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Endorheic Lake Dynamics: Remote Sensing
Published in Yeqiao Wang, Fresh Water and Watersheds, 2020
Atmospheric precipitation over much of the Earth’s land eventually returns to the ocean through rivers, whereas precipitation falling into some interesting areas does not flow back into the ocean. These areas are endorheic basins. An endorheic basin, also known as a closed basin, is a drainage basin that retains water within it, prohibiting water outflow to external rivers or the ocean.[1] The retained water accumulates in the basin bottom, forming endorheic lakes. Endorheic lakes are water bodies whose water does not flow into the ocean. Endorheic lakes may include both through-flow lakes and terminal lakes in an endorheic basin. The water in through-flow lakes eventually flows to its final destination: terminal lakes. As endorheic lakes do not have outlets for the water to flow out of their basins, the only pathways for water to leave the drainage system are evaporation and seepage, either evaporating into the air or seeping into the ground. The water falling as precipitation in the basin dissolves and carries minerals during the course of transporting to its destinations—endorheic lakes, and the water in the lakes evaporates, leaving a high concentration of minerals and other inflow erosion products in the lakes. This process over time can render endorheic lakes rather saline and sensitive to environmental pollutions. Endorheic lakes include some of the world’s large lakes, such as the largest, the Caspian Sea and the Aral Sea in Asia, the Lake Chad in Africa, the Great Salt Lake in North America, and Lake Eyre in Australia. They largely are saline or salt lakes located in dry climates.
Investigation over the capability of MIKE 3 flow model FM to simulate the hydrodynamics and salinity distribution of hypersaline lakes: Lake Urmia (Iran) as case study
Published in Coastal Engineering Journal, 2019
Mina Soudi, Hojjat Ahmadi, Mehdi Yasi, Stefano Sibilla, Andrea Fenocchi, Sajad Ahmad Hamidi
The Lake Urmia is located in northwestern Iran, between the Provinces of West and East Azerbaijan. It is an endorheic closed basin, so that water leaves only by evaporation. Inlets consist of rivers, direct precipitation, runoff and groundwater (Ghaheri, Baghal-Vayjooee, and Naziri 1999). A man-made causeway splits the lake into North and South Basins, connected by a ~ 1.3 km opening. Table 1 lists the morphometric properties of Lake Urmia, while Figure 1 shows the location of Lake Urmia and of the causeway, as well as of the outlets of the major tributaries. Water level fluctuations in Lake Urmia have been recorded for the past 69 years at the Golmankhaneh Station. Lake Urmia has 22 tributaries, the most important being Zarineh Roud, Simineh Roud, Ajichai, Godarchai, Nazlouchai, and Mahabadchai. All the main inflows to Lake Urmia discharge into its South basin.
Comparison of streamflow patterns in drainages of two major terminal basins: the United States Great Basin and Mongolia’s Central Asian Internal Drainage
Published in Inland Waters, 2021
Bolortsetseg Erdenee, Alain Maasri, Jon K. Gelhaus, Barbara L. Hayford, James H. Thorp, Nicholas E. Kotlinski
Terminal, or endorheic, basins feature rivers having no outlet to the ocean. Instead, these rivers drain into inland waterbodies including permanent or ephemeral lakes, swamps, salt flats, or alluvial plains (Dorsaz et al. 2013, Sawe 2017). Terminal basins are often found in semiarid and arid ecoregions where evapotranspiration is generally higher than precipitation. The natural water cycle of terminal basins exhibits significant water losses through underground percolation and evapotranspiration (Yapiyev et al. 2017), making these closed systems more vulnerable to climate change (Wang et al. 2018) with significant impacts on streamflow (Cayan et al. 2001, Barnett et al. 2005, Batima 2006, Tsutomu and Gombo 2007). For example, climate change-induced early snowmelt has advanced the timing of streamflow in rivers of the western United States and is expected to prolong a baseflow condition, which could result in hydrological disconnection and further impacts on metacommunity structure and biogeochemical processes (Larned et al. 2010). Rivers in terminal basins are sensitive to variation in precipitation, evaporation, and runoff (Worku et al. 2014) and are characterized by extreme discharge variations (McMahon et al. 2008). Frequent and intense disturbance of the rivers serves as a selective pressure for resistance and resilience of biotic communities, allowing them to survive fluctuations between wet and dry phases (Steward et al. 2012). The ecological importance of dryland rivers, particularly intermittent rivers, includes acting as a refuge for specialized biota, becoming corridors for terrestrial biota, being temporary ecotones linking wet and dry phases, and serving as sites for storage, and processing of organic matter and nutrients (Steward et al. 2012, Datry et al. 2014). In addition, these rivers are important resources in dryland systems, providing water for crop agriculture, domesticated herds, and urban centers (MEA 2005). Thus, understanding the streamflow of terminal basin rivers can inform natural resources and urban planning for a changing climate.