

J

Jürgen Kurths

Cite This Article

Niklas Boers, Norbert Marwan, Henrique M. J. Barbosa, et al. (2017). A deforestation-induced tipping point for the South American monsoon system. Scientific Reports, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/srep41489

A deforestation-induced tipping point for the South American monsoon system

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