A tale of two isotopes: differences in hydrograph separation for a runoff event when using δD versus δ18O

It is often assumed that stable water isotopes (delta D and delta O-18) provide redundant information for a given sample of water. In this note we illustrate that the choice of isotope used may influence the resultant hydrograph separation. This is especially true in light of the spatial and temporal variability in the isotopic composition of rainfall water at the catchment scale. We present several possible hydrograph separations based on both delta D and delta O-18 observed in rainfall for a single runoff event occurring in the southwest USA. This study demonstrates the potential of using both stable water isotopes by showing that delta D and delta O-18 may provide unique information for catchment hydrologists. We also report on the utility of new technology capable of simultaneous measurements of both delta D and delta O-18 using off-axis integrated cavity output spectroscopy (OA-ICOS) methods. This may be of interest to catchment hydrologists seeking to incorporate this type of equipment into their laboratory. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.