Publication Date:
2022-05-26
Description:
© The Author(s), 2017. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Geophysical Research Letters 44 (2017): 209–218, doi:10.1002/2016GL071378.
Description:
Global lake volume estimates are scarce, highly variable, and poorly documented. We developed a rigorous method for estimating global lake depth and volume based on the Hurst coefficient of Earth's surface, which provides a mechanistic connection between lake area and volume. Volume-area scaling based on the Hurst coefficient is accurate and consistent when applied to lake data sets spanning diverse regions. We applied these relationships to a global lake area census to estimate global lake volume and depth. The volume of Earth's lakes is 199,000 km3 (95% confidence interval 196,000–202,000 km3). This volume is in the range of historical estimates (166,000–280,000 km3), but the overall mean depth of 41.8 m (95% CI 41.2–42.4 m) is significantly lower than previous estimates (62–151 m). These results highlight and constrain the relative scarcity of lake waters in the hydrosphere and have implications for the role of lakes in global biogeochemical cycles.
Description:
Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation;
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program Grant Number: 2388357;
National Science Foundation Grant Number: OCE-1315201
Keywords:
Limnology
;
Topograhy
;
Scaling
;
Volume
;
Mean depth
Repository Name:
Woods Hole Open Access Server
Type:
Article
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