The main objectives of this study are to investigate the spatial distribution and changes in reference evapotranspiration (ET 0 ) in the Republic of Moldova. Monthly data of maximum and minimum air temperature, sunshine duration, relative humidity, and wind speed recorded at 14 weather stations over a period of 52 years (1961-2012) were used. ET 0 was computed based on the FAO Penman-Monteith formula. Annual and growing seasons of winter wheat and maize time series were analyzed for the 1981-2012 period as well as for the [1961][1962][1963][1964][1965][1966][1967][1968][1969][1970][1971][1972][1973][1974][1975][1976][1977][1978][1979][1980]. The trends and their statistical significance in ET 0 series were detected using Mann-Kendall test and T test, while the magnitude of the trends was estimated using Sen's slope and linear regression. For the 1981-2012 period, the results indicated that annual ET 0 had a positive trend in more than 90 % of the time series according to both parametric and nonparametric methods. The magnitude of positive trends in annual ET 0 series ranged between 13.80 and 72.07 mm/decade. In the growing seasons of winter wheat and maize, the results are similar to those found in the annual series. Significant decreasing trends dominated over the 1961-1980 period.
Cities alter the thermal regime of urban rivers in very variable ways which are not yet deciphered for the territory of Romania. The urban heat island of Suceava city was measured in 2019 and its impact on Suceava River was assessed using hourly and daily values from a network of 12 water and air monitoring stations. In 2019, Suceava River water temperature was 11.54 °C upstream of Suceava city (Mihoveni) and 11.97 °C downstream (Tişăuţi)—a 3.7% increase in the water temperature downstream. After the stream water passes through the city, the diurnal thermal profile of Suceava River water temperature shows steeper slopes and earlier moments of the maximum and minimum temperatures than upstream because of the urban heat island. In an average day, an increase of water temperature with a maximum of 0.99 °C occurred downstream, partly explained by the 2.46 °C corresponding difference between the urban floodplain and the surrounding area. The stream water diurnal cycle has been shifted towards a variation specific to that of the local air temperature. The heat exchange between Suceava River and Suceava city is bidirectional. The stream water diurnal thermal cycle is statistically more significant downstream due to the heat transfer from the city into the river. This transfer occurs partly through urban tributaries which are 1.94 °C warmer than Suceava River upstream of Suceava city. The wavelet coherence analyses and ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) prove that there are significant (0.95 confidence level) causal relationships between the changes in Suceava River water temperature downstream and the fluctuations of the urban air temperature. The complex bidirectional heat transfer and the changes in the diurnal thermal profiles are important to be analysed in other urban systems in order to decipher in more detail the observed causal relationships.
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