CollectHomepage AdvertisementContact usMessage

Arid Land Geography ›› 2022, Vol. 45 ›› Issue (5): 1347-1356.doi: 10.12118/j.issn.1000-6060.2022.023

• Climate Change • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Temporal and spatial variation of different precipitation types in Tacheng area of Xinjiang in recent 60 years

GAO Jing1(),YANG Tao2,LI Haiyan2,JING Lihong3(),LIU Zhenxin4,ZENG Hua3   

  1. 1. Shawan Meteorological Bureau, Shawan 832100, Xinjiang, China
    2. Xinjiang Climate Center, Urumqi 830002, Xinjiang, China
    3. Tacheng Meteorological Bureau, Tacheng 834700, Xinjiang, China
    4. Xinjiang Meteorological Information Center, Urumqi 830002, Xinjiang, China
  • Received:2022-01-15 Revised:2022-04-21 Online:2022-09-25 Published:2022-10-20
  • Contact: Lihong JING E-mail:1575035865@qq.com;463275155@qq.com

Abstract:

Precipitation types (rain, snow, and sleet) have significant impacts on the surface runoff and energy balance. In this work, based on the data taken daily from nine meteorological stations in Tacheng area of Xinjiang, China from 1961 to 2020, and using the least-squares method and methods of correlation analysis, the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of different precipitation types and its influencing factors are analyzed. The results show that: (1) The annual mean number of precipitation days was 88.1 d in Tacheng; rain days were the most frequent, snow days were second most common, and sleet days were the least frequent. In terms of spatial distribution, the three precipitation types were the most frequent in the northwest region of Tacheng area and the least frequent in the middle and east of the region. Anomalies of annual rain days, snow days, and sleet days were consistent; for normal years the occurrence rate was 63.3%-70.0%. (2) Rainfall was most common from April to September, snowfall was more frequent from November to March of the following year, and precipitation of three types stated coexisted from March to April and from October to November. (3) In this 60 year period, the trends related to precipitation types were different in Tacheng area were seen to change. The number of rain days was seen to increase and the number of snow days was seen to decrease; the increase in rainfall was significantly greater than the decrease in snowfall. The total number of sleet days was seen to increase, though the level of change was insignificant. The rainfall ratio was increasing, while the snowfall and sleet ratios were decreasing. The snowfall/rainfall ratio decreased at a rate of -0.33%·(10a)-1. (4) Temperature increases were seen to induce the change in precipitation types. The change of precipitation types was also related to other factors, such as an increase in the quantity of water vapor, changes in the Arctic oscillation index/North Atlantic oscillation index, and changes in the Northern Hemisphere polar vortex index. In the future, the temperatures will continue to increase in Tacheng area, the temperature increases will further impact the observed precipitation types, which will not only affect the distribution of snows, melting of ice and snow, and recharge type in river runoffs but will also increase the risk of snow-melt floods and/or mixed floods.

Key words: different precipitation types, temporal and spatial variation, atmospheric circulation, Tacheng area of Xinjiang