Atmospheric moisture transport in Central Europe – rivers or streams

The diversity of water vapor content in the air is crucial for the regional analysis of atmospheric precipitation occurrences. The amount of water vapor carried by the air mass over a specific area can vary significantly depending on the current characteristics of air circulation, with a key role played by atmospheric rivers. These rivers originate from the meridional transport of water vapor and have a significant impact on Europe through the interaction with extratropical cyclones.
The aim of the work is to assess the intensity of water vapor transport over Europe and the extent of its inland penetration.
Atmospheric rivers/streams will be identified based on ECMWF ERA5 reanalyses data from 1991 to 2023 and CMIP6 future projections until the year 2100.
Selected cases of intense water vapor transport over the European region, especially Central Europe, will be compared with the occurrence of atmospheric precipitation.