Changes in temperature extremes in the Yangtze River Basin, 1962–2011简

Based on daily maximum and minimum temperature observed by the China Mete- orological Administration at 115 meteorological stations in the Yangtze River Basin from 1962 to 2011, the methods of linear regression, principal component analysis and correlation analysis are employed to investigate the temporal variability and spatial distribution of tem- perature extremes. Sixteen indices of extreme temperature are selected. The results are as follows： （1） The occurrence of cold days, cold nights, ice days, frost days and cold spell du- ration indicator has significantly decreased by -0.84, -2.78, -0.48, -3.29 and -0.67 days per decade, respectively. While the occurrence of warm days, warm nights, summer days, tropi- cal nights, warm spell duration indicator and growing season length shows statistically sig- nificant increasing trends at rates of 2.24, 2.86, 2.93, 1.80, 0.83 and 2.30 days per decade, respectively. The tendency rate of the coldest day, coldest night, warmest day, warmest night and diurnal temperature range is 0.33, 0.47, 0.16, 0.19 and -0.07~C per decade, respectively （2） The magnitudes of changes in cold indices （cold nights, coldest day and coldest night） are obviously greater than those of warm indices （warm nights, warmest day and warmest night）. The change ranges of night indices （warm nights and cold nights） are larger than those of day indices （warm days and cold days）, which indicates that the change of day and night tem- perature is asymmetrical. （3） Spatially, the regionally averaged values of cold indices in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River Basin are larger than those in the middle and lower reaches. However, the regionally averaged values of most warm indices （except warm spell duration indicator） and growing season length in the middle and lower reaches are larger than those in the upper reaches. （4） The extreme temperature indices are well correlated with each other except diurnal temperature range.     

Spatial and temporal temperature variations in Xinjiang, China during 1961–2008

This study examines spatial and temporal changes in 16 extreme temperature indices at 37 weather stations in Xinjiang and their associations with changes in climate means during 1961–2008. Linear regression analyses reveal that significant increasing trends in temperature were observed over Xinjiang, with the rate of 0.13 °C/decade, 0.24 °C/decade, and 0.52 °C/decade for annual mean temperature, annual maximum, and minimum temperature, respectively. Annual frequency of cool nights (days) has decreased by -2.45 days/decade (-0.86 days/decade), whereas the frequency of warm nights (days) has increased by 4.85 days/decade (1.62 days/decade). Seasonally, the frequencies of summer warm nights and days are changing more rapidly than the corresponding frequencies for cool nights and days. However, normalization of the extreme and mean series shows that the rate of changes in extreme temperature events are generally less than those of mean temperatures, except for winter cold nights which are changing as rapidly as the winter mean minimum temperatures. These results indicate that there have been seasonally and diurnally asymmetric changes in extreme temperature events relative to recent increases in temperature means in Xinjiang.     

1961-2008年中国西南地区极端气候变化幅度的海拔效应(英文)

A total of 12 indices of temperature extremes and 11 indices of precipitation ex-tremes at 111 stations in southwestern China at altitudes of 285-4700 m were examined for the period 1961-2008. Significant correlations of temperature extremes and elevation in-cluded the trends of diurnal temperature range, frost days, ice days, cold night frequency and cold day frequency. Regional trends of growing season length, warm night frequency, coldest night and warmest night displayed a statistically significant positive correlation with altitude. These characteristics indicated the obvious warming with altitude. For precipitation extreme indices, only the trends of consecutive dry days, consecutive wet days, wet day precipitation and the number of heavy precipitation days had significant correlations with increasing alti-tude owing to the complex influence of atmospheric circulation. It also indicated the increased precipitation mainly at higher altitude areas, whereas the increase of extreme precipitation events mainly at lowers altitude. In addition, the clearly local influences are also crucial on climate extremes. The analysis revealed an enhanced sensitivity of climate extremes to ele-vation in southwestern China in the context of recent warming.     

Changes in daily climate extremes in Xinjiang, northwestern China

Based on daily maximum and minimum surface air temperature and precipitation records at 48 meteorological stations in Xinjiang, the spatial and temporal distributions of climate extreme indices have been analyzed during 1961-2008. Twelve temperature extreme indices and six precipitation extreme indices are studied. Temperature extremes are highly correlated to annual mean temperature, which appears to be significantly increasing by 0.08 °C per year, indicating that changes in temperature extremes reflect consistent warming. The warming tendency is clearer at stations in northern Xinjiang as reflected by mean temperature. The frequencies of cold days and nights have both decreased, respectively by 0.86 and 2.45 d/decade, but the frequencies of warm days and nights have both increased, respectively by +1.62 and +4.85 d/decade. Over the same period, the number of frost days shows a statistically significant decreasing trend of 2.54 d/decade. The growing season length and the number of summer days exhibit significant increasing trends at rates of +2.62 and +2.86 d/decade, respectively. The diurnal temperature range has decreased by 0.28 °C/decade. Both annual extreme low and high temperatures exhibit significant increasing trend, with the former clearly larger than the latter. For precipitation indices, regional annual total precipitation shows an increasing trend and most other precipitation indices are strongly correlated with annual total precipitation. Average wet day precipitation, maximum 1-day and 5-day precipitation, and heavy precipitation days show increasing trends, but only the last is statistically significant. A decreasing trend is found for consecutive dry days. For all precipitation indices, stations in northwestern Xinjiang have the largest positive trend magnitudes, while stations in northern Xinjiang have the largest negative magnitudes.     

Spatial patterns of Pinus tabulaeformis and Pinus massoniana forests in Qinling-Daba Mountains and the boundary of subtropical and warm temperate zones

The Qinling Mountains is not only the geographical boundary between North and South China,but also the boundary between subtropical and warm temperate zones.It plays an important role in the geo-ecological pattern of China.However,there is controversy about the specific location of this geographical boundary in academic community due to the complexity,transition and heterogeneity of the transitional zone,as well as the differences in the delimitation indicators and research purposes.To further reveal the characteristics of the North-South transitional zone and clarify the specific location of the geo-ecological boundary between North and South China,combined with SRTM topographic data,temperature and precipitation data,Pinus massoniana forest and Pinus tabulaeformis forest,which represent subtropical coniferous forest in South China and temperate coniferous forest in North China respectively,were chosen to analyze their spatial distributions in the Qinling-Daba Mountains and the climatic conditions at their boundary with the climatic indexes of annual precipitation,the coldest month(January) average temperature,the warmest month(July) average temperature and the annual average temperature.The results show that:(1) Pinus massoniana and Pinus tabulaeformis forests and the climate indicators of their boundary can be used as one of the vegetation-climate indexes for the delimitation of subtropical and warm temperate zones.The boundary between the subtropical coniferous forest(Pinus massoniana forest) and temperate coniferous forest(Pinus tabulaeformis forest) is located along the south slope of Funiu Mountain to the north edge of Hanzhong Basin(the south slope of Qinling Mountains) at an altitude of 1000–1200 m,where the climatic indictors are stable:the annual precipitation is about 750–1000 mm,the annual average temperature is about 12–14℃,the coldest monthly average temperature is 0–4℃,and the warmest monthly average temperature is about 22–26℃.(2) It can be more scientifically to delimitate the boundary of subtropical and warm temperate zones in China by comprehensively considering the vegetation-climate indicators.Additionally,the boundary between subtropical and warm temperate zones in Qinling-Daba Mountains should be a transitional zone consisting of the boundaries of coniferous forests,broad-leaved forests and shrubs between subtropical and warm temperate zones.The results provide a scientific basis for the selection of delimitation index of subtropical and warm temperate zones.     

1959–2014年中国灾害性天气持续日数的分布及趋势研究（英文）

Based on daily surface climate data and weather phenomenon data, the spatial and temporal distribution and trend on the number of consecutive days of severe weathers were analyzed in China during 1959–2014. The results indicate that the number of consecutive days for hot weathers increased at a rate of 0.1 day per decade in China as a whole, while that for cold weathers, snowfall weathers, thunderstorm weathers and foggy weathers showed significant decreasing trends at rates of 1.4, 0.3, 0.4 and 0.4 day per decade, respectively. Spatially, there were more consecutive hot days and rainstorm days in southeastern China, and more consecutive cold days and snowfall days in northeastern China and western China. Consecutive thunderstorm days were more in southern China and southwestern China, and consecutive foggy days were more in some mountain stations. Over the past 56 years, annual number of consecutive cold days decreased mainly in most parts of western China and eastern China. Consecutive thunderstorm days decreased in most parts of China. The trend of consecutive hot days, snowfall days and foggy days was not significant in most parts of China, and that of consecutive rainstorm days was not significant in almost the entire China.     

Study on the extremely cold winter of 1670 over the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River

The snow-cover days over the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River （MLRYR） in the winter of 1670 were extracted from Chinese historical documents. By these records, the winter temperature anomalies （compared to the mean of 1961-1990） recorded at seven meteorological stations and the regional mean winter temperature were estimated. The results show that： （1） There was an average of about 30 snow-cover days over the MLRYR region in 1670, ranging from 11-20 days in Shanghai and eastern Zhejiang to 5140 days in eastern Hunan Province. The snow-cover days averaged about 40 days in Anqing and Nan- cheng, and ranged from 30 to 40 days in Quzhou, Jingdezhen, and Nanchang; and （2） the regional mean winter temperature in 1670 was estimated to be approximately 4.0 ℃ lower than that of 1961-1990. The maximum negative anomaly of 5.6℃ occurred in Nanchang and the minimum anomaly of-2.8 ℃ was detected in Quzhou. Both of these were lower than that of the coldest winter during the instrumental observation period of 1951-2010. This research could not only provide a method to es- timate historical climate extremes, but also provide a background to understand the recent instrumentally climate extremes.     

城市发展对中国华北区域极端温度事件的影响(英文)

The regional changes of daily temperature extremes in North China caused by urbanization are studied further from observed facts and model estimates on the basis of homogenized daily series of maximum and minimum temperature observations from 268 meteorological stations, NCEP/DOE AMIP-Ⅱ reanalysis data(R-2), and the data of simulations by regional climate model(RegCM3). The observed facts of regional warming on long time scales are obtained by analyzing the indices of temperature extremes during two time periods of 1961–2010 and 1951–2010. For urbanization effect, the contributions to decreases in annual and winter diurnal temperature range(DTR) are 56.0% and 52.9%, respectively, and increases in the lowest minimum temperature(TNn) are 35.7% and 26.2% by comparison of urban and rural observations. Obtained by R-2 data with observations for contrast, on the other hand, increase in the number of annual warm nights(TN90p) contributed by urbanization is 60.9%. And observed facts of regional warming in daily temperature extremes are also reflected in the simulations, but what difference is urbanization progress at rural areas in North China would be prominent in the next few years relative to urban areas to some extent from model estimates.     

Temperature variations evidenced by records on the latest spring snowing dates in Hangzhou of eastern China during 1131–1270AD

We collected and verified documentary records of the latest spring snowing dates(LSSD) in Hangzhou during Southern Song Dynasty. Furtherly, the statistical correlation between this proxy and February–April mean temperature in Hangzhou was examined, and samples later than the perennial mean of the LSSD during Southern Song Dynasty were transformed into the decadal mean of LSSD by means of Boltzmann function. General characteristics of this reconstructed LSSD series with a 10-year temporal resolution was analyzed, and it was also compared with other documentary evidences and reconstructed climate series in China for the period 1131–1270. The results and discussion suggested that:(1) Records of the LSSD in Hangzhou during Southern Song Dynasty did not refer to ice pellets and graupels, which had an explicit climate significance(–0.34℃/10 d, R2=0.37, p0.001). However, when this proxy is used to reconstruct temperature changes, all dates should be converted into proleptic Gregorian style and meet the same criterion of "true Qi" as the Chinese traditional calendar after 1929.(2) The decadal mean of LSSD can be effectively estimated by using the forefront of LSSD in the decade on the basis of Boltzmann function, whose extrapolation has a lesser uncertainty than those on the basis of linear models or polynomial models.(3) The spring climate in Hangzhou during 1131–1270 was almost as warm as the period 1951–1980. At the centennial scale, this period can be divided into two phases: the cold 1131–1170 and the warm 1171–1270. In the latter, 1181–1200 and 1221–1240 were two cold intervals at the multi-decadal scale.(4) The reconstructed LSSD series was consistent well with other documentary evidences and reconstructed climate series in China for 1131–1270, which may reflect the influence on the climate over most regions of China imposed by the Pacific Decadal Oscillation(PDO).     

1961–2011年中国南方地区极端降水事件变化(英文)

Based on the daily precipitation from a 0.5°×0.5° gridded dataset and meteorological stations during 1961–2011 released by National Meteorological Information Center, the reliability of this gridded precipitation dataset in South China was evaluated. Five precipitation indices recommended by the World Meteorological Organization(WMO) were selected to investigate the changes in precipitation extremes of South China. The results indicated that the bias between gridded data interpolated to given stations and the corresponding observed data is limited, and the proportion of the number of stations with bias between –10% and 0 is 50.64%. The correlation coefficients between gridded data and observed data are generally above 0.80 in most parts. The average of precipitation indices shows a significant spatial difference with drier northwest section and wetter southeast section. The trend magnitudes of the maximum 5-day precipitation(RX5day), very wet day precipitation(R95), very heavy precipitation days(R20mm) and simple daily intensity index(SDII) are 0.17 mm·a–1, 1.14 mm·a–1, 0.02 d·a–1 and 0.01 mm·d–1·a–1, respectively, while consecutive wet days(CWD) decrease by –0.05 d·a–1 during 1961–2011. There is spatial disparity in trend magnitudes of precipitation indices, and approximate 60.85%, 75.32% and 75.74% of the grid boxes show increasing trends for RX5 day, SDII and R95, respectively. There are high correlations between precipitation indices and total precipitation, which is statistically significant at the 0.01 level.     

Temperature and precipitation changes in Extensive Hexi Region,China, 1960–2011

Global climate change has been evident in many places worldwide. This study provides a better understanding of the variability and changes in frequency, intensity, and duration of temperature, precipitation, and climate extremes in the Extensive Hexi Region, based on meteorological data from 26 stations. The analysis of average, maximum, and minimum temperatures revealed that statistically significant warming occurred from 1960 to 2011. All temperature extremes displayed trends consistent with warming, with the exception of coldest-night temperature(TNn) and coldest-day temperature(TXn), which were particularly evident in high-altitude areas and at night. Amount of precipitation and number of rainy days slowly increased with no significant regional trends, mainly occurring in the Qilian Mountains and Hexi Corridor. The significance of changes in precipitation extremes during 1960–2011 was high, but the regional trends of maximum 5-day precipitation(RX5day), the average precipitation on wet days(SDII), and consecutive wet days(CWD) were not significant. The variations in the studied parameters indicate an increase in both the extremity and strength of precipitation events, particularly in higher-altitude regions. Furthermore, the contribution from very wet precipitation(R95) and extremely wet precipitation(R99) to total precipitation also increased between 1960 and 2011. The assessment of these changes in temperature and precipitation may help in developing better management practices for water resources. Future studies in the region should focus on the impact of these changes on runoffs and glaciers.     

Spatial identification and scenario simulation of the ecological transition zones under the climate change in China

Explicitly identifying the spatial distribution of ecological transition zones(ETZs) and simulating their response to climate scenarios is of significance in understanding the response and feedback of ecosystems to global climate change. In this study, a quantitative spatial identification method was developed to assess ETZ distribution in terms of the improved Holdridge life zone(iHLZ) model. Based on climate observations collected from 782 weather stations in China in the T0(1981–2010) period, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Coupled Model Intercomparison Project(IPCC CMIP5) RCP2.6, RCP4.5, and RCP8.5 climate scenario data in the T1(2011–2040), T2(2041–2070), and T3(2071–2100) periods, the spatial distribution of ETZs and their response to climate scenarios in China were simulated in the four periods of T0, T1, T2, and T3. Additionally, a spatial shift of mean center model was developed to quantitatively calculate the shift direction and distance of each ETZ type during the periods from T0 to T3. The simulated results revealed 41 ETZ types in China, accounting for 18% of the whole land area. Cold temperate grassland/humid forest and warm temperate arid forest(564,238.5 km~2), cold temperate humid forest and warm temperate arid/humid forest(566,549.75 km~2), and north humid/humid forest and cold temperate humid forest(525,750.25 km~2) were the main ETZ types, accounting for 35% of the total ETZ area in China. Between 2010 and 2100, the area of cold temperate desert shrub and warm temperate desert shrub/thorn steppe ETZs were projected to increase at a rate of 4% per decade, which represented an increase of 3604.2, 10063.1, and 17,242 km~2 per decade under the RCP2.6, RCP4.5, and RCP8.5 scenarios, respectively. The cold ETZ was projected to transform to the warm humid ETZ in the future. The average shift distance of the mean center in the north wet forest and cold temperate desert shrub/thorn grassland ETZs was generally larger than that of other ETZs, with the mean center moving to the northeast and the shift distance being more than 150 km during the periods from T0 to T3.In addition, with a gradual increase of temperature and precipitation, the ETZs in northern China displayed a shifting northward trend, while the area of ETZs in southern China decreased gradually, and their mean center moved to high-altitude areas. The effects of climate change on ETZs presented an increasing trend in China, especially in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.     

1910-2014年湖南省均一化气温序列构建及其变化特征（英文）

Based on the statistical method and the historical evolution of meteorological stations,the temperature time series for each station in Hunan Province during 1910–2014 are tested for their homogeneity and then corrected.The missing data caused by war and other reasons at the 8 meteorological stations which had records before 1950 is filled by interpolation using adjacent observations,and complete temperature time series since the establishment of stations are constructed.After that,according to the representative analysis of each station in different time periods,the temperature series of Hunan Province during 1910–2014 are built and their changes are analyzed.The results indicate that the annual mean temperature has a significant warming trend during 1910–2014 and the seasonal mean temperature has the largest rising amplitude in winter and spring,followed by autumn,but no significant change in summer.Temperature variation over Hunan Province has several significant warm-cold alternations and more frequent than that in whole China.Annual and seasonal mean temperatures except summer and autumn have abrupt warming changes in the recent 100 years.The wavelet analysis suggests that the annual and four seasonal mean temperatures in recent 100 years have experienced two climatic shifts from cold to warm.     

Effects of urbanization on daily temperature extremes in North China简

The regional changes of daily temperature extremes in North China caused by ur- banization are studied further from observed facts and model estimates on the basis of ho- mogenized daily series of maximum and minimum temperature observations from 268 mete- orological stations, NCEP/DOE AMIP- Ⅱ reanalysis data （R-2）, and the data of simulations by regional climate model （RegCM3）. The observed facts of regional warming on long time scales are obtained by analyzing the indices of temperature extremes during two time periods of 1961-2010 and 1951-2010. For urbanization effect, the contributions to decreases in an- nual and winter diurnal temperature range （DTR） are 56.0% and 52.9%, respectively, and increases in the lowest minimum temperature （TNn） are 35.7% and 26.2% by comparison of urban and rural observations. Obtained by R-2 data with observations for contrast, on the other hand, increase in the number of annual warm nights （TN90p） contributed by urbaniza- tion is 60.9%. And observed facts of regional warming in daily temperature extremes are also reflected in the simulations, but what difference is urbanization progress at rural areas in North China would be prominent in the next few years relative to urban areas to some extent from model estimates.     

Multi-scale temperature variations and their regional differences in China during the Medieval Climate Anomaly

The Medieval Climate Anomaly(MCA, AD950–1250) is the most recent warm period lasting for several hundred years and is regarded as a reference scenario when studying the impact of and adaptation to global and regional warming. In this study, we investigated the characteristics of temperature variations on decadal–centennial scales during the MCA for four regions(Northeast, Northwest, Central-east, and Tibetan Plateau) in China, based on high-resolution temperature reconstructions and related warm–cold records from historical documents. The ensemble empirical mode decomposition method is used to analyze the time series. The results showed that for China as a whole, the longest warm period during the last 2000 years occurred in the 10 th–13 th centuries, although there were multi-decadal cold intervals in the middle to late 12 th century. However, in the beginning and ending decades, warm peaks and phases on the decadal scale of the MCA for different regions were not consistent with each other. On the inter-decadal scale, regional temperature variations were similar from 950 to 1130; moreover, their amplitudes became smaller, and the phases did not agree well from 1130 to 1250. On the multi-decadal to centennial scale, all four regions began to warm in the early 10 th century and experienced two cold intervals during the MCA. However, the Northwest and Central-east China were in step with each other while the warm periods in the Northeast China and Tibetan Plateau ended about 40-50 years earlier. On the multi-centennial scale, the mean temperature difference between the MCA and Little Ice Age was significant in Northeast and Central-east China but not in the Northwest China and Tibetan Plateau. Compared to the mean temperature of the 20 th century, a comparable warmth in the MCA was found in the Central-east China, but there was a little cooling in Northeast China; meanwhile, there were significantly lower temperatures in Northwest China and Tibetan Plateau.     

Analyses of structure of planetary boundary layer in ice camp over Arctic ocean

The vertical structure of Planetary boundary layer over Arctic floating ice is presented by using about 50 atmospheric profiles and relevant data sounded at an ice station over Arctic Ocean from 22 August to 3 September,2003.It shows that the height of the convective boundary layer in day is greater than that of the stability boundary layer in night.The boundary layer can be described as vertical structures of stability,instability and multipling The interaction between relative warm and wet down draft air from up level and cool air of surface layer is significant,which causes stronger wind shear,temperature and humidity inversion with typical wind shear of 10 m/s/100 m,intensity of temperature inversion of 8 ℃/100 m.While the larger pack ice is broken by such process,new ice free area in the high latitudes of arctic ocean.The interactions between air/ice/water are enhanced.The fact helps to understanding characteristics of atmospheric boundary layer and its effect in Arctic floating ice region.     

莱洲湾南岸咸水入侵区晚更新世以来的古环境演变

The south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay is one of the typical salt-water intrusion areas in China, the occurrence and development of which was closely related with the palaeoenvironment evolution. Systematic analyses of pollen, foraminifera and grain size composition based on ^14C and luminescence dating from two sediment cores were performed for the purpose of understanding the salt-water intrusion in the coastal plain of Laizhou Bay from the perspective of environmental evolution since late Pleistocene. It could be classified into seven evolution stages since 120 kaBP： 120-85 kaBP was a transition period from cold to warm; 85-76 kaBP was a period with warm and wet climate having swamp lakes developed in the lower reaches of the Weihe River, south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay; 76-50 kaBP was characterized by grassland vegetation and coarse sediments in terrestrial environment, which was the early stage of Dali Ice-Age; 50-24 kaBP was a period with alternate sea deposition in the south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay; 24-10 kaBP was the late stage of Dali Ice-Age with coldest period of Quaternary, the south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay was dry grassland and loess deposition environment; 10-4 kaBP was another warm and wet climate period, sea level was high and regressed at 4 kaBP; and has been the modern sedimentary environment since 4 kaBP. Among the three warm stages, including 85-76 kaBP, 50-24 kaBP and 10-4 kaBP, corresponded to late Yangkou, Guangrao and Kenli seawater transgression respectively. The duration of the latter one in south coastal plain of Laizhou Bay was longer than that in west coast of Bohai Sea and east coast of Laizhou Bay. The three periods of seawater transgression formed the foundation of salt-water intrusion in this area.     

2000-2016年青海湖湖冰物候特征变化（英文）

Lake ice phenology is considered a sensitive indicator of regional climate change. We utilized time series information of this kind extracted from a series of multi-source remote sensing(RS) datasets including the MOD09 GQ surface reflectance product, Landsat TM/ETM_+ images, and meteorological records to analyze spatiotemporal variations of ice phenology of Qinghai Lake between 2000 and 2016 applying both RS and GIS technology. We also identified the climatic factors that have influenced lake ice phenology over time and draw a number of conclusions. First, data show that freeze-up start(FUS), freeze-up end(FUE), break-up start(BUS), and break-up end(BUE) on Qinghai Lake usually occurred in mid-December, early January, mid-to-late March, and early April, respectively. The average freezing duration(FD, between FUE and BUE), complete freezing duration(CFD, between FUE and BUS), ice coverage duration(ICD, between FUS and BUE), and ablation duration(AD, between BUS and BUE) were 88 days, 77 days, 108 days and 10 days, respectively. Second, while the results of this analysis reveal considerable differences in ice phenology on Qinghai Lake between 2000 and 2016, there has been relatively little variation in FUS times. Data show that FUE dates had also tended to fluctuate over time, initially advancing and then being delayed, while the opposite was the case for BUS dates as these advanced between 2012 and 2016. Overall, there was a shortening trend of Qinghai Lake's FD in two periods, 2000–2005 and 2010–2016, which was shorter than those seen on other lakes within the hinterland of the Tibetan Plateau. Third, Qinghai Lake can be characterized by similar spatial patterns in both freeze-up(FU) and break-up(BU) processes, as parts of the surface which freeze earlier also start to melt first, distinctly different from some other lakes on the Tibetan Plateau. A further feature of Qinghai Lake ice phenology is that FU duration(between 18 days and 31 days) is about 10 days longer than BU duration(between 7 days and 20 days). Fourth, data show that negative temperature accumulated during the winter half year(between October and the following April) also plays a dominant role in ice phenology variations of Qinghai Lake. Precipitation and wind speed both also exert direct influences on the formation and melting of lake ice cover and also cannot be neglected.     

新疆绿洲地区过去2000年古城分布与气候变化的关系（英文）

The study on the relationship of abandoned settlements and climate change in the oases could provide a historical reference for understanding human responses to present and future global warming in the arid zone. A total of 554 abandoned historical settlements in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, were used to examine the relationship between abandoned settlements and temperature change over the past 2000 years. The analysis covered dynastic epochs from the Han Dynasty(206BC–220AD) to the Qing Dynasty(1644AD– 1911AD) in the oases of Xinjiang. Greater density of settlements was found at the oases larger than 2000 km~2, which were more stable and less sensitive to climate change compared to smaller oases. Settlements flourished at small oases and the middle and lower reaches of rivers during warm periods and shrank back to piedmont basins and upstream alluvial fans during cold periods. These results demonstrated responses of oasis agriculture to climate change.     

Change in summer daily precipitation and its relation with air temperature in Northwest China during 1957–2016

On the basis of the summer daily-precipitation meteorological data collected from weather stations across Northwest China from 1957 to 2016, this study evaluated the trends in 12-daily precipitation indices in the summer season and their relations with air temperature. Precipitation-event intensity, which was averaged over the total study area, increased in recent decades although the total precipitation continuously decreased. In particular, intensity generally decreased in the northern and eastern parts and increased in the southern and western parts of the study area. None of the 12 precipitation indices was significantly correlated with temperature in Xinjiang; R95 N(number of events with precipitation greater than the long-term95 th percentile), RX1 day(greatest 1-day total precipitation), PI(simple daily intensity), and R10(number of heavy-precipitation days) were significantly and positively correlated with temperature in Qinghai–Gansu. However, low correlation coefficients were observed. In the Loess Plateau, P(total precipitation), WS(maximum number of consecutive wet days),R95 N, and WD(number of wet days) were significantly and negatively correlated with temperature, whereas Gini(gini concentration index) and DS(maximum number of consecutive dry days) were significantly and positively correlated with temperature. Results of the study suggested that climate shift was evident in terms of daily precipitation, and the study area faced new challenges involving precipitation-event intensity increasing in the southwestern part and unevenly dispersing in the northwest.