In southern Siberia, research of this kind has been conducted for the first time, involving researchers from the Tyumen Industrial University, the West Siberian Branch of the Trofimuk Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics (SB RAS), Lomonosov Moscow State University, and Tyumen State University.
The specialists sampled water sources in the city of Tyumen and peri-urban communities. The samples objects for analysis included: Tura and Pyshma rivers; Lake Andreevskoye and Lake Lipovoye; a technical water reservoir, a wetland area; a dug-well and water-wells; precipitation samples.
Why is this research important?
The analyzed contents of oxygen (O) and hydrogen (H) isotopes provided insights into the implications of natural and anthropogenic factors for the water balance, quality, as well as dynamics of surface water-ground water interaction. Information was also obtained on the evolution and circulation of water masses, evaporation, infiltration, and water–rock interaction processes. Fundamental knowledge of processes that control natural-water formation and composition and their reconstructions are of great importance. Moreover, isotope compositions allow scientists to track the effects that urbanization can have on water bodies.
What ensured intended outcomes?
The research results revealed various factors controlling the isotopic composition of waters in the Tyumen region, among them: natural and human-induced impacts, relation between evaporation and water depth.
River waters are enriched in light isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen – this is typical for flowing waters that form primarily from fresh atmospheric precipitation and the active movement of water masses. The enrichment of lake waters with heavy oxygen and hydrogen isotopes is associated with evaporation under open, limited-exchange conditions.
The high hydrogen isotope value in the bog indicates strong evaporation, typical of stagnant, shallow, peaty ecosystems with high summer water temperatures. The isotopic values for the technogenic body of water point to a partial evaporative effect and may suggest a mixture of both natural and technogenic waters.
The group of shallow groundwaters shows enrichment in light oxygen and hydrogen isotopes. The obtained isotopic data are characteristic of seasonal variations in surface waters with rapid flow exchange. The light isotopic composition is associated with recharge primarily from snowmelt infiltration. Water that enters the aquifers at depths of 30–40 m quickly passes through the vadose zone, does not evaporate, and retains the light composition of winter precipitation.
Future prospects
The results obtained provide a basis for expanding the regional isotopic database and can be used in hydrogeological modeling, assessing the recharge sources of water bodies, and developing isotopic monitoring methods in the southern part of Western Siberia.
"The conducted research represent the first stage of a systematic study of the isotopic composition of water resources in the southern West Siberia and contributes to a deeper understanding of the evolution of natural waters," the researchers noted.
Published by IPGG Press Service
For more detail see the article by : Skudar D.Yu., Plavnik A.G., Krasnova Е.А., Gryaznova А.S., Tverdokhleb К.А. – Isotopic composition of natural waters in the city of Tyumen and its surroundings: review of initial data from the summer season of 2025 // Natural and Technical Sciences– 2025 – no. 12 – pp. 241-246