Climate-driven trends in mean and high flows from a network of reference stations in Ireland |
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| Authors: | Conor Murphy Shaun Harrigan Julia Hall Robert L Wilby |
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| Institution: | 1. Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units, Department of Geography , National University of Ireland , Maynooth , County Kildare , Ireland conor.murphy@nuim.ie;3. Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units, Department of Geography , National University of Ireland , Maynooth , County Kildare , Ireland;4. Centre for Hydrological and Ecosystem Science, Department of Geography , Loughborough University , Loughborough , UK |
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| Abstract: | Abstract This paper introduces a reference hydrometric network for Ireland and examines the derived flow archive for evidence of climate-driven trends in mean and high river flows. The Mann-Kendall and Theil-Sen tests are applied to eight hydroclimatic indicators for fixed and variable (start and end date) records. Spatial coherence and similarities of trends with rainfall suggest they are climate driven; however, large temporal variability makes it difficult to discern widely-expected anthropogenic climate change signals at this point in time. Trends in summer mean flows and recent winter means are at odds with those expected for anthropogenic climate change. High-flow indicators show strong and persistent positive trends, are less affected by variability and may provide earlier climate change signals than mean flows. The results highlight the caution required in using fixed periods of record for trend analysis, recognizing the trade-off between record length, network density and geographic coverage. Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz; Associate editor H. Lins Citation Murphy, C., Harrigan, S., Hall, J., and Wilby, R.L., 2013. Climate-driven trends in mean and high flows from a network of reference stations in Ireland. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 58 (4), 755–772. |
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| Keywords: | climate change detection high flows Ireland Mann-Kendall mean flows persistence reference network Theil-Sen trend |
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