Revisiting East Asian monsoon change during the Last Glacial Maximum using PMIP4 simulations

利用PMIP4多模式试验数据,本文重新检查了末次冰盛期(距今约21000年)东亚季风变化.结果表明:相对于工业革命前期,所有5个模式一致模拟显示末次冰盛期东亚季风减弱,冬季和夏季减幅分别为1%-18%和2-32%;不同模式中东亚季风环流变化的空间分布存在差异,这主要源于该时期大尺度变冷和海平面气压梯度变化的空间分布不同;由于模式之间的差异和重建记录之间的不确定性,未来有待开展更多模拟和重建工作以更好地理解冰期东亚季风变化.

Characteristics and runoff volume of the Yangtze River paleo-valley at Nanjing reach in the Last Glacial Maximum

The stratigraphical cross-sections of the Yangtze River incised-valley near the No.l, No.3 and No.4 Nanjing Yangtze River bridges were established with respective bore date and documents. By ^14C age analysis of the samples of four drilling cores near the No.4 Bridge （to be built）, we can find that the time range of paleo-valley is dated in the LGM at a depth of-60 m to -90 m near Nanjing. It is also indicated that the deep incised-valley channel was narrow and the river flowed swiftly. The ancient Yangtze River deep channel presented partially and deeply incised features near the No.1 Bridge. According to previous publications, much research has been done on the main paleo-channel of the Yangtze River, but few results have been achieved on discharge estimation. In this paper, the incipient velocity and average veIocity of the LGM was calculated with Vc=4.60d^1/3h^1/6, Vc=1.281g（ 13.15. h /d95） √gd, V≈6.5u＊｜h/d90｜^1/6 etc., in terms of the river shape, sedimentary grain size and sequences near the No.3 and No.1 bridges. Moreover, the discharge in Nanjing reach of the Yangtze River during the LGM has been estimated to be around 12,000-16,000 m^3/s according to the relationship of discharge, velocity of flow and cross-section.

The PMIP3 Simulated Climate Changes over Arid Central Asia during the Mid-Holocene and Last Glacial Maximum

In this study, the climate changes over Arid Central Asia(ACA) during the mid-Holocene(approximately 6,000 calendar years ago, MH) and the Last Glacial Maximum(approximately 21,000 calendar years ago, LGM) were investigated using multimodel simulations derived from the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project Phase 3(PMIP3). During the MH, the multimodel median(MMM) shows that in the core region of ACA, the regionally averaged annual surface air temperature(SAT) decreases by 0.13°C and annual precipitation decreases by 3.45%, compared with the preindustrial(PI) climate. The MMM of the SAT increases by 1.67/0.13°C in summer/autumn, whereas it decreases by 1.23/1.11°C in spring/winter. The amplitude of the seasonal cycles of the SAT increases over ACA due to different MH orbital parameters. For precipitation, the regionally averaged MMM decreases by 5.77%/5.69%/0.39%/5.24% in spring/summer/autumn/winter, respectively. Based on the analysis of the aridity index(AI), compared with the PI, a drier climate appears in southern Central Asia and western Xinjiang due to decreasing precipitation. During the LGM, the MMM shows that the regionally averaged SAT decreases by 5.04/4.36/4.70/5.12/5.88°C and precipitation decreases by 27.78%/28.16%/31.56%/27.74%/23.29% annually and in the spring, summer, autumn, and winter, respectively. Robust drying occurs throughout almost the whole core area. Decreasing precipitation plays a dominant role in shaping the drier conditions, whereas strong cooling plays a secondary but opposite role. In response to the LGM external forcings, over Central Asia and Xinjiang, the seasonal cycle of precipitation has a smaller amplitude compared with that under the PI climate. In the model-data comparison, the simulated MH moisture changes over ACA are to some extent consistent with the reconstructions, further confirming that drier conditions occurred during that period than during the PI.

Paleoglacial and paleoclimate reconstructions during the global Last Glacial Maximum in the Longriba area, eastern Tibetan Plateau

Owing to the remoteness of the Longriba area and the lack of dating records,it is extremely challenging to reconstruct the chronology and extent of the paleoglaciers in this area.In this paper,we combined limited observational data with automated modelling for paleoglacial reconstructions.We first identified a broadly distributed paleoglacier from satellite imagery and field investigation based on the sediment-landform assemblage principle and dated it to 23.1±1.4~19.5±1.2 ka by ^(10)Be exposure dating,corresponding to the global Last Glacial Maximum(gLGM).Then,we reconstructed the extent and ice surface of 171 paleoglaciers formed during the similar period based on geomorphological evidence and‘ice surface profile’modelling.The results showed that the paleoglacial coverage was 426.5 km2,with an ice volume of 38.1 km^(3),in the Longriba area.The reconstructed equilibrium line altitudes(ELAs)based on modelled ice surfaces yielded an average of 4245±66 m above sea level(asl),~725±73 m lower than the present ELA(4970±29 m asl).The temperature was~5.51-6.68℃lower,and the precipitation was~30-34%less in Longriba,during the gLGM compared to the present day.This glacial advance was mainly driven by colder climate that was synchronous with Northern Hemisphere cooling events.

The Low Lake-Level Record according to the Selin Co Stratigraphical Basis and Multi-Proxies during the Last Glacial Maximum in the Central Tibetan Plateau

Objective The lake levels in the eastern and southern Asia are regarded as low lake-level owing to precipitation decreasing based on the records of lake-level fluctuation in the continental interior lakes since the last glacial maximum（LGM）（14C 18±1 kaBP,since 20 kaBP）in the Central Asia.Higher lake-level appeared in the transition belt between western Kunlun Mountain and the central Tibetan Plateau.

Change of Gas Hydrate Reservoir and Its Effect on the Environment in Xisha Trough since the Last Glacial Maximum

In this article, Milkov and Sassen＇s model is selected to calculate the thickness of the gas hydrate stable zone （GHSZ） and the amount of gas hydrate in the Xisha （西沙） Trough at present and at the last glacial maximum （LGM）, respectively, and the effects of the changes in the bottom water temperature and the sea level on these were also discussed. The average thickness of the GHSZ in Xisha Trough is estimated to be 287 m and 299 m based on the relationship between the GHSZ thickness and the water depth established in this study at present and at LGM, respectively. Then, by assuming that the distributed area of gas hydrates is 8 000 km^2 and that the gas hydrate saturation is 1.2% of the sediment volume, the amounts of gas hydrate are estimated to be -2.76×10^10 m^3 and -2.87×10^10 m^3, and the volumes of hydrate-bound gases are -4.52×10^12 m^3 and -4.71×10^12 m^3 at present and at LGM, respectively. The above results show that the thickness of GHSZ decreases with the bottom water temperature increase and increases with the sea level increase, wherein the effect of the former is larger than that of the latter, that the average thickness of GHSZ in Xisha Trough had been reduced by -12 m, and that 1.9×10^11 m^3 of methane is released from approximately 1.1×10^9m^3 of gas hydrate since LGM. The released methane should have greatly affected the environment.

Paleo-fluvial sedimentation on the outer shelf of the East China Sea during the last glacial maximum

Evidence from lithology, foraminiferal assemblages, and high-resolution X-ray fluorescence scanning data of core SFK-1 indicates tidally influenced paleo-fluvial sedimentation during the last glacial maximum (LGM) on the outer shelf of the East China Sea. The paleo-fluvial deposits consist of river channel facies and estuarine incised-valley-filling facies. Different reflections on the seismic profile across core SFK-1 suggest that the river channels shifted and overlapped. River channel deposition formed early in the LGM when sea level fell and the estuary extended to the outer shelf. Channel sediments are yellowish- brown in color and rich in foraminifera and shell fragments owing to the strong tidal influence. Following the LGM, the paleo-river mouth retreated and regressive deposition of estuarine and incised-valley-filling facies with an erosion base occurred. The river channel facies and estuarine incised-valley-filling facies have clearly different sedimentary characteristics and provenances. The depositional environment of the paleo-river system on the wide shelf was reconstructed from the foraminiferal assemblages, CaCO3 content and Ca/Ti ratio. The main results of this study provide further substantial constraints on the recognition of late Quaternary stratigraphy and land-sea interactions on the ECS shelf.

The Southern Annular Mode(SAM) in PMIP2 Simulations of the Last Glacial Maximum

The increasing trend of the Southern Annular Mode （SAM） in recent decades has influenced climate change in the Southem Hemisphere （SH）.How the SAM will respond increased greenhouse gas concentrations in the future remains uncertain.Understanding the variability of the SAM in the past under a colder climate such as during the Last Glacial Maximum （LGM） might provide some understanding of the response of the SAM under a future warmer climate.We analyzed the changes in the SAM during the LGM in comparison to pre-industrial （PI） simulations using five coupled ocean-atmosphere models （CCSM,FGOALS,IPSL,MIROC,HadCM） from the second phase of the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project （PMIP2）.In CCSM,MIROC,IPSL,and FGOALS,the variability of the simulated SAM appears to be reduced in the LGM compared to the PI simulations,with a decrease in the standard deviation of the SAM index.Overall,four out of the five models suggest a weaker SAM amplitude in the LGM consistent with a weaker SH polar vortex and westerly winds found in some proxy records and model analyses.The weakening of the SAM in the LGM was associated with an increase in the vertical propagation of Rossby waves in southern high latitudes.

Glacier variations and rising temperature in the Mt.Kenya since the Last Glacial Maximum

High-resolution imagery can be used to reconstruct former glacier boundaries through the identification of glacial erosional and sedimentary geomorphology. We employed moraine mapping and the accumulation–area ratio method(AAR), in conjunction with Landsat, Google Earth, and SRTM imagery, to reconstruct glacier boundaries and equilibrium-line altitudes(ELAs) for Mt. Kenya in the Last Glacial Maximum(LGM), the Little Ice Age(LIA), and at present. Our results show that the areas of Lewis Glacier and the Tyndall-I glacier system were 0.678 km^2 and 0.390 km^2, respectively, during the maximum of LIA. Those mean that the both glaciers have shrunken by 87.0% and 88.7%, respectively since the LIA. Area change ratios for each glacier were significantly larger in the period of 2000 through 2015 than the former periods, indicating that glacier recession has accelerated. Continuous ice loss in this region has been driven by rising temperature and fluctuating precipitation. Linear regression data for Lewis glacier show that mass balance sensitivity to dry season temperature was –315 mm w.e./℃, whereas the sensitivity to dry season precipitation was 5.2 mm w.e./mm. Our data also show that the ELA on the western slope of Mt. Kenya rose by 716-816 m from the LGM to the modern era, corresponding to that temperature rose by 5.2℃-6.5℃.

Last Glacial Maximum Sea Surface Temperatures: A Model-Data Comparison

In this study,the authors investigated changes in Last Glacial Maximum （LGM） sea surface temperature （SST） simulated by the Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project （PMIP） multimodels and reconstructed by the Multiproxy Approach for the Reconstruction of the Glacial Ocean Surface （MARGO） project,focusing on model-data comparison.The results showed that the PMIP models produced greater ocean cooling in the North Pacific and Tropical Ocean than the MARGO,particularly in the northwestem Pacific,where the modeldata mismatch was larger.All the models failed to capture the anomalous east-west SST gradient in the North Atlantic.In addition,large discrepancies among the models were observed in the mid-latitude ocean,particularly with models in the second phase of the PMIP.Although these models showed better agreement with the MARGO,the latest models in the third phase of the PMIP did not show substantial progresses in simulating LGM ocean surface conditions.That is,improvements in the modeling community are still needed to describe SST for a better understanding of climate during the LGM.

Ecological and hydrologic evolution history in the sensitive zone of both East Asian summer monsoon and Westerly since the Last Glacial Maximum

The Qilian Mountains,located in the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau,is a sensitive zone of both East Asian summer monsoon(EASM)and westerly winds(WW).The evolution history and driving mechanism of the ecosystem and hydrologic cycle in this region on long-term timescales have not yet been clarified.In this study,we comprehensively study the hydrologic and ecological evolution history in the sensitive zone since the Last Glacial Maximum(LGM)by integrating surface sediments,paleoclimate records,TraCE-21ka transient simulations,and PMIP3-CMIP5 multi-model simulation.Results show that hydrologic and ecological proxies from surface sediments are significantly different from west to east and mainly divided into three sections:the monsoonaffected region in the eastern Qilian Mountains,the intersection region in the central Qilian Mountains,and the westerly-affected region in the western Qilian Mountains.Meanwhile,paleo-ecological and paleohydrologic reconstructions from the surroundings uncover a synchronous climate evolution that the EASM mainly controls the eastern Qilian Mountains and penetrates the central Qilian Mountains in monsoon intensity maximum,while the WW dominates the central and western Qilian Mountains on both glacial-interglacial and millennial timescales.The simulation results further bear out the glacial humid climate in the central and western Qilian Mountains caused by the enhanced WW,and the humidity maximum in the eastern Qilian Mountains controlled by the strong mid-Holocene monsoon.In general,east-west differences in climate pattern and response for the EASM and the WW are integrally stable on both short-term and long-term timescales.

Winter and summer monsoonal evolution in Gonghe Basin, northeastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau since the Last Glacial Maximum

Geochemical and grain size analysis on the DQ （Dongqi） profile from Gonghe Basin, northeastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, indi- cates that regional climate has experienced several cold-dry and warm-wet cycles since the last glacial maximum （LGM）. The cold and dry climate dominated the region before 15.82 cal. ka B.E due to stronger winter monsoon and weaker summer monsoon, but the climate was relatively cold and wetter prior to 21 cal. ka B.E. In 15.824.5 cal. ka B.E, summer monsoon strength in- creased and winter monsoon tended to be weaker, implying an obvious warm climate. Specifically, the relatively cold and dry condition appeared in 14.7-13.7 cal. ka B.E and 12.14.5 cal. ka B.R, respectively, while relatively warm and wet in 13.~12.1 cal. ka B.E. The winter and summer monsoonal strength presents frequent fluctuations in the Holocene and relatively warm and wet conditions emerged in 9.5~.0 cal. ka B.E due to stronger summer monsoon. From 7.0 to 5.1 cal. ka B.E, the cycle of cold-dry and warm-wet climate corresponds to frequent fluctuations of winter and summer monsoons. The climate becomes warm and wet in 5.1 2.7 cal. ka B.E, accompanying increased summer monsoon, but it tends to be cold and dry since 2.7 cal. ka B.R due to en- hanced winter monsoonal strength. In addition, the evolution of regional winter and summer monsoons is coincident with warm and cold records from the polar ice core. In other words, climatic change in the Gonghe Basin can be considered as a regional re- sponse to global climate change.

The First Discovered Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) Event in the Middle and Lower Region of the Yongding River Basin, Southern Beijing Plain

Objective LGM is a critical climate period in the late Quaternary and is the most recent extreme cold event. Clark et al. （2009） used 4271^14C records and 475 cosmogenic nuclide datings to define LGM be in 26.5-19.0 kaBP. LGM age often changes with time in different regions （Mix et al., 2001; Zhang Zhigang et al., 2015）. However, LGM has not been described to date in the Beijing region. During our field work in 2015-2017, LGM event stratigraphy was discovered from sevral boreholes in the middle and lower region of Yongding river basin, Southern Beijing plain.

Contributions of the Bering Strait throughflow to oceanic meridional heat transport under modern and Last Glacial Maximum climate conditions

Paleo reconstructions and model simulations have suggested the Bering Strait plays a pivotal role in climate change. However, the contribution of the Bering Strait throughflow to oceanic meridional heat transport (OMHT) is about 100 times smaller than the OMHT at low latitudes in the modern climate and it is generally ignored. Based on model simulations under modern and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM,~21 ka;ka=thousand years ago) climate conditions, this study highlights the importance of the Bering Strait throughflow to OMHT. The interbasin OMHT induced by the Bering Strait throughflow is estimated by interbasin-intrabasin decomposition. Similar to barotropic-baroclinic-horizontal decomposition, we assume the nonzero net mass transport induced by interbasin throughflows is uniform across the entire section, and the interbasin term is separated to force zero net mass transport for the intrabasin term. Based on interbasinintrabasin decomposition, the contribution of the Bering Strait throughflow is determined as ~0.02 PW (1 PW=10 15 W) under the modern climate, and zero under the LGM climate because the closed Bering Strait blocked interbasin throughflows. The contribution of the Bering Strait throughflow to OMHT is rather small, consistent with previous studies. However, comparisons of OMHT under modern and LGM climate conditions indicate the mean absolute changes are typically 0.05 and 0.20 PWin the North Atlantic and North Pacific, respectively. Thus, the contribution of the Bering Strait throughflow should not be ignored when comparing OMHT under diff erent climate conditions.

Upper Ocean Hydrology in the Indo-Pacific Warm Pool During the Late Holocene,Early Holocene and Last Glacial Maximum

We examined sediment samples from twenty-four stations in the Indo-Pacific warm pool(IPWP)region. Our objective is to provide a better understanding of changes in the IPWP and related tropical climatic phenomena such as East Asian-Australian monsoon and El Ni(?)o-Southern Oscillation(ENSO),through improving spatial coverage of proxy records.In order

Biome reconstruction on the Tibetan Plateau since the Last Glacial Maximum using a machine learning method

Historical biome changes on the Tibetan Plateau provide important information that improves our understanding of the alpine vegetation responses to climate changes.However,a comprehensively quantitative reconstruction of the historical Tibetan Plateau biomes is not possible due to the lack of quantitative methods that enable appropriate classification of alpine biomes based on proxy data such as fossil pollen records.In this study,a pollen-based biome classification model was developed by applying a random forest algorithm(a supervised machine learning method)based on modern pollen assemblages on and around the Tibetan Plateau,and its robustness was assessed by comparing its results with the predictions of the biomisation method.The results indicated that modern biome distributions reconstructed using the random forest model based on modern pollen data generally concurred with the observed zonal vegetation.The random forest model had a significantly higher accuracy than the biomisation method,indicating the former is a more suitable tool for reconstructing alpine biome changes on the Tibetan Plateau.The random forest model was then applied to reconstruct the Tibetan Plateau biome changes from 22 ka BP to the present based on 51 fossil pollen records.The reconstructed biome distribution changes on the Tibetan Plateau generally corresponded to global climate changes and Asian monsoon variations.In the Last Glacial Maximum,the Tibetan Plateau was mainly desert with subtropical forests distributed in the southeast.During the last deglaciation,the alpine steppe began expanding and gradually became zonal vegetation in the central and eastern regions.Alpine meadow occupied the eastern and southeastern areas of the Tibetan Plateau since the early Holocene,and the forest-meadow-steppe-desert pattern running southeast to northwest on the Tibetan Plateau was established afterwards.In the mid-Holocene,subtropical forests extended north,which reflected the“optimum”condition.During the late Holocene,alpine meadows and alpine steppes expanded south.

A Matrilineal Genetic Legacy from the Last Glacial Maximum Confers Susceptibility to Schizophrenia in Han Chinese

Mitochondrial dysfunction has been widely reported in schizophrenia patients. To dissect the matrilineal structure of Han Chinese with or without schizophrenia and to decipher the maternal influence and evolutionary history of schizophrenia, a total of 1212 schizophrenia patients and 1005 matched healthy controls, all of Han Chinese origin, were recruited in Hunan Province, China. We classified haplogroup for each individual based on mitochondrial DNA （mtDNA） sequence variations and compared the haplogroup distribution pattern between cases and controls. Haplogroup B5a presented a higher frequency in cases than in controls （P = 0.02, OR = 1.67, 95% CI = [1.09, 2.56]）, and this result could be confirmed by permutation analysis. Age estimation of haplogroup B5a in cases revealed a much younger age than that of controls, which was coincident with the Northern Hemisphere deglaciation at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum. Analysis of complete mtDNA in five patients belonging to haplogroup B5a showed that this background effect might be caused by haplogroup- defining variants m.8584G〉A and m.10398A〉G. Our results showed that matrilineal risk factor for schizophrenia had an ancient origin and might acquire a predisposing effect on schizophrenia due to the environment change and/or orchestration with other nuclear genetic factors appeared recently in human evolutionary history.

Three modes of climate change since the Last Glacial Maximum in arid and semi-arid regions of the Asian continent

The westerly winds and East Asian summer monsoon play a leading role in climate change of southwestern North America and eastern Asia since the Last Glacial Maximum(LGM),respectively.Their convergence in arid and semi-arid regions of the Asian continent(AAC)makes the regional climate change more complicated on the millennial-scale.There are still limitations in applying paleoclimate records and climate simulations of characteristic periods to investigate climate change patterns since the LGM in this region.In this study,we adopt two indexes indicating effective moisture and rely on a continuous simulation,a time slice simulation,and numerous paleoclimate records to comprehensively investigate the climate change modes and their driving mechanisms since the LGM in AAC.Results demonstrate a millennial-scale climate differentiation phenomenon and three climate change modes possibly occurring in AAC since the LGM.The western AAC largely controlled by the westerly winds is featured as wet climates during the LGM but relatively dry climates during the mid-Holocene(MH),coinciding with the climate change mode in southwestern North America.Conversely,dry conditions during the LGM and relatively wet conditions during the MH are reflected in eastern AAC governed by the East Asian summer monsoon,which leans to the climate change mode in eastern Asia.If climate change in central AAC is forced by the interaction of two circulations,it expresses wet conditions in both the LGM and MH,tending to a combination of the southwestern North American and eastern Asian modes.Precipitation and evaporation exert different intensities in influencing three climate modes of different periods.Furthermore,we identify the significant driving effects of greenhouse gases and ice sheets on westerly-dominated zones of AAC,while orbit-driven insolation on monsoon-dominated zones of AAC.

Artemisia pollen-indicated steppe distribution in southern China during the Last Glacial Maximum

The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) was the coldest period during the previous 20,000 years.There have been different points of views on steppe distribution during the LGM period in southern China,partly due to the different interpretations of Artemisia occurrences.To make a reliable interpretation of the pollen fossil Artemisia,the modern distribution of Artemisia species and the relationship of pollen with climate and vegetation over a large spatial scale in China was thoroughly analyzed.Information about Artemisia species and pollen distributions used in this paper were collected from published works completed by other researchers as well as ourselves.The southern limit of steppe vegetation during the LGM period was interpreted from the published contour map of Artemisia pollen percentages during the LGM.Artemisia species in China are mostly distributed either in the horizontally distributed steppe regions or in the vertically distributed desert-steppe in the desert region,which indicates a cold and dry climate.The steppe is a distribution center of Artemisia pollen.Fractions of Artemisia in surface pollen assemblages are lower in both the desert and the temperate forest.Neither high Artemisia species cover nor high percentages of Artemisia pollen were found in the coast areas of China.Twenty-five percent of Artemisia pollen in sediments might indicate a local occurrence of steppe vegetation.Percentages of Artemisia pollen in the subtropical and tropical forest are less than 10%.A close relationship between Artemisia pollen and temperate steppe in China is demonstrated.The southern edge of the steppe vegetation during the LGM might be along the middle reach of the Yangtze River.Our results support the hypothesis that the isolated high fraction of Artemisia pollen along the northern edge of the South China Sea was transported from a large source area.

Chinese deserts and sand fields in Last Glacial Maximum and Holocene Optimum

The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, c. 26-16 ka) and the Holocene Optimum (HO, c. 9-5 ka) were characterized by cold-dry and warm-wet climates respectively in the recently geological Earth. How Chinese deserts and sand fields responded to these distinctive climatic changes is still not clear, however. To reconstruct environments of the deserts and sand fields during the LGM and HO is helpful to understand the forcing mechanisms of environment change in this arid region, and to test paleoclimatic modeling results. Through our long-term field and laboratory investigations, 400 optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages and more than 100 depositional records in the Chinese deserts and sand fields were obtained; on the basis of these data, we reconstruct spatial distributions of the deserts and sand fields during the LGM and HO. Our results show that the sand fields of Mu Us, Hunshandake, Horqin and Hulun Buir in northern and northeastern China had expanded 25%, 37%, 38% and 270%, respectively, during the LGM; the sand fields of Gonghe in the northeastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau had expanded 20%, and the deserts of Badain Jaran, Tengger in central northern China had expanded 39% and 29% separately during the LGM; the deserts of Taklimakan, Gurbantünggüt and Kumtag in northwestern China had expanded 10%-20% respectively, compared to their modern areas. On the other hand, all of the sand fields were nearly completely covered by vegetation during the HO; the deserts in northwestern and central northern China were reduced by around 5%-20% in area during this time. Lakes in this arid region were probably expanded during the HO but this conclusion needs more investigation. Compared with the geological distributions of deserts and sand fields, human activity has clearly changed (expanded) the area of active sand dunes at the present time. Our observations show that environmental conditions of Chinese deserts and sand fields are controlled by regional climate together with human activity.