Changes in morphometric parameters of lakes in different ecological zones of Mongolia: implications of climate change

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the way recent climate change impacts the morphometric changes in lakes in various ecological zones of Mongolia. We studied 4 lakes located between 48 and 50°N as representative of other environmental zones of Mongolia and determined the correlation between climate variables and changes in the area, depth, and volume of these lakes. To analyze changes in the morphometric parameter variation in the lakes, we used the normalized difference water index, trend analysis, aridity index, and statistical analysis. According to our calculations, the area, depth, and volume of the lakes have decreased during the last 30 yr. Trend analysis showed that the average air temperature has significantly increased since 2000. Furthermore, the morphometric parameters (area, volume) of lakes decreased for all studied lakes, with R2 = 0.023 to 0.457. This study shows that ongoing climate warming in Mongolia has increased intensively since 2000, which is directly affecting the morphometric parameters of the lakes by reducing their area and volume. The calculation of the aridity index proved that the degree of dryness was intense in regions with high climate resources. The results presented in this article can help us understand the spatio-temporal patterns and causes of the morphometric changes in the lakes in relation to climate change in Mongolia.