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Arid Land Geography ›› 2024, Vol. 47 ›› Issue (2): 281-292.doi: 10.12118/j.issn.1000-6060.2023.048

• Urban Geography • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Spatial expansion characteristics and their enlightenment in central cities in the Yellow River Basin in the last 30 years

WAN Yun1(), WU Wenheng1,2(), LIU Jinfeng1, SHI Haijin1, LIU Limeng1   

  1. 1. College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Northwest University, Xi’an 710127, Shaanxi, China
    2. Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Earth Surface System and Environmental Carrying Capacity, Xi’an 710127, Shaanxi, China
  • Received:2023-02-06 Revised:2023-05-08 Online:2024-02-25 Published:2024-03-14
  • Contact: WU Wenheng E-mail:wywxslscjzx@163.com;wuwh@nwu.edu.cn

Abstract:

Urban development boundaries and high-quality development policies can be scientifically practiced by exploring the characteristics of urban spatial expansion and recognizing the efficiency of urban land use. Based on data on urban space, population, and economy, the spatiotemporal characteristics of the quantity and quality of spatial expansion of eight central cities in the Yellow River Basin from 1992 to 2020 were analyzed using the urban expansion intensity index, urban expansion intensity differentiation index, and coupling degree model. The results show that: (1) The average expansion area of central cities is 315 km2 and expansion scale of downstream cities is larger than those of cities in the middle and upper reaches,and the expansion intensity of Jinan, Zhengzhou, Xi’an and Yinchuan is higher. (2) The coupling relationship between spatial expansion, population and economy in each city showed a decreasing distribution from the downstream to the middle and upper reaches. The average value of the coupling relationships between spatial expansion and population and economy increased from 0.42 and 0.19 in 1992 to 0.89 and 0.81 in 2020, respectively, indicating that the overall expansion quality was improving. (3) The differentiation of urban spatial expansion results from multiple factors, such as natural location, economic development, and policy conditions. (4) The crucial approaches for the central cities in the Yellow River Basin to achieve high-quality development include strictly implementing high-quality development policy regarding the Yellow River Basin, scientifically practicing urban development boundary, coordinating and optimizing the relationship between urban land expansion and population and economy, and rationally planning urban development.

Key words: spatial expansion, coupling degree, central cities, the Yellow River Basin