Isotopic composition of precipitation in Greece

SummaryThe contribution of stable isotopes in meteorological, climatological and hydrological research is well known. Until this date and despite the fact that several hydrological studies of water sources in Greece have been published, no systematic isotopic study of precipitation has been performed in the country. This paper presents all the available isotopic data collected since 1960 in several Hellenic measurement stations. This data is divided in two periods: the first covers data that was collected in the past, in the frame of a preliminary survey of the isotope composition of precipitation in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and specific hydrological studies; the second is the result of a three-year coordinated research project of the International Atomic Energy Agency, in which the authors participated, aiming at the systematic study of stable isotopes (2H and 18O) and 3H in precipitation around the Mediterranean basin. No statistically significant behavior between the two periods of data was found. The isotopic content of precipitation presents characteristics intermediate of those of the Eastern and Western Mediterranean. The tritium concentration in precipitation declines as expected towards the pre-bomb levels, however there is an indication that tritium concentrations are higher in Northern Greece.