Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Science

Open database tracks Earth's water cycle by standardizing decades of satellite data

All water comes from somewhere. Researchers who want to know where it comes from rely on water isotopes, variants of water molecules with slightly different masses, as location identifiers. In particular, the specific ratio of heavy to light water isotopes is unique to the water's origin and process...

Open database tracks Earth's water cycle by standardizing decades of satellite data
Image: Phys.org
All water comes from somewhere. Researchers who want to know where it comes from rely on water isotopes, variants of water molecules with slightly different masses, as location identifiers. In particular, the specific ratio of heavy to light water isotopes is unique to the water's origin and processes it has undergone and can provide information on how water travels across the globe.

Originally published at Phys.org

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