Long-term variability and methods of forecasting dates of ice break-up in the mouth area of the Ob and Yenisei rivers

Long-term characteristics of the onset dates of spring ice phases at hydrological stations in the mouth areas of the Ob and Yenisei rivers for 1936–2006 are obtained. The correlations are analyzed between these dates and the frequency of different synoptic processes over the Atlantic and Eurasia in the fall-winter months, the dates when the accumulated temperatures at meteorological stations in the middle parts of the river basins reach 5, 10, 20, 30, and 40°C, and the dates of the start of ice drift at the upstream sections of the Yenisei. Prognostic relations are suggested and test forecasts of the onset dates of ice phases are verified. The percentage of correct forecasts was 67–86%, which makes it possible to recommend the relations for using in prognostic practice. The forecast lead time ranges from 3 to 110 days.     

Methods of long-range forecasting of dates of the spring flood beginning and peak flow in the estuary sections of the Ob and Yenisei rivers

Multi-year characteristics of the beginning of spring floods and their peak flow observed at the stream gauges located in the estuary sections of the Ob and Yenisei rivers in the period from 1936 to 2003 were obtained in this work. For most of stream gauges, significant correlation between these characteristic dates and dates when the accumulated positive temperatures (observed at the meteorological stations located in the middle parts of the catchments) reached 30 and 40°C was revealed. A great percentage of successful forecasts issued by using the multiple regression equations (78–86%) allow recommending using the obtained relationships for long-range forecasting of dates of the spring flood beginning and its peaks in the estuary sections of the Ob and Yenisei rivers with a 20–24-days lead time.     

Trends and Variability in Spring and Autumn 0 °C-Isotherm Dates over Canada

In cold-regions climates, numerous environmental processes and socio-economic activities are significantly impacted by the timing of the seasonal advance and retreat of the 0 °C isotherm. This investigation examines 20th century trends and variability in spring and autumn 0 °C-isotherm dates over Canada. Results reveal considerable variability across the country. Significant trends toward earlier springs are observed over most of western Canada including a dramatic shift to earlier dates during the last 20–30 years. Central regions areassociated with smaller, generally insignificant earlier spring trends. Conversely, extreme eastern areas experience later springs. During autumn, isotherm dates show little change over the majority of the country. The observed spatial and temporal characteristics in the 0 °C-isotherm trends are reflected in past variations in several hydro-cryospheric variables over many regions of Canada including the timing of snowmelt and the dates of freshwater ice break-up. Investigation into the potential causes of observed variability in 0 °C-isotherm dates reveals that large-scale oscillations representing atmospheric/oceanic variations in the north Pacific and north Atlantic significantly relate to isotherm dates over western and eastern Canada, respectively, during both spring and autumn. Although significant, a relatively small amount of overall variance in isotherm dates is explained by the oscillations indicating the influence of other factors. Results from this study improve our knowledge of past trends and variability in 0°C-isotherm dates and resultant impacts on hydro-cryospheric processesover Canada. They also provide insight into potential future climatologic impacts given the possibility of climate change.     

Changes in the Number and Timing of Days of Ice-Affected Flow on Northern New England Rivers, 1930–2000

Historical dates of ice-affected flows for 16 rural, unregulated rivers in northern New England, USA were analyzed. The total annual days of ice-affected flow decreased significantly (p < 0.1) over the 20th century at 12 of the 16 rivers. On average, for the nine longest-record rivers, the total annual days of ice-affected flow decreased by 20 days from 1936 to 2000, with most of the decrease occurring from the 1960s to 2000. Four of the 16 rivers had significantly later first dates of ice-affected flow in the fall. Twelve of the 16 rivers had significantly earlier last dates of ice-affected flow in the spring. On average, the last dates became earlier by 11 days from 1936 to 2000 with most of the change occurring from the 1960s to 2000. The total annual days of ice-affected flow were significantly correlated with November through April air temperatures (r = −0.70) and with November through April precipitation (r = −0.52). The last spring dates were significantly correlated with March through April air temperatures (r = −0.73) and with January through April precipitation (r = −0.37). March mean river flows increased significantly at 13 of the 16 rivers in this study.The U.S. Government right to retain a non-exclusive royalty-free license in and to any copyright is acknowledged.     

Daily Air Temperature and Pressure Series for Stockholm (1756–1998)

Daily meteorological observations have been made at the old astronomical observatory in Stockholm since 1754. Complete daily mean series of air temperature and sea level pressure are reconstructed from the observational data for 1756–1998. The temperature and pressure series arereconstructed and homogenized with the aid of metadata, statistical tests and comparisons with data from other stations. Comparisons with independently reconstructed daily series for nearby Uppsala (1722–1998) show that the quality of thedaily Stockholm data is good, although the reliability is lower before the mid-19th century. The daily temperature data show that the colder winter mean temperatures of the late 18th to early 19th centuries were connected with a particularly high frequency of very cold winter days. The warmer summers of the same period are more connected with a general shift of the temperature distribution towards higher temperatures than in the late 20th century.     

The Early 19th Century Climate of the Bahamas and a Comparison with 20th Century Averages

Two weather records kept at Nassau, Bahamas, from 1811 to 1837, and from 1838 to 1845, respectively, are analyzed and compared to 20th century reference periods. The average annual temperature of the period is 24.2°C (±0.65°C), which is 0.4°C lower than 1961–1990 and 0.1°C lower than 1901–1920, the coolest period in the 20th century. Cold periods occurred from 1812–1819 and 1835–1839. A warmer phase prevailed between these two episodes and another warm episode occurred in 1840–1842. Temperature fell after the volcanic eruptions of Tambora (April, 1815) and Coseguina (January, 1835). The maximum cooling after Tambora is estimated at 1.0°C (±0.56°) and after Coseguina is estimated at 0.4°C (±0.56°). The post-Tambora cooling is in line with previous estimates (Robock, personal communication). The 1810s were a period of extreme drought at Nassau and are unequalled in later years. Rainfall frequency was below contemporary (1812–1837) averages from 1812–1820 and 1836–1837 but was above average from 1821–1835. Moist (dry) periods occurred almost simultaneously with warm (cool) periods. The months of October, November, and April show the greatest (negative) deviations in precipitation frequency. Gale force winds were 85% more frequent than from 1901–1960. Much of this increase took place in the months of September through November and represents an increase in tropical cyclone frequency in the Nassau area above that of 1901–1960. Resultant winds show a tendency towards greater northerly components than in the 20th century, especially during the winter months. The increase in northerly wind components, temperatures below the 20th-century average, and reduction in rainfall frequency in the winter half of the year indicates a synoptic situation in which high pressure was more frequent over the southeast North American continent.     

Decline in Length of the Summer Season on the Kola Peninsula, Russia

By analysing records made in the northern taiga forests of the Lapland Reserve (Kola Peninsula, Russia) during 1930–1998, we unexpectedly discovered a decline in the length of the snow-free and ice-free periods by 15–20 days due to both delayed spring and advanced autumn/winter. Respective seasonal temperatures best explained the dates of all phenological phases: 1 °C shift in temperature was approximately equal to 2–5 day shift in phenology. However the phenological shiftsduring the observation period are much larger than could be expected from the slight (0.56 °C) drop in temperatures during August–September, suggesting that the biotic effects of a very slight cooling have been enhanced by one or more unknown factors. Although emissions of sulphur dioxide from the nickel-copper smelter at Monchegorsk may have contributed to the observed trend (via changes in regional radiative budget), we found no evidence of direct pollution impact on dates of birch autumnal coloration or birch leaf fall, which exhibited the largest (22 days) shift between 1930 and 1998. The detected phenological trends agree with an increase in winter (snow) precipitation in the study area by 44%; however, effects of precipitation on any of the investigated phenological phases were far from significant. Our results highlight the importance of phenological records for the assessment of past regional environmental changes, and demonstrates that the prediction of even the simplest biotic responses to the Global Changes requires a profound understanding of the interactive impact of abiotic factors on the ecosystem.     

Increasing Growing-Season Length in Illinois during the 20th Century

Using daily minimum air-temperature (T_min) data from the state of Illinois, the dates of spring and fall freezes – and the resulting growing-season length – are examined for trends during theperiod 1906–1997. Of the stations in the Daily Historical Climate Network, mostshow trends toward earlier spring freezes; however, trends in fall freezes are not consistent over the station network. Although the time series are highly variable (noisy), results suggest that the growing-season length in Illinois became roughly one week longer during the 20thcentury. To examine how changing freeze-date statistics relate to changing air-temperature probability distributions, percentiles of T_min formoving 10-year periods were analyzed for trends during the typical times for spring and fall freezes in Illinois (i.e., the months of April and October). The lower portion of the April probability distribution shows substantially larger warming (0.5–0.7 ° C/100 yrs) than the upper portion of the distribution (0.2–0.3 ° C/100 yrs), suggesting that although cold events are warming during April, warm events are not warming as fast. Conversely, the lower portion of the October probability distribution shows modest cooling in T_min (–0.2 ° C/100yrs for the 10th percentile), while middle and upper portions of the distribution show very large rates of cooling (up to –1.5 ° C/100 yrs for the 40th–70th percentiles). Analysis ofthe entire probability distribution provides a more-comprehensive perspective on climatic change than does the traditional focus on central tendency.     

Biogeophysical effects of historical land cover changes simulated by six Earth system models of intermediate complexity

Six Earth system models of intermediate complexity that are able to simulate interaction between atmosphere, ocean, and land surface, were forced with a scenario of land cover changes during the last millennium. In response to historical deforestation of about 18 million sq km, the models simulate a decrease in global mean annual temperature in the range of 0.13–0.25°C. The rate of this cooling accelerated during the 19th century, reached a maximum in the first half of the 20th century, and declined at the end of the 20th century. This trend is explained by temporal and spatial dynamics of land cover changes, as the effect of deforestation on temperature is less pronounced for tropical than for temperate regions, and reforestation in the northern temperate areas during the second part of the 20th century partly offset the cooling trend. In most of the models, land cover changes lead to a decline in annual land evapotranspiration, while seasonal changes are rather equivocal because of spatial shifts in convergence zones. In the future, reforestation might be chosen as an option for the enhancement of terrestrial carbon sequestration. Our study indicates that biogeophysical mechanisms need to be accounted for in the assessment of land management options for climate change mitigation.     

哈密市近30a家燕停留时间与气象因子的关系

通过对哈密气象站1980-2008年家燕物候资料和气象资料的分析,得出当地家燕物候变化规律及停留时间与气象因子的关系。结果表明：（1）家燕始见日期均在4月,其中4月中旬较多,平均日期为4月16日,绝见日期均在9月且集中于中旬,平均日期为9月16日;（2）家燕停留期为4—9月,平均停留153d;（3）停留期与同期≥0℃积温和日照时数均呈显著的正相关关系,而随降水量的变化在不同时段呈现或同向或反向的趋势;（4）≥0℃积温和日照时数均为增加趋势,总体上家燕停留期变化与二者变化趋势一致,但近6a停留期缩短。     

Indicators of Climate Warming in Minnesota: Lake ICE Covers and Snowmelt Runoff

Records of hydrologic parameters, especially those parameters that are directly linked to air temperature, were analyzed to find indicators of recent climate warming in Minnesota, USA. Minnesota is projected to be vulnerable to climate change because of its location in the northern temperate zone of the globe. Ice-out and ice-in dates on lakes, spring (snowmelt) runoff timing, spring discharge values in streams, and stream water temperatures recorded up to the year 2002 were selected for study. The analysis was conducted by inspection of 10-year moving averages, linear regression on complete and on partial records, and by ranking and sorting of events. Moving averages were used for illustrative purposes only. All statistics were computed on annual data. All parameters examined show trends, and sometimes quite variable trends, over different periods of the record. With the exception of spring stream flow rates the trends of all parameters examined point toward a warming climate in Minnesota over the last two or three decades. Although hidden among strong variability from year to year, ice-out dates on 73 lakes have been shifting to an earlier date at a rate of −0.13 days/year from 1965 to 2002, while ice-in dates on 34 lakes have been delayed by 0.75 days/year from 1979 to 2002. From 1990 to 2002 the rates of change increased to −0.25 days/year for ice-out and 1.44 days/year for ice-in. Trend analyses also show that spring runoff at 21 stream gaging sites examined occurs earlier. From 1964 to 2002 the first spring runoff (due to snowmelt) has occurred −0.30 days/year earlier and the first spring peak runoff −0.23 days/year earlier. The stream water temperature records from 15 sites in the Minneapolis/St Paul metropolitan area shows warming by 0.11^∘C/year, on the average, from 1977 to 2002. Urban development may have had a strong influence. The analysis of spring stream flow rates was inconclusive, probably because runoff is linked as much to precipitation and land use as to air temperature. Ranking and sorting of annual data shows that a disproportionately large number of early lake ice-out dates has occurred after 1985, but also between 1940 and 1950; similarly late lake ice-in has occurred more frequently since about 1990. Ranking and sorting of first spring runoff dates also gave evidence of earlier occurrences, i.e. climate warming in late winter. A relationship of changes in hydrologic parameters with trends in air temperature records was demonstrated. Ice-out dates were shown to correlate most strongly with average March air temperatures shifting by −2.0 days for a 1^°C increase in March air temperature. Spring runoff dates also show a relationship with March air temperatures; spring runoff dates shift at a rate of −2.5 days/1^°C minimum March air temperature change. Water temperatures at seven river sites in the Minneapolis/St Paul metropolitan area show an average rise of 0.46^°C in river temperature/1^°C mean annual air temperature change, but this rate of change probably includes effects of urban development. In conclusion, records of five hydrologic parameters that are closely linked to air temperature show a trend that suggests recent climate warming in Minnesota, and especially from 1990 to 2002. The recent rates of change calculated from the records are very noteworthy, but must not be used to project future parameter values, since trends cannot continue indefinitely, and trend reversals can be seen in some of the long-term records.     

The South Atlantic dipole and variations in the characteristics of the South American Monsoon in the WCRP-CMIP3 multi-model simulations

This study investigates relationships between Atlantic sea surface temperature (SST) and the variability of the characteristics of the South American Monsoon System (SAMS), such as the onset dates and total precipitation over central eastern Brazil. The observed onset and total summer monsoon precipitation are estimated for the period 1979?C2007. SST patterns are obtained from the Empirical Orthogonal Function. It is shown that variations in SST on interannual timescales over the South Atlantic Ocean play an important role in the total summer monsoon precipitation. Negative (positive) SST anomalies over the topical South Atlantic along with positive (negative) SST anomalies over the extratropical South Atlantic are associated with early (late) onsets and wet (dry) summers over southeastern Brazil and late (early) onset and dry (wet) summers over northeastern Brazil. Simulations from Phase 3 of the World Climate Research Programme Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP-3) are assessed for the 20th century climate scenario (1971?C2000). Most CMIP3 coupled models reproduce the main modes of variability of the South Atlantic Ocean. GFDL2.0 and MIROC-M are the models that best represent the SST variability over the South Atlantic. On the other hand, these models do not succeed in representing the relationship between SST and SAMS variability.     

Tree ring inferred summer temperature variations over the last millennium in western Himalaya, India

We report the first millennium-long reconstruction of mean summer (May–June–July–August) temperature extending back to AD 940 derived from tree-ring width data of Himalayan pencil juniper (Juniperus polycarpos C. Koch) from the monsoon-shadow zone in the western Himalaya, India. Centennial-scale variations in the reconstruction reveal periods of protracted warmth encompassing the 11–15th centuries. A decreasing trend in mean summer temperature occurred since the 15th century with the 18–19th centuries being the coldest interval of the last millennium, coinciding with the expansion of glaciers in the western Himalaya. Since the late 19th century summer temperatures increased again. However, current warming may be underestimated due to a weakening in tree growth-temperature relationship noticeable in the latter part of the 20th century. Mean summer temperature over the western Himalaya shows a positive correlation with summer monsoon intensity over north central India. Low-frequency variations in mean summer temperature anomalies over northwestern India are consistent with tree-ring inferred aridity in western North America. These far-distance linkages reported here for the first time underscore the utility of long-term temperature records from the western Himalayan region in understanding global-scale climatic patterns.     

Tree-ring and glacial evidence for the medieval warm epoch and the little ice age in southern South America

A tree-ring reconstruction of summer temperatures from northern Patagonia shows distinct episodes of higher and lower temperature during the last 1000 yr. The first cold interval was from A.D. 900 to 1070, which was followed by a warm period A.D. 1080 to 1250 (approximately coincident with theMedieval Warm Epoch). Afterwards a long, cold-moist interval followed from A.D. 1270 to 1660, peaking around 1340 and 1640 (contemporaneously with earlyLittle Ice Age events in the Northern Hemisphere). In central Chile, winter rainfall variations were reconstructed using tree rings back to the year A.D. 1220. From A.D. 1220 to 1280, and from A.D. 1450 to 1550, rainfall was above the long-term mean. Droughts apparently occurred between A.D. 1280 and 1450, from 1570 to 1650, and from 1770 to 1820. In northern Patagonia, radiocarbon dates and tree-ring dates record two major glacial advances in the A.D. 1270–1380 and 1520–1670 intervals. In southern Patagonia, the initiation of theLittle Ice Age appears to have been around A.D. 1300, and the culmination of glacial advances between the late 17th to the early 19th centuries.Most of the reconstructed winter-dry periods in central Chile are synchronous with cold summers in northern Patagonia, resembling the present regional patterns associated with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). The years A.D. 1468–69 represent, in both temperature and precipitation reconstructions from treerings, the largest departures during the last 1000 yr. A very strong ENSO event was probably responsible for these extreme deviations. Tree-ring analysis also indicates that the association between a weaker southeastern Pacific subtropical anticyclone and the occurence of El Niño events has been stable over the last four centuries, although some anomalous cases are recognized.     

The importance of record length in estimating the magnitude of climatic changes: an example using 175 years of lake ice-out dates in New England

Many studies have shown that lake ice-out (break-up) dates in the Northern Hemisphere are useful indicators of late winter/early spring climate change. Trends in lake ice-out dates in New England, USA, were analyzed for 25, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150, and 175 year periods ending in 2008. More than 100 years of ice-out data were available for 19 of the 28 lakes in this study. The magnitude of trends over time depends on the length of the period considered. For the recent 25-year period, there was a mix of earlier and later ice-out dates. Lake ice-outs during the last 50 years became earlier by 1.8 days/decade (median change for all lakes with adequate data). This is a much higher rate than for longer historical periods; ice-outs became earlier by 0.6 days/decade during the last 75 years, 0.4 days/decade during the last 100 years, and 0.6 days/decade during the last 125 years. The significance of trends was assessed under the assumption of serial independence of historical ice-out dates and under the assumption of short and long term persistence. Hypolimnion dissolved oxygen (DO) levels are an important factor in lake eutrophication and coldwater fish survival. Based on historical data available at three lakes, 32 to 46 % of the interannual variability of late summer hypolimnion DO levels was related to ice-out dates; earlier ice-outs were associated with lower DO levels.     

Reconstruction of seasonal temperatures in Central Canada since A.D. 1700 and detection of the 18.6- and 22-year signals

This paper presents an attempt to summarize various sparse proxy series into continuous and exhaustive climatic data. Freeze-up and break-up dates, early meteorological records and tree-ring data have been combined for the Hudson Bay region and 22 continuous proxy series extending from 1700 to 1979 have been deduced. These new series in term provided the basis for a regressive reconstruction of six seasonal temperature series. Verification tests are successful mainly for the high frequencies components. The low frequencies variability is better estimated by a best analogues method. Both kinds of reconstructions have been combined to improve the results. The main characteristic of the reconstructions is a warming trend beginning at the end of the 19th century. Evidence for a beat wave resulting from 22-year solar and 18.6-year lunar nodal tidal cycles is presented. A phase analysis showed results consistent with other studies of summer temperature variability: temperature maxima correspond to sunspot minima ending an even cycle and are emphasized by the lunar maxima. Different phenomena are pointed out for autumn and winter temperatures: their maxima coincide to sunspot even maxima amplified by lunar minima. In spring, the transition season, these signals are not apparent.     

巴丹吉林南缘近两百年来年降水重建及初步分析

沙漠及其边缘地区生态环境脆弱,对气候变化敏感。但沙漠地区有限的森林资源限制了区域百年到千年尺度上的历史气候变化研究。利用采自巴丹吉林南缘的青海云杉年轮宽度资料,重建了区域近191 a(1815—2005年)来的年降水(前一年7月至当年8月的总降水量)变化序列。重建的相关系数是0.636,方差解释量为40.4%,调整自由度后的解释方差R2adj为0.392。重建结果稳定可靠。分析区域过去年降水变化结果可见,19世纪该区域干湿变化频繁,20世纪前半段主要以干旱为主,干湿转变较少。20世纪20年代的干旱事件在巴丹吉林南缘的干旱持续时间更长。周期分析的结果表明,区域年降水量变化有2 a、4 a、64 a等周期。     

SEASONAL AND ANNUAL TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS SINCE 1470 AD IN EAST CHINA

The ten-year mean anomalies of seasonal and annual temperatures were reconstructed on the basis ofhistorical documents of cold events such as severe snowing and freezing of lakes and rivers.The assorted eventswere calibrated with instrumental observations of temperature and transformed into ten-year mean anomalies.The reconstructed temperature series show predominance of cold climate in the first four hundred years of theperiod examined.The centenary seasonal temperature anomalies for the 16th to the 19th century vary between-0.1 and -0.7K.The coldest decades concentrated in the middle of 17th and 19th centuries.It provided theirrefutable evidence of the occurrence of the Little Ice Age in China.The minima of ten-year mean temperatureanomalies ranged about -1.5 to 2.0K in spring and winter.Meanwhile,the variance of ten-year mean tempera-ture was increased by more than 20％ in comparison to the 20th century.     

Climatic trends from isotopic records of tree rings: The past 100–200 years

There has been a great deal of discussion about global warming from accumulation of anthropogenic greenhouse gases in the atmosphere (Houghton et al., 1990). Relatively less attention has been paid to spatial and/or temporal climatic variations that may be associated with a warmer climate (Rind et al., 1989) or with anthropogenic activities (Schneider, 1994). In this article, we show that an increase in climatic variability may have started. Fourteen isotopic time series of tree rings are presented. These trees were randomly collected from world-wide locations and cover time periods of 120 to over 200 years. The isotopic records show increasing D values that suggest a consistent and progressive warming occurred in the 19th century in all locations where the trees were sampled. The rate of warming is greater at relatively cold locations than at warm locations with two exceptions. The records also suggest greater climatic variations both temporally and spatially in the 20th century than in the 19th century.     

烤烟不同移栽期的生育期气象条件和产量品质对比

为增强烤烟对气候变化的适应性,提高烤烟经济效益与品质,以K346品种为材料,于2001年在弥勒县虹溪镇烟叶基地开展移栽试验,研究不同移栽期下的烤烟气象条件、农艺性状和经济效益以及烟叶化学成分进行统计分析,以期得出适宜的移栽期。结果表明：与4月20、30日和5月10日移栽相比,5月20日和5月30日移栽的温度及降水并不存在劣势,但光照与大田期≥10℃活动积温的劣势较明显;4月20日和5月10日移栽的气象条件有利于烟叶生长,而5月30日移栽的气象条件不利于烟叶生长,4月20日至5月10日移栽的气象条件与国内外优质烟区具有很高的相似性,5月20日和5月30日移栽期与国内外优质烟区气候相似程度小于4月20日至5月10日移栽期。适当提前移栽,可增加叶面积指数、株高、茎围和节距;随着移栽时间的推迟,烟叶产量、中上等烟比例和产值呈先上升后下降的规律;烟叶的产量、中上等烟比例、产值综合指标以移栽期为4月30日和5月10日较好。移栽期为4月30日和5月10日的烟叶化学指标总体表现适宜,化学成分协调。弥勒县虹溪镇或气象条件与之类似的烟区在4月30日到5月10日移栽,可以改善烤烟气象条件,易取得优质适产。