Climate of China explained

Owing to tremendous differences in latitude, longitude, and altitude, the climate of China is extremely diverse. It ranges from tropical in the far south to subarctic in the far north, and alpine in the higher elevations of the Tibetan Plateau. Monsoon winds, caused by differences in the heat-absorbing capacity of the continent and the ocean, dominate the climate. During the summer, the East Asian Monsoon carries warm and moist air from the south and delivers the vast majority of the annual precipitation in much of the country. Conversely, the Siberian anticyclone dominates during winter, bringing cold and comparatively dry conditions. The advance and retreat of the monsoons account, in large degree, for the timing of the rainy season throughout the country. Although most of the country lies in the temperate belt, its climatic patterns are complex.

Sanbao Township in Xinjiang currently holds the highest recorded temperature in China, at 52.2°C on 16 July 2023.[1] [2] Mohe City, Heilongjiang, holds the record for the lowest temperature in China, at -53C on 22 January 2023.[3] [4]

Overview

Temperature

The northern extremities of both Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia have a subarctic climate[5] with long, severe winters, and short, warm summers.[6] In contrast, most of Hainan Island and parts of the extreme southern fringes of Yunnan have a tropical climate. Temperature differences in winter are considerable, but in summer, the variance is considerably less. For example, Mohe County, Heilongjiang, has a 24-hour average temperature in January approaching, while the corresponding figure in July exceeds 18°C.[7] By contrast, most of Hainan, including the city of Haikou, has a January mean over 18°C, while the July mean there is generally around .

In summer, temperatures can be very hot and humid, and the cities of Chongqing, Wuhan, and Nanjing are sometimes referred to as the Three Furnaces .[8] Other cities are also known by this name.[9] Even so, the hottest temperatures nationwide are recorded in the Turpan Depression, where the climate is much drier and temperatures often exceed 40C.[10] [11]

Permafrost can be found at high elevations in the Tibetan Plateau and the Tian Shan mountains, as well as other mountainous areas in Northern China.

Precipitation

In the winter, northern winds coming from high-latitude areas are cold and dry, while in summer, southern winds from coastal areas at lower latitudes are warm and moist.[12] Precipitation is almost always concentrated in the warmer months, though annual totals range from less than 20mm in northwestern Qinghai and the Turpan Depression of Xinjiang, to over 2000mm in areas of southeast China, such as Hong Kong and Guangdong. Toksun County, located in the Turpan Depression, has an average rainfall of just 3.9mm annually, the lowest precipitation in any area in China.[13] High pressure cells create cold, dry conditions in the Gobi Desert in winter.[14] Only in some pockets of the Dzungaria region of Xinjiang is the conspicuous seasonal variation in precipitation that defines Chinese (and, to a large extent, East Asian) climate absent. The East Asian Monsoon, which controls the seasonal precipitation, varies from year to year.[15] It has historically been known as the plum rain.[16] [17] Scientists have used pollen and dust to track its movements.[18] [19]

Typhoons and flooding

Typhoons can affect China. In 1975, Typhoon Nina struck China, and may have killed up to 230,000 people as a result of the subsequent Banqiao Dam failure and famines.[20] [21] Other death estimates remain below 100,000.[22] In 2006, Typhoon Saomai became one of the strongest typhoons to hit China when it made landfall in Zhejiang.[23] [24] In 2013, Typhoon Haiyan caused extensive damage in China,[25] causing economic losses of ¥4.58 billion (US$752 million).[26] That same year, Typhoon Fitow became one of the costliest typhoons to strike China,[27] [28] with several places setting rainfall records.[29] [30] It was the costliest Chinese typhoon on record and caused several billion dollars in damage before it was beaten 10 years later by Typhoon Doksuri.[31] In 2018, Typhoon Mangkhut caused $1.99 billion in damage within China. In 2021, Typhoon In-fa caused record-breaking rainfall in parts of China,[32] [33] and over 12,000 temporary shelters had to be set up in Zhejiang.[34] In 2022, Typhoon Muifa became the strongest typhoon to landfall in Shanghai.[35]

During the wet season, typhoons and heavy rainfall can cause rivers to flood. The 1931 China floods are considered to be the worst Chinese natural disaster of all time, with estimates of fatalities ranging widely but going up to as high as four million people.[36] [37] 15% of wheat and rice crops were destroyed in the Yangtze Valley, leading to famines.[38] Almost 800,000 in Wuhan were left homeless after a dike failure in July 1931.[39] The city was flooded under water for nearly three months.[39] The city of Nanjing was also severely affected,[40] and tens of thousands of people died in Gaoyou alone.[41] Other major floods include the 1954 Yangtze River Floods, which killed around 30,000 people,[42] the 1998 China floods, which caused significant damage and affected 180 million people,[43] and the 2020 China floods, which caused US$32 billion in damage.[44] [45]

Tornadoes

Tornadoes occur frequently across China. Over 400 are recorded each year, with some reaching EF3 intensity. On June 23rd, 2016, a violent EF4 tornado ripped through the city of Yancheng in Jiangsu, killing 98 people and injuring 846, many of them critically.[46] [47] Tornadoes occur most frequently in the eastern regions of China, but activity is also prevalent in the southern and central regions.[48]

Sunshine

Annual sunshine duration ranges from less than 1,000 hours in parts of Sichuan and Chongqing to over 3,000 hours in parts of Xinjiang and Qinghai, including Golmud.[49] Some areas of Tibet, including Lhasa, are also sunny. Seasonal patterns in sunshine vary considerably by region, but overall, the north and the Tibetan Plateau are sunnier than the south of the country. In some cities in southern China, such as Hong Kong, spring is the cloudiest season and autumn is the sunniest.[50]

Environmental issues

In 2020, China ranked 120th out of 180 countries in the Environmental Performance Index.[51] The government has taken actions to mitigate environmental issues, but some media has criticized the actions as inadequate.[52]

A major environmental issue in China is the continued expansion of its deserts, particularly the Gobi Desert.[53] [54] Although barrier tree lines planted since the 1970s have reduced the frequency of sandstorms, prolonged drought and poor agricultural practices have resulted in dust storms plaguing northern China each spring, which then spread to other parts of East Asia, including Japan and Korea. China's environmental watchdog, SEPA, stated in 2007 that China is losing per year to desertification.[55] Water quality, erosion, and pollution control have become important issues in China's relations with other countries. Melting glaciers in the Himalayas could potentially lead to water shortages for hundreds of millions of people.[56] According to academics, in order to limit climate change in China to, electricity generation from coal in China without carbon capture must be phased out by 2045.[57] Official government statistics about Chinese agricultural productivity are considered unreliable, due to exaggeration of production at subsidiary government levels.[58] [59]

Much of China has a climate very suitable for agriculture and the country has been the world's largest producer of rice, wheat, tomatoes, eggplant, grapes, watermelon, spinach, and many other crops.[60]

Examples

South China

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: 2023-07-17 . China logs 52.2 Celsius as extreme weather rewrites records . en . Reuters . 2023-07-17.
  2. News: Salam . Erum . Abdul . Geneva . Jones . Sam . Ratcliffe . Rebecca . Wind . Emily . 2023-07-17 . China confirms a record temperature of 52.5C [sic] over weekend ]. en-GB . The Guardian . 2023-07-17 . 0261-3077.
  3. News: 23 January 2022 . China just saw its coldest temperature on record: Minus-63 degrees . The Washington Post . 25 January 2022.
  4. News: 24 January 2022 . China's northernmost city just saw its coldest day ever . CNN Travel . 25 January 2023.
  5. Web site: The 6 climate zones of China. ClimateList. 2018-12-19.
  6. Book: Krishna, K. R.. Agricultural Prairies: Natural Resources and Crop Productivity. 2015-01-28. CRC Press. 978-1-4822-5806-6. en.
  7. Web site: http://data.cma.cn/data/weatherBk.html . zh:中国气象数据网 - WeatherBk Data . . zh-cn . 2020-04-15.
  8. Web site: http://www.gzkp.org.cn/show.aspx?id=180&cid=5 . zh:为什么重庆、武汉、南京有"三大火炉"之称？ . Guangzhou Popular Science News Net (广州科普资讯网) . Chinese . 2007-09-12 . 2010-11-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141112042247/http://www.gzkp.org.cn/show.aspx?id=180&cid=5 . 2014-11-12.
  9. Web site: 存档副本 . 2013-09-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131002100650/http://news.house365.com/gbk/xaestate/system/2013/07/17/022296010.html . 2013-10-02 .
  10. Web site: 吐鲁番城市介绍 . zh:吐鲁番 – 气象数据 – 中国天气网 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20131014172034/http://www.weather.com.cn/html/cityintro/101130501.shtml . 14 October 2013 . 30 June 2012 . 中国天气.
  11. News: If you can stand the heat, then the Turpan Basin is the place to be. Shanghai Daily. April 5, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20100407094332/http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2010/201004/20100405/article_433203.htm. April 7, 2010.
  12. Book: Regional Climate Studies of China. 2008. Springer. 1. 978-3-540-79242-0. 2008rcsc.book.....F.
  13. Book: Atlas of the People's Republic of China. 1989. Beijing. Foreign Languages Press. 0-8351-2319-7. https://archive.org/details/atlasofpeoplesre0000unse/page/n147. Internet Archive.
  14. Sternberg. Troy. Rueff. Henri. Middleton. Nick. 2015-01-26. Contraction of the Gobi Desert, 2000–2012. Remote Sensing. en. 7. 2. 1346–1358. 10.3390/rs70201346. 2015RemS....7.1346S. free.
  15. An. Z. April 2000. Asynchronous Holocene optimum of the East Asian monsoon. Quaternary Science Reviews. 19. 8. 743–762. 10.1016/S0277-3791(99)00031-1. 2000QSRv...19..743A.
  16. Lu Dian's Piya (published in the Song dynasty). Cited in Book: Sargent . Stuart Howard . The Poetry of He Zhu (1052-1125): Genres, Contexts, and Creativity . 2007 . limited . Brill . 978-90-04-15711-8 . 18.
  17. Owen, Stephen [translator & editor], Warner, Ding Xiang [editor], Kroll, Paul [editor] (2016). The Poetry of Du Fu, Volume 2. De Gruyter Mouton. Pages 298–299.
  18. Zhou. Weijian. Weijian Zhou. Donahue. Douglas. Jull. A. J. T.. 1997. Radiocarbon AMS Dating of Pollen Concentrated from Eolian Sediments: Implications for Monsoon Climate Change Since the Late Quaternary. Radiocarbon. en. 39. 1. 19–26. 10.1017/S0033822200040868. 0033-8222. free.
  19. Weijian. Zhou. Weijian Zhou. Donahue. Douglas J.. Porter. Stephen C.. Jull. Timothy A.. Xiaoqiang. Li. Stuiver. Minze. Zhisheng. An. Matsumoto. Eiji. Guangrong. Dong. 1996. Variability of Monsoon Climate in East Asia at the End of the Last Glaciation. Quaternary Research. en. 46. 3. 219–229. 10.1006/qres.1996.0062. 1996QuRes..46..219W . 129650707 . 0033-5894.
  20. Web site: World Meteorological Organization's World Weather & Climate Extremes Archive.
  21. Web site: The 16 deadliest storms of the last century. Business Insider India. September 13, 2017. February 23, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220107131218/https://www.businessinsider.in/science/the-16-deadliest-storms-of-the-last-century/slidelist/60486966.cms. January 7, 2022. live.
  22. Web site: Fifth International Workshop on Tropycal Cyclones: Topic 5.1: Societal Impacts of Tropical Cyclones.. Anderson-Berry. Linda J.. Weyman James C.. 2008-02-26. World Meteorological Organization. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2011-03-31. 2012-11-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20121114001936/http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/iwtc/AndersonBerry5-1.html. live.
  23. Duan Yihong. Typhoons Bilis and Saomai: why the impacts were so severe. World Meteorological Organization. July 5, 2014. 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20140714190140/http://www.wmo.int/pages/mediacentre/bilis_en.html. July 14, 2014.
  24. Typhoon Saomai: Impact and Historical Comparison . November 2006 . . July 5, 2014 . PDF . https://web.archive.org/web/20120218201253/http://gcportal.guycarp.com/portal/extranet/popup/pdf_2007/GCPub/Typhoon%20Saomai%20-%20Nov06.pdf . February 18, 2012 .
  25. News: Typhoon Haiyan affects over 1,200 Hainan villages . November 12, 2013 . . November 12, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131126224928/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-11/12/c_132882181.htm . November 26, 2013 .
  26. 16 . ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee: 8th Integrated Workshop/2nd TRCG Forum . Member Report: China . November 22, 2013 . December 3, 2013 . ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee . November 26, 2013 . http://www.typhooncommittee.org/8IWS_2TRCG/index.html . https://web.archive.org/web/20131203012415/http://www.typhooncommittee.org/8IWS_2TRCG/docs/Members%20Report/2013MemberReportChina.pdf . live . China Meteorological Administration .
  27. News: BBC.com. 2013-10-07. Typhoon Fitow kills five in China. 2014-03-07.
  28. News: Xinhua. ReliefWeb. 2013-10-18. Typhoon-ravaged Chinese city recovers from flooding. 2014-03-08.
  29. News: 2013-10-10. Fitow's remnants continue to batter Zhejiang province. Zhang Hong. South China Morning Post.
  30. News: Xinhua. Typhoon Fitow-triggered downpours lash E. China. 2013-10-08. 2014-03-08. https://web.archive.org/web/20131012070901/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-10/09/c_125496937.htm. October 12, 2013.
  31. 8th Integrated Workshop/2nd TRCG Forum. Member Report: China. 2013. 2014-03-06. ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee.
  32. News: 2021-07-24. Typhoon In-Fa sweeps towards China after flooding chaos. BBC News. 2021-07-25. July 25, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210725022000/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-57955138. live.
  33. News: Meili. Cao. 2021-07-26. zh:余姚暴雨累计雨量达951毫米 相当于余姚近三天下了约37个西湖的水量. Chinese. Sina News. https://news.sina.com.cn/c/2021-07-26/doc-ikqcfnca9047043.shtml. live. 2021-07-27. https://archive.today/20210727073236/https://news.sina.com.cn/c/2021-07-26/doc-ikqcfnca9047043.shtml. 2021-07-27.
  34. Web site: China - Tropical Cylone IN-FA (GDACS, JTWC, CMA, Xinhua, media) (ECHO Daily Flash of 26 July 2021) - China. 2021-07-26. ReliefWeb. July 26, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210726222602/https://reliefweb.int/report/china/china-tropical-cylone-fa-gdacs-jtwc-cma-xinhua-media-echo-daily-flash-26-july-2021. live.
  35. Web site: Henson . Bob . Masters . Jeff . Typhoon Muifa sweeps into Shanghai; Caribbean eyes new tropical depression . 14 September 2022 . Yale Climate Connections . 14 September 2022.
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  54. News: Beijing hit by eighth sandstorm. 17 April 2006. BBC News. 21 January 2020.
  55. News: The gathering sandstorm: Encroaching desert, missing water. Coonan. Clifford. 9 November 2007. The Independent. 23 July 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20080424052106/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/the-gathering-sandstorm-encroaching-desert-missing-water-399653.html. 24 April 2008.
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  57. December 2020. China's New Growth Pathway: From the 14th Five-Year Plan to Carbon Neutrality. 24. Energy Foundation China. 16 December 2020. 16 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210416100821/https://www.efchina.org/Attachments/Report/report-lceg-20201210/Full-Report_Synthesis-Report-2020-on-Chinas-Carbon-Neutrality_EN.pdf.
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