Abstract Surface evapotranspiration (SFCEVP) plays an essential role in the climate, being the link between hydrological and energy cycles. Therefore, how it is approximated and its implication in the regional climate are important aspects to understand the effects of climate change, especially in transitional zones such as the Iberian Peninsula (IP). This study aims to investigate the spatiotemporal patterns of the SFCEVP using a regional climate model (RCM), the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. To this purpose, a set of WRF simulations were completed using different driving data. On the first hand, a recent present (1980–2017) simulation driven by the ERA-Interim reanalysis was carried out to evaluate the suitability of the RCM performance. On the other hand, two global climate models (GCMs) from the CMIP5 initiative, the CESM1 and the MPI-ESM-LR, were used as driving data to evaluate the GCM-RCM coupling, which is essential to climate change applications. Finally, projected changes were also investigated for a near-term future (2021–2050) paradigm. In general, the results pointed out the WRF model as a valuable tool to study the spatiotemporal patterns of the SFCEVP in the IP, showing an overall and acceptable ability at different spatial and temporal scales. Concerning projections, the results indicate that the IP is likely to undergo significant changes in the SFCEVP in the near future. These changes will be more apparent over the southernmost, and particularly during spring and summer, being in the latter season the SFCEVP fundamentally reduced. These results agree with projected changes in soil moisture, which is probably associated with changes in precipitation patterns. Additionally, the results reveal the major role of SFCEVP in modulating the climate over this region, which is involved in the complex land-atmosphere processes.

中文翻译：

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地表蒸散在区域气候模拟中的作用：评估和近期未来变化

摘要 地表蒸散（SFCEVP）在气候中起着至关重要的作用，是连接水文循环和能量循环的纽带。因此，如何近似及其对区域气候的影响是了解气候变化影响的重要方面，尤其是在伊比利亚半岛 (IP) 等过渡区。本研究旨在使用区域气候模型 (RCM)、天气研究和预报 (WRF) 模型调查 SFCEVP 的时空模式。为此，使用不同的驾驶数据完成了一组 WRF 模拟。首先，进行了由 ERA-Interim 再分析驱动的最近（1980-2017）模拟，以评估 RCM 性能的适用性。另一方面，来自 CMIP5 倡议的两个全球气候模型 (GCM)，CESM1 和 MPI-ESM-LR 被用作评估 GCM-RCM 耦合的驱动数据，这对于气候变化应用至关重要。最后，还研究了近期（2021-2050）范式的预计变化。总的来说，结果表明 WRF 模型是研究 IP 中 SFCEVP 时空模式的宝贵工具，显示了在不同时空尺度上的整体和可接受的能力。关于预测，结果表明，在不久的将来，该 IP 可能会在 SFCEVP 中发生重大变化。这些变化在最南端会更加明显，特别是在春季和夏季，在后一个季节 SFCEVP 基本减少。这些结果与土壤水分的预测变化一致，这可能与降水模式的变化有关。此外，结果揭示了 SFCEVP 在调节该地区气候方面的主要作用，该地区涉及复杂的陆地 - 大气过程。