Moisture Transformation in Warm Air Intrusions Into the Arctic: Process Attribution With Stable Water Isotopes

Warm Airmass Intrusions (WAIs) from the mid-latitudes significantly impact the Arctic water budget. Here, we combine water vapor isotope measurements from the MOSAiC expedition, with a Lagrangian-based process attribution diagnostic to track moisture transformation in the central Arctic Ocean during two WAIs, under contrasting sea-ice concentrations (SIC). During winter with high SIC, two moisture supplies are identified. The first is Arctic moisture, locally-sourced over the sea ice, with isotopic composition influenced by kinetic fractionation during ice-cloud formation and vapor deposition. This moisture is rapidly overprinted by low-latitude moisture advected poleward during WAI. In summer under low SIC, moisture is supplied through evaporation from land and ocean, with moisture removal via liquid-cloud and dew formation. The isotopic composition reflects the influence of higher relative humidity at the evaporation sites. Given the projected increase of frequency and duration of WAIs, our study contributes to assessing process changes in the Arctic water cycle.