Karst Recharge–Isotope Transfer Model: A monthly δ¹⁸O forward model for karst recharge and cave drip water
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| Format: | Recurso digital |
| Language: | English |
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2026
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| _version_ | 1866901725339713536 |
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| author | Dublyansky, Yuri |
| author_facet | Dublyansky, Yuri |
| contents | <p>This software package provides a Python-based graphical user interface (GUI) for forward modeling of monthly karst recharge and drip-water (aquifer/baseflow) δ¹⁸O from meteorological forcing and precipitation isotope data. The model is designed as a first-order interpretive tool for speleothem paleoclimate studies, where the isotopic signal archived in speleothems reflects a recharge-weighted, smoothed, and time-shifted version of precipitation isotopic variability.</p> <p>The model represents a thin-soil karst system composed of a soil–epikarst storage zone overlying a karst aquifer, with cave drip waters treated as functionally equivalent to aquifer baseflow at the monthly time scale. Atmospheric precipitation is the sole water input. Monthly water balance is computed using a bucket-type storage model with finite capacity, constrained by precipitation, potential evapotranspiration (from user input or the Thornthwaite formulation), and actual evapotranspiration. Recharge occurs when storage exceeds the prescribed capacity.</p> <p>Key processes explicitly represented include (i) seasonal partitioning of precipitation into evapotranspiration and recharge, (ii) temporary storage and redistribution of water in soil and epikarst, (iii) snow accumulation and melt with instant melt release at the monthly time scale, (iv) recharge-weighted exponential mixing of isotopic signals in the epikarst, and (v) advective transport delay between the mixing reservoir and the drip site. An optional heuristic parameterization allows exploration of evaporative enrichment of recharge water (δ¹⁸O_R) during periods of high evaporative demand.</p> <p>The GUI enables interactive visualization of modeled drip-water δ¹⁸O time series, quantitative comparison with observed drip-water isotope data (including RMSE reporting), parameter optimization with reproducible stochastic search, equifinality assessment, and systematic sensitivity analysis over key parameters (storage capacity, mixing timescale, and transport delay) using heat-map representations. Full model outputs and summary statistics can be exported in CSV format to support reproducibility and further analysis.</p> <p>The model operates at a monthly time step and is intentionally parsimonious. It does not resolve event-scale infiltration, preferential flow, vegetation dynamics, detailed snowmelt physics, or isotopic fractionation during carbonate precipitation. These simplifications are appropriate for its intended use as a transparent framework for hypothesis testing and interpretation of speleothem δ¹⁸O records.</p> <p>The software is deterministic in forward simulations and supports reproducible parameter optimization via user-defined random seeds. It is released under the MIT License and intended for use by researchers in speleothem paleoclimatology, karst hydrology, and isotope hydrology.</p> |
| format | Recurso digital |
| id | zenodo_https___doi_org_10_5281_zenodo_18674084 |
| institution | Zenodo |
| language | eng |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publisher | Zenodo |
| record_format | zenodo |
| spellingShingle | Karst Recharge–Isotope Transfer Model: A monthly δ¹⁸O forward model for karst recharge and cave drip water Dublyansky, Yuri karst hydrology; speleothem δ¹⁸O; isotope transfer model; recharge modeling; epikarst storage; paleoclimate reconstruction; drip water; equifinality; parameter optimization; sensitivity analysis; speleothem paleoclimate <p>This software package provides a Python-based graphical user interface (GUI) for forward modeling of monthly karst recharge and drip-water (aquifer/baseflow) δ¹⁸O from meteorological forcing and precipitation isotope data. The model is designed as a first-order interpretive tool for speleothem paleoclimate studies, where the isotopic signal archived in speleothems reflects a recharge-weighted, smoothed, and time-shifted version of precipitation isotopic variability.</p> <p>The model represents a thin-soil karst system composed of a soil–epikarst storage zone overlying a karst aquifer, with cave drip waters treated as functionally equivalent to aquifer baseflow at the monthly time scale. Atmospheric precipitation is the sole water input. Monthly water balance is computed using a bucket-type storage model with finite capacity, constrained by precipitation, potential evapotranspiration (from user input or the Thornthwaite formulation), and actual evapotranspiration. Recharge occurs when storage exceeds the prescribed capacity.</p> <p>Key processes explicitly represented include (i) seasonal partitioning of precipitation into evapotranspiration and recharge, (ii) temporary storage and redistribution of water in soil and epikarst, (iii) snow accumulation and melt with instant melt release at the monthly time scale, (iv) recharge-weighted exponential mixing of isotopic signals in the epikarst, and (v) advective transport delay between the mixing reservoir and the drip site. An optional heuristic parameterization allows exploration of evaporative enrichment of recharge water (δ¹⁸O_R) during periods of high evaporative demand.</p> <p>The GUI enables interactive visualization of modeled drip-water δ¹⁸O time series, quantitative comparison with observed drip-water isotope data (including RMSE reporting), parameter optimization with reproducible stochastic search, equifinality assessment, and systematic sensitivity analysis over key parameters (storage capacity, mixing timescale, and transport delay) using heat-map representations. Full model outputs and summary statistics can be exported in CSV format to support reproducibility and further analysis.</p> <p>The model operates at a monthly time step and is intentionally parsimonious. It does not resolve event-scale infiltration, preferential flow, vegetation dynamics, detailed snowmelt physics, or isotopic fractionation during carbonate precipitation. These simplifications are appropriate for its intended use as a transparent framework for hypothesis testing and interpretation of speleothem δ¹⁸O records.</p> <p>The software is deterministic in forward simulations and supports reproducible parameter optimization via user-defined random seeds. It is released under the MIT License and intended for use by researchers in speleothem paleoclimatology, karst hydrology, and isotope hydrology.</p> |
| title | Karst Recharge–Isotope Transfer Model: A monthly δ¹⁸O forward model for karst recharge and cave drip water |
| topic | karst hydrology; speleothem δ¹⁸O; isotope transfer model; recharge modeling; epikarst storage; paleoclimate reconstruction; drip water; equifinality; parameter optimization; sensitivity analysis; speleothem paleoclimate |
| url | https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18674084 |