Actual evapotranspiration — Yucatán Peninsula
Interactive · Actual Evapotranspiration · Yucatán · Monthly Water Balance
Evapotranspiration is the combined loss of water from the land surface through direct evaporation from soil and water bodies and transpiration from vegetation. In a water balance, it competes directly with infiltration — water that evapotranspires cannot recharge the aquifer. The Yucatán Peninsula’s tropical climate means evapotranspiration losses are large and strongly seasonal: the dry season (November–April) concentrates nearly all the ET demand into a period when rainfall is sparse.
This dashboard shows actual evapotranspiration (ETa) rather than potential ET (ETp). Actual ET is limited by available water — in the dry season, soil moisture runs out before the atmosphere’s demand does, so ETa falls below ETp. The distinction matters for the water balance: a model that uses ETp in the dry season will underestimate recharge by assuming more water is consumed than actually is.
Monthly ETa values were estimated from the water balance model using FAO-56 Penman–Monteith reference ET and crop coefficient adjustments for the peninsula’s major land use types.
How to read it
The map shows average annual ETa in mm·year⁻¹. Use the month selector to step through the seasonal cycle. The time series panel shows how ETa tracked alongside rainfall in the historical record.
Methods
Part of the doctoral water balance modelling described in the Yucatán water project. ETa estimated from a calibrated monthly water balance model (1961–2000 historical period, four GCM projections for 2015–2039).
