Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2025-245
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2025-245
08 Aug 2025
 | 08 Aug 2025
Status: this preprint is currently under review for the journal ESSD.

Decade-long isotope dataset of rainfall and non-rainfall waters in the central Namib Desert

Yue Li, Eugene Marais, and Lixin Wang

Abstract. Drylands are essential Earth System components, and dryland dynamics are strongly controlled by water availability. Long-term ground observations of hydrological parameters are often lacking in most dryland ecosystems. A series of foundational and unique water input data, including both rainfall and non-rainfall (i.e., fog and dew) components, in hyper-arid desert environments have been presented in this database. These observations provide comprehensive isotope measurements of rainfall and non-rainfall water resources, which are essential to evaluate the impacts of extreme climate events on the water cycle. The database comprised three key components: (1) a decade-long (2014−2023) event-based stable isotopes (δ2H, δ18O, and d-excess) in rainfall and non-rainfall waters at Gobabeb, (2) a two-month spatial isotope dataset (δ2H, δ18O, and d-excess) of fog collected from the central Namib Desert in 2016 and 2017, and (3) a six-decade (1963−2023) temporal data documenting monthly fog and rainfall amounts as well as annual Kuiseb River flooding events at Gobabeb. The detailed stable isotope data included 585 fog samples, 71 rainfall samples, 115 dew samples, and 13 groundwater samples over the past ten years (2014−2023) in the Namib Desert. Detailed descriptions of the study sites, sampling procedures, analytical methods, and data quality control are provided in this study. The uniqueness of our long-term dataset makes it an important resource for future studies investigating hydrological processes in drylands and their responses to climate change. The DOIs of the dataset can be obtained in the “Data availability” section.

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Yue Li, Eugene Marais, and Lixin Wang

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Yue Li, Eugene Marais, and Lixin Wang

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Decade-long isotope dataset of rainfall and non-rainfall waters in the central Namib Yue Li, Eugene Marais, Lixin Wang https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.981180

Yue Li, Eugene Marais, and Lixin Wang
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Short summary
We investigated water availability in the hyper-arid Namib Desert by collecting long-term data on rainfall, fog, and dew inputs. Our research presents a rare, decade-long dataset of stable isotope measurements to better understand how water moves within dryland environments. This work helps scientists quantify changes in the water cycle and improve our understanding of how drylands may respond to a changing climate.
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