The trend,seasonal cycle,and sources of tropospheric NO<Subscript>2</Subscript> over China during 1997–2006 based on satellite measurement

The characteristics of spatial and temporal distribution of tropospheric NO2 column density concentration over China are presented, on the basis of measurements from the satellite instruments GOME and SCIAMACHY. From these observations, monthly averaged tropospheric NO2 variations are determined for the period of 1997 to 2006. The trend and seasonal cycle are also investigated. The possible source of tropospheric NO2 over megacity area is discussed in this paper. The results show a large growth of tropospheric NO2 over eastern China, especially above the industrial areas with a fast economical growth, such as, Yangtze Rive Delta region and Pearl River Delta region because of the prominent anthropogenic activity. There is a rapid increase of tropospheric NO2 over megacities in China. For instance, Shanghai had a linear significant increase in NO2 columns of ～20% per year (reference year 1997) in the period of 1997-2006, which is the rapidest increase among all the selected cities. The seasonal pattern of the NO2 concentration shows a difference between the east and west in China. In the eastern part of China, an expected winter maximum in seasonal cycle is found because of the prominent anthropogenic activity and meteorological conditions. In the western part this cycle shows a NO2 maximum in summer time, which is attributed to natural emissions, especially soil emissions and lightning. A quickly increasing vehicle population may contribute to the increase of tropospheric NO2 over megacities in China for the remarkable correlation for vehicle population with tropospheric NO2.     

A projection of future changes in summer precipitation and monsoon in East Asia

The future potential changes in precipitation and monsoon circulation in the summer in East Asia are projected using the latest generation of coupled climate models under Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on Emission Scenarios (SRES) A1B scenario (a medium emission scenario).The multi-model ensemble means show that during the period of 2010-2099,the summer precipitation in East Asia will increase and experience a prominent change around the 2040s,with a small increase (～1%) before the end of the 2040s and a large increase (～9%) afterward.This kind of two-stage evolution characteristic of precipitation change can be seen most clearly in North China,and then in South China and in the mid and lower Yangtze River Valley.In 2010-2099,the projected precipitation pattern will be dominated by a pattern of "wet East China" that explains 33.6% of EOF total variance.The corresponded time coefficient will markedly increase after the 2040s,indicating a great contribution from this mode to the enhanced precipitation across all East China.Other precipitation patterns that prevail in the current climate only contribute a small proportion to the total variance,with no prominent liner trend in the future.By the late 21st century,the monsoon circulation will be stronger in East Asia.At low level,this is due to the intensification of southwesterly airflow north of the anticyclone over the western Pacific and the SCS,and at high level,it is caused by the increased northeasterly airflow east of the anticyclone over South Asia.The enhanced monsoon circulation will also experience a two-stage evolution in 2010-2099,with a prominent increase (by ～0.6 m s-1) after the 2040s.The atmospheric water vapor content over East Asia will greatly increase (by ～9%) at the end of 21st century.The water vapor transported northward into East China will be intensified and display a prominent increase around the 2040s similar to other examined variables.These indicate that the enhanced precipitation over East Asia is caused by the increases in both monsoon circulation and water vapor,which is greatly different from South Asia.Both the dynamical and thermal dynamic variables will evolve consistently in response to the global warming in East Asia,i.e.,the intensified southwesterly monsoon airflow corresponding to the increased water vapor and southwesterly moisture transport.     

The mechanism of the effects of the upwelling mean on the ENSO event mature phase locking

The mechanism of the effects of the upwelling mean on the ENSO event mature phase locking is ex-amined by using a mixed-mode model. The results show that the positive feedback process of the ef-fects of the seasonal variation of the upwelling mean on the Kelvin wave is the mechanism of the locking of the event mature phase to the end of the calendar year. The memory of the Rossby waves for the sign-shifting of the sea surface temperature anomaly from positive to negative 6 months before the cold peak time is the other mechanism of the locking of the La Nia event mature phase to the end of the calendar year. The results here are different from previous ones which suggest that the balance between cold and warm trends of sea surface temperature anomaly is the mechanism involved. The cold trend is caused by the upwelling Kelvin wave from upwelling Rossby wave reflected at the western boundary, excited by the westerly anomaly stress over the central Pacific and amplified by the seasonal variation of the coupled strength in its way propagating westward. The warm trend is caused by the Kelvin wave forced by the western wind stress over the middle and eastern equatorial Pacific. The cause of the differences is due to the opposite phase of the seasonal variation of the upwelling mean to that in the observation and an improper parameterization scheme for the effects of the seasonal varia-tion of the upwelling mean on the ENSO cycle in previous studies.     

Meteorological conditions for the persistent severe fog and haze event over eastern China in January 2013

In January 2013,a severe fog and haze event(FHE)of strong intensity,long duration,and extensive coverage occurred in eastern China.The present study investigates meteorological conditions for this FHE by diagnosing both its atmospheric background fields and daily evolution in January 2013.The results show that a weak East Asian winter monsoon existed in January2013.Over eastern China,the anomalous southerly winds in the middle and lower troposphere are favorable for more water vapor transported to eastern China.An anomalous high at 500 hPa suppresses convection.The weakened surface winds are favorable for the fog and haze concentrating in eastern China.The reduction of the vertical shear of horizontal winds weakens the synoptic disturbances and vertical mixing of atmosphere.The anomalous inversion in near-surface increases the stability of surface air.All these meteorological background fields in January 2013 were conducive to the maintenance and development of fog and haze over eastern China.The diagnosis of the daily evolution of the FHE shows that the surface wind velocity and the vertical shear of horizontal winds in the middle and lower troposphere can exert dynamic effects on fog and haze.The larger(smaller)they are,the weaker(stronger)the fog and haze are.The thermodynamic effects include stratification instability in middle and lower troposphere and the inversion and dew-point deficit in near-surface.The larger(smaller)the stratification instability and the inversion are,the stronger(weaker)the fog and haze are.Meanwhile,the smaller(larger)the dewpoint deficit is,the stronger(weaker)the fog and haze are.Based on the meteorological factors,a multi-variate linear regression model is set up.The model results show that the dynamic and thermodynamic effects on the variance of the fog and haze evolution are almost the same.The contribution of the meteorological factors to the variance of the daily fog and haze evolution reaches 0.68,which explains more than 2/3 of the variance.     

Climatological distribution of lightning density observed by satellites in China and its circumjacent regions

The 0.5°×0.5°grid resolution distribution of lightning density in China and its circumjacent regions have been analyzed by using the satellite-borne OTD (Apr 1995-Mar 2000) and LIS (Dec 1997-Mar 2003) databases. It is shown that: (i) Firstly, the variability of the lightning density (LD) is particularly pronounced over the different subareas, 9 times greater over the south than the north side of Himalayas Mountains, 2.5 times greater over the eastern than the western area of China. While the maximum and minimum LD are respectively 31.4fl/km2/a (in Guangzhou region) and less than 0.2fl/km2/a (in the desert of western China). Secondly, the LD of China's continent regularly varies with latitude and distance off coast, which is consistent with annual mean precipitation in varying trend. In conclusion, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the China's three-step staircase topography and the latitude are three important factors affecting macro-scale characteristics of the LD distribution, (ii) The regional differences     

Regional distribution and diurnal variation of deep convective systems over the Asian monsoon region

Using 12 years of data from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission(TRMM)-based Precipitation Radar(PR),spatial and diurnal variations of deep convective systems(DCSs)over the Asian monsoon region are analyzed.The DCSs are defined by a 20 dBZ echo top extending 14 km.The spatial distribution of DCSs genesis is also discussed,with reference to the National Centers for Environmental Prediction(NCEP)reanalysis data.The results show that DCSs occur mainly over land.They concentrate in south of 20°N during the pre-monsoon season,and then move distinctly to mid-latitude regions,with the most active region on the south slope of the Himalayas during monsoon season.DCSs over the Tibetan Plateau are more frequent than those in central-eastern China,but smaller in horizontal scale and weaker in convective intensity.DCSs in central-eastern China have more robust updrafts and generate more lightning flashes than in other Asian monsoon regions.The horizontal scale of DCSs over the ocean is larger than that over the other regions,and the corresponding minimum infrared(IR)brightness temperature is lower,whereas the convective intensity is weaker.Continental DCSs are more common from noon through midnight,and DCSs over the Tibetan Plateau are more frequently from noon through evening.Oceanic DCSs frequency has a weaker diurnal cycle with dawn maximum,and diurnal variation of DCSs over the tropical maritime continent is consistent with that over the continent.     

Inertial gravity wave parameters for the lower stratosphere from radiosonde data over China

Characterization of gravity wave(GW)parameters for the stratosphere is critical for global atmospheric circulation models.These parameters are mainly determined from measurements.Here,we investigate variation in inertial GW activity with season and latitude in the lower stratosphere(18-25 km)over China,using radiosonde data with a high vertical resolution over a 2-year period.Eight radiosonde stations were selected across China,with a latitudinal range of 22°-49°N.Analyses show that the GW energy in the lower stratosphere over China has obvious seasonal variation and a meridional distribution,similar to other regions of the globe.The GW energy is highest in winter,and lowest in summer;it decreases with increasing latitude.Velocity perturbations with longitude and latitude are almost the same,indicating that GW energy is horizontally isotropic.Typically,85%of the vertical wavelength distribution is concentrated between elevations of 1 and 3 km,with a mean value of 2 km;it is almost constant with latitude.Over 80%of all the horizontal wavelengths occur in the range 100-800 km,with a mean value of 450km;they show a weak decrease with increasing latitude,yielding a difference of about 40 km over the 22°-49°N range.The ratio of horizontal wavelength over vertical wavelength is about 200:1,which implies that inertial GWs in the lower stratosphere propagate along nearly horizontal planes.Ratios of their intrinsic frequency to the Coriolis parameter decrease with increasing latitude;most values are between 1 and 2,with a mean value of 1.5.Study of the propagation directions of GW energy shows that upward fractions account for over 60%at all stations.In contrast,the horizontal propagation direction is significantly anisotropic,and is mainly along prevailing wind directions;this anisotropy weakens with increasing latitude.     

The effects of asymmetric potential vorticity forcing on the instability of South Asia High and Indian summer monsoon onset

Based on the theory of potential vorticity(PV),the unstable development of the South Asia High(SAH)due to diabatic heating and its impacts on the Indian Summer Monsoon(ISM)onset are studied via a case diagnosis of 1998.The Indian Summer Monsoon onset in 1998 is related to the rapidly strengthening and northward moving of a tropical cyclone originally located in the south of Arabian Sea.It is demonstrated that the rapid enhancement of the cyclone is a consequence of a baroclinic development characterized by the phase-lock of high PV systems in the upper and lower troposphere.Both the intensification of the SAH and the development of the zonal asymmetric PV forcing are forced by the rapidly increasing latent heat released from the heavy rainfall in East Asia and South East Asia after the onsets of the Bay of Bengal(BOB)monsoon and the South China Sea(SCS)monsoon.High PV moves southwards along the intensified northerlies on the eastern side of the SAH and travels westwards on its south side,which can reach its northwest.Such a series of high PV eddies are transported to the west of the SAH continuously,which is the main source of PV anomalies in the upper troposphere over the Arabian Sea from late spring to early summer.A cyclonic curvature on the southwest of the SAH associated with increasing divergence,which forms a strong upper tropospheric pumping,is generated by the anomalous positive PV over the Arabian Sea on 355 K.The cyclone in the lower troposphere moves northwards from low latitudes of the Arabian Sea,and the upper-layer high PV extends downwards and southwards.Baroclinic development thus occurs and the tropical low-pressure system develops into an explosive vortex of the ISM,which leads to the onset of the ISM.In addition,evolution of subtropical anticyclone over the Arabian Peninsula is another important factor contributing to the onset of the ISM.Before the onset,the surface sensible heating on the Arabian Peninsula is very strong.Consequently the subtropical anticyclone which dominated the Arabian Sea in spring retreats westwards to the Arabian Peninsula and intensifies rapidly.The zonal asymmetric PV forcing develops gradually with high PV eddies moving southwards along northerlies on the eastern side of the anticyclone,and a high PV trough is formed in the middle troposphere over the Arabian Sea,which is favorable to the explosive barotropic development of the tropical cyclone into the vortex.Results from this study demonstrate that the ISM onset,which is different from the BOB and the SCS monsoon onset,is a special dynamical as well as thermodynamic process occurring under the condition of fully coupling of the upper,middle,and lower tropospheric circulations.     

Impact of China’s Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan on PM2.5 chemical composition over eastern China

China promulgated the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan(the Action Plan) in 2013 and developed stringent control measures to mitigate fine particulate matter(PM_(2.5) pollution.Here,we investigated the PM_(2.5) chemical composition changes over eastern China associated with the Action Plan during 2013-2017 using satellite-based PM_(2.5) chemical composition data derived using CMAQ simulations and satellite inputs.The PM_(2.5) concentrations decreased considerably during this time as a result of the reductions in all chemical species in PM_(2.5).The population-weighted mean concentrations over eastern China decreased from 11.1 to 6.7μgm~(-3) for SO_4~(2-),13.8-13.1μgm~(-3) for NO_3~-,7.4-5.8μgm~(-3) for NH_4~+,9.9-8.4μgm~(-3) for OM,4.6-3.8 μg m~(-3) for BC and 12.9-9.6 μg m~(-3) for other species in PM_(2.5).SO_4~(2-) had the largest reduction of 40%,while NO_3~-had the lowest reduction of 5%,resulting in a greater fraction of NO_3~-and a smaller fraction of SO_4~(2-) in PM_(2.5).Among the three key regions,Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei had the largest reduction in PM_(2.5) and its chemical compositions.The decrease in SO_4~(2-) concentrations was in line with the reduction of SO_2 emissions,and the major driver of the SO_2 emission reductions was the industrial sector.The decrease in NO_3 concentrations was limited because the decrease in SO_2 emissions and the stable NH_3 emissions facilitated the formation of NO_3~- from HNO_3,which partiall_y offset the reduction in NO_x emissions driven by the power sector.To mitigate PM_(2.5) pollution more effectively,future efforts are needed to reduce NH_3 emissions.     

Land use effects on climate in China as simulated by a regional climate model

A regional climate model (RegCM3) nested within ERA40 re-analyzed data is used to investigate the climate effects of land use change over China. Two 15-year simulations (1987―2001), one with current land use and the other with potential vegetation cover without human intervention, are conducted for a domain encompassing China. The climate impacts of land use change are assessed from the difference between the two simulations. Results show that the current land use (modified by anthropogenic ac- tivities) influences local climate as simulated by the model through the reinforcement of the monsoon circulation in both the winter and summer seasons and through changes of the surface energy budget. In winter, land use change leads to reduced precipitation and decreased surface air temperature south of the Yangtze River, and increased precipitation north of the Yangtze River. Land use change signifi- cantly affects summer climate in southern China, yielding increased precipitation over the region, de- creased temperature along the Yangtze River and increased temperature in the South China area (south-end of China). In summer, a reduction of precipitation over northern China and a temperature rise over Northwest China are also simulated. Both daily maximum and minimum temperatures are affected in the simulations. In general, the current land use in China leads to enhanced mean annual precipitation and decreased annual temperature over south China along with decreased precipitation over North China.     

Daily extreme precipitation and trends over China

Based on daily precipitation data of more than 2000 Chinese stations and more than 50 yr, we constructed time series of extreme precipitation based on six different indices for each station: annual and summer maximum(top-1) precipitation,accumulated amount of 10 precipitation maxima(annual, summer; top-10), and total annual and summer precipitation.Furthermore, we constructed the time series of the total number of stations based on the total number of stations with top-1 and top-10 annual extreme precipitation for the whole data period, the whole country, and six subregions, respectively. Analysis of these time series indicate three regions with distinct trends of extreme precipitation:(1) a positive trend region in Southeast China,(2) a positive trend region in Northwest China, and(3) a negative trend region in North China. Increasing(decreasing)ratios of 10–30% or even 30% were observed in these three regions. The national total number of stations with top-1 and top-10 precipitation extremes increased respectively by 2.4 and 15 stations per decade on average but with great inter-annual variations.There have been three periods with highly frequent precipitation extremes since 1960:(1) early 1960 s,(2) middle and late 1990 s,and(3) early 21 st century. There are significant regional differences in trends of regional total number of stations with top-1 and top-10 precipitation. The most significant increase was observed over Northwest China. During the same period, there are significant changes in the atmospheric variables that favor the decrease of extreme precipitation over North China: an increase in the geopotential height over North China and its upstream regions, a decrease in the low-level meridional wind from South China coast to North China, and the corresponding low moisture content in North China. The extreme precipitation values with a50-year empirical return period are 400–600 mm at the South China coastal regions and gradually decrease to less than 50 mm in Northwest China. The mean increase rate in comparison with 20-year empirical return levels is 6.8%. The historical maximum precipitation is more than twice the 50-year return levels.     

Specific patterns of XC0_2 observed by GOSAT during 2009-2016and assessed with model simulations over China

Spatiotemporal patterns of column-averaged dry air mole fraction of CO2 (XCO2) have not been well characterized on a regional scale due to limitations in data availability and precision.This paper addresses these issues by examining such patterns in China using the long-term mapping XCO2 dataset (2009-2016) derived from the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT).XCO2 simulations are also constructed using the high-resolution nested-grid GEOS-Chem model.The following results are found:Firstly,the correlation coefficient between the anthropogenic emissions and XCO2 spatial distribution is nearly zero in summer but up to 0.32 in autumn.Secondly,on average,XCO2 increases by 2.08 ppm every year from2010 to 2015,with a sharp increase of 2.6 ppm in 2013.Lastly,in the analysis of three typical regions,the GOSAT XCO2 time series is inbetter agreement with the GEOS-Chem simulation of XCO2 in the Taklimakan Desert region (the least difference with bias 0.65±0.78 ppm),compared with the northern urban agglomerationregion (-1.3±1.2 ppm) and the northeastern forest region(-1.4±1.4 ppm).The results are likely attributable to uncertainty in both the satellite-retrieved XCO2 data and the model simulation data.     

Specific patterns of XCO2 observed by GOSAT during 2009–2016 and assessed with model simulations over China

Spatiotemporal patterns of column-averaged dry air mole fraction of CO2(XCO2)have not been well characterized on a regional scale due to limitations in data availability and precision.This paper addresses these issues by examining such patterns in China using the long-term mapping XCO2 dataset(2009-2016)derived from the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite(GOSAT).XCO2 simulations are also constructed using the high-resolution nested-grid GEOS-Chem model.The following results are found:Firstly,the correlation coefficient between the anthropogenic emissions and XCO2 spatial distribution is nearly zero in summer but up to 0.32 in autumn.Secondly,on average,XCO2 increases by 2.08 ppm every year from2010 to 2015,with a sharp increase of 2.6 ppm in 2013.Lastly,in the analysis of three typical regions,the GOSAT XCO2 time series is inbetter agreement with the GEOS-Chem simulation of XCO2 in the Taklimakan Desert region(the least difference with bias 0.65±0.78 ppm),compared with the northern urban agglomerationregion(-1.3±1.2 ppm)and the northeastern forest region(-1.4±1.4 ppm).The results are likely attributable to uncertainty in both the satellite-retrieved XCO2 data and the model simulation data.     

General characteristics of climate changes during the past 2000 years in China

The general characteristics of climate changes over the past 2000 years in China,regional differences and uncertainties were analyzed based on the recently peer-reviewed high time-resolution climatic reconstructions.The results showed that there exists four warm periods of the temperature variation in China since the Qin Dynasty,including the western and eastern Han Dynasties(200 BC-AD 180),the Sui and Tang dynasties(541-810),the Song and Yuan dynasties(931-1320),and the 20th century,and three cold phases involving the Wei,Jin,and North-South Dynasties(181-540),the late Tang Dynasty(811-930),and the Ming and Qing dynasties(1321-1920).The Song and Yuan warm period is consistent with the Medieval Warm Period over the Northern Hemisphere,and the cold phases of the North-South Dynasties and the Ming and Qing dynasties are paralleled to the Dark Ages Cold Period and the Little Ice Age,respectively.The 13th-15th century could be a shift to the wet condition of the climate,and the low precipitation variability is exhibited in western China prior to 1500.In the context of the climate warming,the pattern of the drought in north and flood in south is prevalent over the eastern China.In addition,the published reconstructions have a high level of confidence for the past 500 years,but large uncertainties exist prior to the 16th century.     

The seasonal cycle of redistribution of atmospheric mass between continent and ocean in the Northern Hemisphere

Using NCEP/NCAR and ERA-40 reanalyses,we studied the seasonal cycle of redistribution of air mass between continents and oceans over the Northern Hemisphere.Our results demonstrate that air mass in the Northern Hemisphere shifts clearly between continents and oceans when the season cycles.In July,the air mass reaches its lowest over Eurasia and its highest over the Pacific,and the opposite occurs in January.However,a different scenario is observed over the north Atlantic;the accumulated air mass reaches its maximum there in May.The maintenance of the accumulation or loss of air mass in a region is found to be related to the areal mean air mass flux divergence and the difference between precipitation and evaporation in an air column.The zonal-vertical circulations change with season,with the air ascent and decent reversed between land and sea.Besides,there also exists a noticeable difference of water vapor content of the air between continents and oceans,and this difference is season-dependent.Physically,the vapor content is able to significantly affect the atmosphere in absorbing solar short-and earth’s long-wave radiations,hence influencing atmospheric thermal conditions.The land-sea thermal contrasts inclusive of the diabatic heating rate changes their signs with season going on,resulting in the reversal of orientations of the temperature gradient.These thermal forcings not only facilitate the formation of the monsoons but also indirectly induce the seasonal cycle of the air mass exchanging over regions between continents and oceans.     

A large carbon pool in lake sediments over the arid/semiarid region,NW China

Carbon burial in lake sediments is an important component of the global carbon cycle. However, little is known about the magnitude of carbon sequestered in lake sediments over the arid/semiarid region of China(ASAC).In this study, we estimate both organic and inorganic carbon burial since *AD 1800 based on nine lakes in ASAC,and discuss the most plausible factors controlling carbon burial. Our estimates show that the annual organic carbon burial rate(OCBR) ranges from 5.3 to 129.8 g cm-2year-1(weighted mean of 49.9 g cm-2year-1), leading to a standing stock of 1.1–24.0 kg cm-2(weighted mean of 8.6 kg cm-2)and a regional sum of *108 Tg organic carbon sequestered since *AD 1800. The annual inorganic carbon burial rate(ICBR) ranges from 11.4 to 124.0 g cm-2year-1(weighted mean of 48.3 g cm-2year-1), which is slightly lower than OCBR. The inorganic carbon standing stock ranges from2.4 to 26.0 kg cm-2(weighted mean of 8.1 kg cm-2),resulting in a sum of *101 Tg regional inorganic carbon burial since *AD 1800, which is slightly lower than the organic carbon sequestration. OCBR in ASAC shows a continuously increasing trend since *AD 1950, which is possibly due to the high autochthonous and allochthonous primary production and subsequently high sedimentation rate in the lakes. This increasing carbon burial is possibly related to both climatic changes and enhanced anthropogenic activities, such as land use change, deforestation, and eutrophication in the lake. Furthermore, OCBR and ICBR are expected to continuously increase under the scenario of increasing precipitation and runoff and enhanced anthropogenic activities.The results of this research show that the buried carbon in lake sediments of the ASAC region constitutes a significant and large carbon pool, which should be considered and integrated into the global carbon cycle.     

The Characteristics of Earthquake Disasters and Countermeasures for Their Mitigation in Metropolitans

Metropolitans are a result of fast economic development in China. Many metropolitans have emerged in the eastern part of China. Earthquake disasters in metropolitans are more complicated and serious than those in a smaller city, and the impact of earthquake disaster on the economy and society is large. The characteristics of earthquake disasters and countermeasures to protect against and mitigate disaster in the metropolitan, as well as some key research fields in the earthquake disaster protection and mitigation, are discussed.     

Development of a 50-year daily surface solar radiation dataset over China

Although solar radiation is a crucial parameter in designing solar power devices and studying land surface processes,long-term and densely distributed observations of surface solar radiation are usually not available.This paper describes the development of a 50-year dataset of daily surface solar radiation at 716 China Meteorological Administration(CMA) stations.First,a physical model,without any local calibration,is applied to estimate the daily radiation at all 716 CMA routine stations.Then,an ANN-based(Artificial Neural Network) model is applied to extend radiation estimates to earlier periods at each of all 96 CMA radiation stations.The ANN-based model is trained with recent reliable radiation data and thus its estimate is more reliable than the physical model.Therefore,the ANN-based model is used to correct the physical model dynamically at a monthly scale.The correction generally improves the accuracy of the radiation dataset estimated by the physical model:the mean bias error(MBE) averaged over all the 96 radiation stations during 1994-2002 is reduced from 0.68 to 0.11 MJ m-2 and the root mean square error(RMSE) from 2.01 to 1.80 MJ m-2.The new radiation dataset shows superior performance over previous estimates by locally calibrated ngstr m-Prescott models.Based on the new radiation dataset,the annual mean daily solar radiation over China is 14.3 MJ m-2.The maximal seasonal mean daily solar radiation occurs in the Tibetan Plateau during summer with a value of 27.1 MJ m-2,whereas the minimal seasonal mean daily solar radiation occurs in the Sichuan Basin during winter with a value of 4.7 MJ m-2.     

The fluxes and controlling factors of N_2O and CH_4 emissions from freshwater marsh in Northeast China

Nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) emissions were measured using a static chamber method in two adjacent plots of freshwater marsh predominated by Calamagrostis angustifolia, one is seasonal waterlogged (SW) and the other without surface water accumulation (NW), in Sanjiang Plain wetland (47°35′N, 133°31′E), northeast China, during 2002-2004. The diurnal and seasonal flux variations of both gases were significantly correlated with 5-cm-soil temperature. The NW marsh is a source of N2O and sink of CH4, wh...     

The projected temporal evolution in the interannual variability of East Asian summer rainfall by CMIP3 coupled models

The projected temporal evolution in the interannual variability of East Asian summer rainfall in the 21st century is investigated here,by analyzing the simulated results of 18 coupled models under the 20th century climate experiment and scenario A1B.The multi-model ensemble(MME)mean projects two prominent changes in the interannual variability of East Asian summer rainfall in the 21st century under scenario A1B.The first change occurs around the 2030s,with a small change before and a large increase afterward.The intensity of the interannual variability increases up to approximately 0.53 mm/d in the 2070s,representing an increase of approximately 30% relative to the early 21st century.The second change happens around the 2070s,with a decrease afterward.By the end of the 21st century,the increase is approximately 12% relative to the early 21st century.The interannual variability of two circulation factors,the western North Pacific subtropical high(WNPSH)and the East Asian upper-tropospheric jet(EAJ),are also projected to exhibit two prominent changes around the 2030s and 2070 under scenario A1B,with consistent increases and decreases afterward,respectively.The MME result also projects two prominent changes in the interannual variability of water vapor transported to East Asia at 850 hPa,which occurs separately around the 2040s and 2070s,with a persistent increase and decrease afterward.Meanwhile,the precipitable water interannual variability over East Asia and the western North Pacific is projected to exhibit two prominent enhancements around the 2030s and 2060s and an increase from 0.1 kg/m2 in the early 21st century to 0.5 kg/m2 at the end of the 21st century,implying a continuous intensification in the interannual variability of the potential precipitation.Otherwise,the intensities of the three factors’(except EAJ)interannual variability are all projected to be stronger at the end of the 21st century than that in the early period.These studies indicate that the change of interannual variability of the East Asian summer rainfall is caused by the variability of both the dynamic and thermodynamic variables under scenario A1B.In the early and middle 21st century,both factors lead to an intensified interannual variability of rainfall,whereas the dynamic factors weaken the interannual variability,and the thermodynamic factor intensifies the interannual variability in the late period.