Measurements of water vapor D/H ratios from Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and implications for subtropical humidity dynamics

Abstract

Water vapor D/H ratios were measured from samples collected on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, in July 2006, and provide new constraints on the processes that control subtropical humidity. D/H ratios ranged from −88‰ at sea level to −321‰ on the summit of Mauna Kea, with sharply decreased D/H ratios above the trade inversion. A simple Rayleigh distillation model underpredicts the observed clear‐sky D/H ratios by as much as 160‰ at the summit. A model that accounts for large‐scale condensation, fractionation, mixing, and transport of water vapor, but ignores more detailed microphysical processes, is able to reproduce the first‐order characteristics of the clear‐sky free troposphere relative humidity and D/H ratios. These results are consistent with remote sensing studies of subtropical D/H ratios and suggest that subtropical clear‐sky water vapor isotopologues may be relatively insensitive to microphysical processes.