Prediction of Climate Change in Yangtze-Huaihe Region under the Background of Global Warming

Based on the prediction results of over twenty new climate models provided by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change(IPCC) ,the climate change trends in Yangtze-Huaihe region during 2011-2100 were analyzed under the SRES A1B scenario. The results showed that annual mean temperature in Yangtze-Huaihe region would go up gradually under the background of global warming,and temperature increase rose from southeast to northwest,while annual average temperature would increase by 3.3 ℃ in the late 20th century. Meanwhile,annual average precipitation would rise persistently,and precipitation increase would go up with the increase of latitude and the lapse of time,being obviously strengthened after 2041.

Ability of NCAR RegCM2 in Reproducing the Dominant Physical Processes during the Anomalous Rainfall Episodes in the Summer of 1991 over the Yangtze-Huaihe Valley

The excessively torrential rainfall over the Yangtze-Huaihe valley during the summer of 1991 is simulated with an updated version of the second generation NCAR regional climate model (RegCM2) as a case study to evaluate the model's performance in reproducing the daily precipitation and the associated physical factors contributing to the generation of the anomalous rainfall. This simulation is driven by large-scale atmospheric lateral boundary conditions derived from the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) analysis. The simulation period is May to August 1991. The model domain covers East Asia and its adjacent oceanic regions, The model resolution is 60 km x 60 km in the horizontal and 23 layers in the vertical. The model can reasonably reproduce the daily precipitation events over East Asia for the summer of 1991, especially in the Yangtze-Huaihe valley where the anomalous rainfall occurred. The spatial and temporal structure of some important physical variables and processes related to the generation of the anomalous rainfall are analyzed, The time evolution of simulated upward vertical motion and horizontal convergence agrees with the five rainfall episodes over this subregion. The water vapor feeding the rainfall is mostly transported by the horizontal atmospheric motions from outside of the region rather than from local sources. The subtropical high over the western Pacific Ocean controls the progress and retreat of the summer monsoon over East Asia, and the RegCM2 can simulate the northward migration and southward retreat of subtropical high over the western Pacific Ocean. Furthermore, the model can represent the daily variation of the low level jet, which is crucial in the water vapor transport to the Yangtze-Huaihe valley.

Classification of yearly extreme precipitation events and associated flood risk in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley

Fifty cases of regional yearly extreme precipitation events （RYEPEs） were identified over the Yangtze-Huaihe River Valley （YHRV） during 1979-2016 applying the statistical percentile method. There were five types of RYEPEs, namely Yangtze Meiyu （YM-RYEPE）, Huaihe Meiyu （HM-RYEPE）, southwest-northeast-oriented Meiyu （SWNE-RYEPE） and typhoon I and II （TC-RYEPE） types of RYEPEs. Potential vorticity diagnosis showed that propagation trajectories of the RYEPEs along the Western Pacific Subtropical High and its steering flow were concentrated over the southern YHRV. As a result, the strongest and most frequently RYEPEs events, about 16-21 cases with average rainfall above 100 mm, occurred in the southern YHRV, particularly in the Nanjing metropolitan area. There have been 14 cases of flood-inducing RYEPEs since 1979, with the submerged area exceeding 120 km2 as simulated by the FloodArea hydraulic model, comprising six HM-RYEPEs, five YM- RYEPEs, two TC-RYEPEs, and one SWNE-RYEPE. The combination of evolving RYEPEs and rapid expansion of urban agglomeration is most likely to change the flood risk distribution over the Nanjing metropolitan area in the future. In the RCP6.0 （RCPS.5） scenario, the built-up area increases at a rate of about 10.41 km2 （10 yr）-t（24.67 km2 （10 yr）-1） from 2010 to 2100, and the area of high flood risk correspondingly increases from 3.86 km2（3.86 km2） to 9.00 kin2（13.51 km2）. Areas of high flood risk are mainly located at Chishan Lake in Jurong, Lukou International Airport in Nanjing, Dongshan in Jiangning District, Lishui District and other low-lying areas. The accurate simulation of flood scenarios can help reduce losses due to torrential flooding and improve early warnings, evacuation planning and risk analysis. More attention should be paid to the projected high flood risk because of the concentrated population, industrial zones and social wealth throughout the Nanjing metropolitan area.

Variations of Meiyu Indicators in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Basin during 1954-2003

To better understand climate variations of Meiyu, some new indicators for theonset and retreat dates, duration, and Meiyu precipitation in the Yangtze-Huaihe River valley areobjectively developed by using observed daily precipitation data from 230 stations in eastern Chinaduring 1954-2003. The rainy season onset and retreat dates in each station can be denned in terms ofthresholds for rainfall intensity and persistence. Then, the onset and retreat dates of the Meiyufor the Yangtze-Huaihe River basin have been determined when more than 40% of stations reach thefirst rainy season thresholds in the study region. Based on the indicators of Meiyu in theYangtze-Huaihe River basin, variations of Meiyu rainfall during 1954-2003 are analyzed. The resultssuggest that Meiyu rainfall in the Yangtze-Huaihe River basin has increased in recent 50 years. Inaddition, interannual and interdecadal variability of Meiyu is also obvious. All the indicatorsdisplay a predominant period of about 3 years.

Typical Circulation Patterns and Associated Mechanisms for Persistent Heavy Rainfall Events over Yangtze–Huaihe River Valley during 1981–2020

Persistent heavy rainfall events(PHREs)over the Yangtze–Huaihe River Valley(YHRV)during 1981–2020 are classified into three types(type-A,type-B and type-C)according to pattern correlation.The characteristics of the synoptic systems for the PHREs and their possible development mechanisms are investigated.The anomalous cyclonic disturbance over the southern part of the YHRV during type-A events is primarily maintained and intensified by the propagation of Rossby wave energy originating from the northeast Atlantic in the mid–upper troposphere and the northward propagation of Rossby wave packets from the western Pacific in the mid–lower troposphere.The zonal propagation of Rossby wave packets and the northward propagation of Rossby wave packets during type-B events are more coherent than those for type-A events,which induces eastward propagation of stronger anomaly centers of geopotential height from the northeast Atlantic Ocean to the YHRV and a meridional anomaly in geopotential height over the Asian continent.Type-C events have“two ridges and one trough”in the high latitudes of the Eurasian continent,but the anomalous intensity of the western Pacific subtropical high(WPSH)and the trough of the YHRV region are weaker than those for type-A and type-B events.The composite synoptic circulation of four PHREs in 2020 is basically consistent with that of the corresponding PHRE type.The location of the South Asian high(SAH)in three of the PHREs in 2020 moves eastward as in the composite of the three types,but the position of the WPSH of the four PHREs is clearly westward and northward.Two water vapor conveyor belts and two cold air conveyor belts are tracked during the four PHREs in 2020,but the water vapor path from the western Pacific is not seen,which may be caused by the westward extension of the WPSH.

Estimation model of winter wheat disease based on meteorological factors and spectral information

Wheat scab(WS,Fusarium head blight),one of the most severe diseases of winter wheat in Yangtze-Huaihe river region,whose monitoring and timely forecasting at large scale would help to optimize pesticide spraying and achieve the purpose of reducing yield loss.In the present study,remote sensing monitoring on WS was conducted in 4 counties in Yangtze-Huaihe river region.Sensitive factors of WS were selected to establish the remote sensing estimation model of winter wheat scab index(WSI)based on interactions between spectral information and meteorological factors.The results showed that:1)Correlations between the daily average temperature(DAT)and daily average relative humidity(DAH)at different time scales and WSI were significant.2)There were positive linear correlations between winter wheat biomass,leaf area index(LAI),leaf chlorophyll content(LCC)and WSI.3)NDVI(normalized difference vegetation index),RVI(ratio vegetation index)and DVI(difference vegetation index)which had a good correlation with LAI,biomass and LCC,respectively,and could be used to replace them in modeling.4)The estimated values of the model were consistent with the measured values(RMSE=5.3%,estimation accuracy=90.46%).Estimation results showed that the model could efficiently estimate WS in Yangtze-Huaihe river region.