Articles | Volume 28, issue 19
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4477-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4477-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Root zone in the Earth system
Key Laboratory of Geographic Information Science (Ministry of Education), School of Geographic Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
Markus Hrachowitz
Water Resources Section, Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands
Lan Wang-Erlandsson
Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC), Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
Bolin Centre for Climate Research, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Member of the Leibniz Association, Potsdam, Germany
Fabrizio Fenicia
Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dubendorf, Switzerland
Qiaojuan Xi
Key Laboratory of Geographic Information Science (Ministry of Education), School of Geographic Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
Jianyang Xia
Zhejiang Tiantong Forest Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, School of Ecological and Environmental Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
Wei Shao
Key Laboratory of Hydrometeorological Disaster Mechanism and Warning, Ministry of Water Resources/School of Hydrology and Water Resources, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, China
Ge Sun
Eastern Forest Environmental Threat Assessment Center, USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station, Research Triangle Park, Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
Hubert H. G. Savenije
Water Resources Section, Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands
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Cited
36 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Land use and climate change exacerbate the root zone maximum water deficit in the Loess Plateau Z. Zhao et al.
- A Null Model for Global Root Depth Distributions: Analytical Solution and Comparison to Data C. Harman & D. Lapides
- Subsoiling Orchestrates Evapotranspiration Partitioning to Enhance Water Use Efficiency of Arid Oasis Cotton Fields in Northwest China L. Wang et al.
- Soil moisture in the Anthropocene: a tipping component in planetary boundary transgressions G. Tefera et al.
- Incorporating plant access to groundwater in global root zone storage capacity estimate S. Du et al.
- Soil salinity patterns reveal changes in the water cycle of inland river basins in arid zones G. Meng et al.
- Estimation of root zone water storage capacity (S) in natural ecosystems subject to high interannual climate variability M. Khorami et al.
- Water table depth contributes to tropical Eucalyptus plantation yields in sandstone-derived landscapes J. Stape & C. Alvares
- An extension of the logistic function to account for nonstationary drought losses T. Zhao et al.
- Soil moisture dominates the severe decline in gross primary productivity during a 2023–2024 compound heatwave-drought event over the Amazon T. Yang et al.
- A multi-scale intensive monitoring network for soil hydrological processes in semi-arid northwest China B. Zhang et al.
- Increase in plant reliance on past precipitation associated with greening and drying H. Zhang et al.
- Divergent hydrological responses of multi-depth soil moisture variability to multiple factors on the Loess Plateau, China J. Wang et al.
- Seasonal patterns and hydrological regulations of root zone storage capacity across United States S. Du et al.
- 土地利用和气候变化加剧黄土高原根区最大水分亏缺 梓. 赵 et al.
- Rooting depth projections of global plant functional types and driving factors analysis based on a hybrid modeling framework Q. Han et al.
- Substantial root-zone water storage capacity observed by GRACE and GRACE/FO M. Zhao et al.
- Rooting depth uncertainty from hydrological perspectives with a focus on water-stressed regions H. Zhu et al.
- Event- and annual-scale precipitation extremes enhance groundwater recharge at the ecological restoration catchment of hilly and gully region M. He et al.
- Red maple tree root water uptake depths are influenced by neighboring tree species composition M. Sobota et al.
- Time-lag and accumulation responses of vegetation to precipitation in the Jinsha River dry-hot valley at multiple spatial–temporal scales J. Feng et al.
- Widespread increase in root zone water use exacerbates water stress in cultivated regions S. Du et al.
- An era of hyper-resolution land surface models: truth or dare? T. Wu et al.
- 水文视角下的根系深度不确定性——聚焦水分限制区域 昊. 朱 et al.
- Effect of irrigation regime on yield and water productivity of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in the lowland area of Ethiopia T. Getachew et al.
- Causal relationships of vegetation productivity with root zone water availability and atmospheric dryness at the catchment scale G. Abeshu et al.
- Climatic, topographic, and groundwater controls on runoff response to precipitation: evidence from a large-sample data set Z. Eslami et al.
- James Buttle Review: Dynamic Water Storage Shapes Critical Zone Function in Snow‐Dominated Mountain Watersheds C. Tague et al.
- Evapotranspiration stress intensifies with enhanced sensitivity to soil moisture deficits in a rapidly greening China Y. Liu et al.
- Sensitivity of alpine grassland productivity to atmospheric aridity and soil moisture on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau: Spatial patterns and determinants H. Xu et al.
- Root zone storage capacity reveals ecohydrological turning points in Tibetan Plateau permafrost regions Y. Wang et al.
- Adaptation of root zone storage capacity to climate change and its effects on future streamflow in Alpine catchments: towards non-stationary model parameters M. Ponds et al.
- Vegetation Transpiration Drives Root-Zone Soil Moisture Depletion in Subtropical Humid Regions: Evidence from GLDAS Catchment Simulations in Fujian Province Y. Xie et al.
- STERE: a framework for addressing ecosystem degradation using an integrated hydrology approach W. Qu et al.
- Effects of climate and land use/cover change on soil erosion in the Qinba Mountains Y. Li et al.
- Spatiotemporal variations of rainfall interception before and after implementation of Grain for Green Program in the Loess Plateau J. Chen et al.
36 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Land use and climate change exacerbate the root zone maximum water deficit in the Loess Plateau Z. Zhao et al.
- A Null Model for Global Root Depth Distributions: Analytical Solution and Comparison to Data C. Harman & D. Lapides
- Subsoiling Orchestrates Evapotranspiration Partitioning to Enhance Water Use Efficiency of Arid Oasis Cotton Fields in Northwest China L. Wang et al.
- Soil moisture in the Anthropocene: a tipping component in planetary boundary transgressions G. Tefera et al.
- Incorporating plant access to groundwater in global root zone storage capacity estimate S. Du et al.
- Soil salinity patterns reveal changes in the water cycle of inland river basins in arid zones G. Meng et al.
- Estimation of root zone water storage capacity (S) in natural ecosystems subject to high interannual climate variability M. Khorami et al.
- Water table depth contributes to tropical Eucalyptus plantation yields in sandstone-derived landscapes J. Stape & C. Alvares
- An extension of the logistic function to account for nonstationary drought losses T. Zhao et al.
- Soil moisture dominates the severe decline in gross primary productivity during a 2023–2024 compound heatwave-drought event over the Amazon T. Yang et al.
- A multi-scale intensive monitoring network for soil hydrological processes in semi-arid northwest China B. Zhang et al.
- Increase in plant reliance on past precipitation associated with greening and drying H. Zhang et al.
- Divergent hydrological responses of multi-depth soil moisture variability to multiple factors on the Loess Plateau, China J. Wang et al.
- Seasonal patterns and hydrological regulations of root zone storage capacity across United States S. Du et al.
- 土地利用和气候变化加剧黄土高原根区最大水分亏缺 梓. 赵 et al.
- Rooting depth projections of global plant functional types and driving factors analysis based on a hybrid modeling framework Q. Han et al.
- Substantial root-zone water storage capacity observed by GRACE and GRACE/FO M. Zhao et al.
- Rooting depth uncertainty from hydrological perspectives with a focus on water-stressed regions H. Zhu et al.
- Event- and annual-scale precipitation extremes enhance groundwater recharge at the ecological restoration catchment of hilly and gully region M. He et al.
- Red maple tree root water uptake depths are influenced by neighboring tree species composition M. Sobota et al.
- Time-lag and accumulation responses of vegetation to precipitation in the Jinsha River dry-hot valley at multiple spatial–temporal scales J. Feng et al.
- Widespread increase in root zone water use exacerbates water stress in cultivated regions S. Du et al.
- An era of hyper-resolution land surface models: truth or dare? T. Wu et al.
- 水文视角下的根系深度不确定性——聚焦水分限制区域 昊. 朱 et al.
- Effect of irrigation regime on yield and water productivity of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in the lowland area of Ethiopia T. Getachew et al.
- Causal relationships of vegetation productivity with root zone water availability and atmospheric dryness at the catchment scale G. Abeshu et al.
- Climatic, topographic, and groundwater controls on runoff response to precipitation: evidence from a large-sample data set Z. Eslami et al.
- James Buttle Review: Dynamic Water Storage Shapes Critical Zone Function in Snow‐Dominated Mountain Watersheds C. Tague et al.
- Evapotranspiration stress intensifies with enhanced sensitivity to soil moisture deficits in a rapidly greening China Y. Liu et al.
- Sensitivity of alpine grassland productivity to atmospheric aridity and soil moisture on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau: Spatial patterns and determinants H. Xu et al.
- Root zone storage capacity reveals ecohydrological turning points in Tibetan Plateau permafrost regions Y. Wang et al.
- Adaptation of root zone storage capacity to climate change and its effects on future streamflow in Alpine catchments: towards non-stationary model parameters M. Ponds et al.
- Vegetation Transpiration Drives Root-Zone Soil Moisture Depletion in Subtropical Humid Regions: Evidence from GLDAS Catchment Simulations in Fujian Province Y. Xie et al.
- STERE: a framework for addressing ecosystem degradation using an integrated hydrology approach W. Qu et al.
- Effects of climate and land use/cover change on soil erosion in the Qinba Mountains Y. Li et al.
- Spatiotemporal variations of rainfall interception before and after implementation of Grain for Green Program in the Loess Plateau J. Chen et al.
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 02 May 2026
Short summary
The concept of the root zone is widely used but lacks a precise definition. Its importance in Earth system science is not well elaborated upon. Here, we clarified its definition with several similar terms to bridge the multi-disciplinary gap. We underscore the key role of the root zone in the Earth system, which links the biosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, atmosphere, and anthroposphere. To better represent the root zone, we advocate for a paradigm shift towards ecosystem-centred modelling.
The concept of the root zone is widely used but lacks a precise definition. Its importance in...