An Isotope Mass Balance Analysis of Evaporative Loss From Lake Turkana, Kenya Using δ 18 O and δD of Natural Waters

• Published in: Water resources research 2024-06, Vol.60 (6)
• Main Authors: Saslaw, M., Yang, D., Lee, D., Poulsen, C. J., Henkes, G. A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0043-1397; 1944-7973
• DOI: 10.1029/2023WR036076

Measurements of oxygen and hydrogen stable isotope ratios (δ 18 O and δD) in meteoric waters provide insight to overlapping effects of evaporation, precipitation, and mixing on basin scale hydrology. This study of waters collected between 2016 and 2021 in the Turkana Basin, northern Kenya, uses δ 18 O and δD to understand water balance in Lake Turkana, a large, low‐latitude, alkaline desert lake. The Omo River, a major river system in the Ethiopian Highlands, is historically understood to provide approximately 90% of the water input to Lake Turkana. Discharge of the Omo is prohibitively difficult to measure, but stable isotope ratios in the lake may provide a meaningful method for monitoring the lake's response to changes in input. Precipitation in the Turkana Basin is low (