Abstract
Abstract Atmospheric rivers (ARs) as massive and concentrated water vapour paths can have a critical impact on extreme events in arid and semi-arid areas. This study investigated the effect of ARs on heavy precipitation events during the cold, rainy months (November–April) in Iran for 11 years. The results showed that 107 ARs had an influence on heavy precipitation, which providing partial moisture for Iran's precipitation. On average, 11 heavy precipitation days were linked to the presence of ARs in the six cold months of each year. During the study period, ARs accounted for almost 20–50% of the country's total heavy precipitation monthly. Although most ARs entered the country from the south through coastal areas, the western part of Iran, especially elevated stations along the western slope of the Zagros Mountains, received the highest heavy precipitation. Accordingly, about 66% of ARs directly originated from the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Moreover, December experienced the highest frequency of ARs linked to heavy precipitation during the statistical period.
Highlights
Iran is an arid and semi-arid country with limited water resources
This study aimed at fulfilling four basic goals: [1] identification and introduction of Atmospheric rivers (ARs) associated with heavy precipitation; [2] investigation into their contribution to heavy precipitation within six cold months during 2007– 2018; [3] study of their paths to Iran; and [4] reflection on the spatial distribution and affected zone of ARs associated with heavy precipitation
This area has been highly prone to flooding due to improper use of soil and vegetation over many years, Figure 6 | (a)–(f) The number of heavy precipitation events associated with ARs in each month; (g) the total spatial frequency of heavy precipitation associated with ARs from November to
Summary
Iran is an arid and semi-arid country with limited water resources. Despite this limitation, water demand is growing every day due to the large waste of water for drinking and agricultural uses. The climate features and precipitation pattern in Iran are low annual rainfall with intense short-term fluctuations. Heavy precipitation events in most of the country’s basins cause out of reach precipitation in the form of flooding and cause huge damage which cannot be compensated for in the short term (Mostafaii et al ). The heavy precipitation in late March 2019 affecting 25 provinces in the country for several consecutive days can be mentioned. Most of the precipitation was out of reach and a significant amount of runoff was discharged in the downstream rivers to prevent possible damage to dams.
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