作者：Liu, Y., Xie, X., Wang, Y., Tursun, A., Peng, D., Wu, X. & Xue, B.

Global-scale reservoir construction has significantly enhanced water supply for local production and livelihoods, yet the evaporation losses from these surface water bodies remain poorly understood, particularly in the context of climate change. The majority of existing studies have predominantly focused on non-aquatic terrestrial evaporation, overlooking the intricate evaporation dynamics within aquatic systems. In this study, we address this gap by investigating water body evaporation in the Loess Plateau of China, a region characterized by extensive reservoir development over the past decades. By employing a modified Penman model and utilizing long-term remote sensing water body data to calculate water depths while accounting for the thermal storage capacity of water bodies, we estimated water evaporation rates and total evaporation volumes for the period 2000-2018. Validation against pan evaporation observations demonstrates the efficacy of our improved approach in capturing the water depths and associated evaporation patterns of diverse water bodies in the Loess Plateau. Results reveal a subtle decreasing trend in evaporation rates across the region. However, the total evaporation volume amounts to a substantial 4.16 x 106 m3 d-1, with a notable upward trend at a rate of 0.117 x 106 m3 d-1 yr-1. Attribution analysis shows that while the combined effects of climate change marginally reduced evaporation rates in this study region, the expansion of water bodies has counteracted this trend, resulting in a significant increase in total evaporation losses. Particularly, the development of small- and medium-sized reservoirs and check dams is the primary driver of increased evaporation losses on the Loess Plateau. Given that evaporation losses are comparable to surface water withdrawals in this region, future water management and hydraulic projects must consider such substantial losses. This study fills gaps by quantifying aquatic evaporation across the Loess Plateau and underscores the need for integrated strategies addressing climate change, reservoir expansion, and evaporation.

全球范围的水库建设极大改善了当地生产与生活的供水状况，然而这些地表水体的蒸发损失仍缺乏深入了解，尤其在气候变化背景下更是如此。既有研究大多聚焦于非水域的陆地蒸发，忽视了水体系统内复杂的蒸发动态。本研究针对这一空白，以过去数十年间水库大量发展的黄土高原为对象，开展了水体蒸发研究。采用改进的Penman模型，结合长时序遥感水体数据计算水深，并考虑水体的蓄热能力，估算了2000–2018年间的水面蒸发速率和蒸发总量。经蒸发皿蒸发观测数据验证，改进方法能够有效刻画黄土高原各类水体的水深及相应蒸发格局。结果显示，全区蒸发速率呈微弱下降趋势。但蒸发总量高达4.16×10⁶ m³ d⁻¹，且以0.117×10⁶ m³ d⁻¹ yr⁻¹的速率显著上升。归因分析表明，尽管气候变化的综合效应使研究区的蒸发速率略有降低，但水体面积的扩张抵消了这一趋势，导致总蒸发损失显著增加。尤其值得指出的是，中小型水库和淤地坝的发展是黄土高原蒸发损失增加的主要驱动力。鉴于该区蒸发损失已与地表水取用量相当，未来水资源管理和水利工程建设必须充分考虑这一可观的损失量。本研究通过量化黄土高原水体蒸发填补了研究空白，并强调了制定兼顾气候变化、水库扩张与蒸发损失的综合策略的必要性。

（来源：Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 2026 Issue 1  DOI: 10.5194/hess-30-67-2026）