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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Mean Hydroclimatic And Hydrological Conditions During Two Climatic Modes In The Devils Lake Basin, North Dakota (Usa), Paul E. Todhunter Dec 2016

Mean Hydroclimatic And Hydrological Conditions During Two Climatic Modes In The Devils Lake Basin, North Dakota (Usa), Paul E. Todhunter

Geography & Geographic Information Science Faculty Publications

Proxy variables from palaeolimnological studies of lakes in the Prairie Pothole Region of North America have been used to infer large oscillations during the late Holocene between longer periods of high-salinity–dry conditions and shorter periods of low-salinity–wet conditions producing a normative pattern marked by the absence of hydrological stability. Studies of the historical rise in lake level at Devils Lake have identified 1980 as a transition point between two such hydroclimatic modes. This study uses multiple datasets to characterize the mean hydroclimatological and hydrological conditions of these two climatic modes. Mode 1 is a cool and dry phase, and mode …


Natural Hydroclimatic Forcing Of Historical Lake Volume Fluctuations At Devils Lake, North Dakota (Usa), Paul E. Todhunter, Rhonda Fietzek-Devries Apr 2016

Natural Hydroclimatic Forcing Of Historical Lake Volume Fluctuations At Devils Lake, North Dakota (Usa), Paul E. Todhunter, Rhonda Fietzek-Devries

Geography & Geographic Information Science Faculty Publications

Devils Lake, a terminal saline lake in eastern North Dakota, has experienced catastrophic flooding over the past two decades producing direct damages in excess of $1 billion ($USD). We use three long-term datasets to examine the temporal coherence between historical lake fluctuations and basic hydroclimatic drivers. Monthly precipitation and mean monthly air temperature data are used to characterize long-term precipitation delivery and evaporative demand. Monthly water balance data for a representative location are used to assess basin soil moisture conditions. A lake volume time series documents lake volume fluctuation in response to long-term precipitation and regional soil moisture conditions. Three …