Assessment of rehabilitation strategies for lakes affected by anthropogenic and climatic changes: A case study of the Urmia Lake, Iran

Over the last three decades,more than half of the world's large lakes and wetlands have experienced significant shrinkage,primarily due to climate change and extensive water consumption for agriculture and other human needs.The desiccation of lakes leads to severe environmental,economic,and social repercussions.Urmia Lake,located in northwestern Iran and representing a vital natural ecosystem,has experienced a volume reduction of over 90.0%.Our research evaluated diverse water management strategies within the Urmia Lake basin and prospects of inter-basin water transfers.This study focused on strategies to safeguard the environmental water rights of the Urmia Lake by utilizing the modeling and simulating(MODSIM)model.The model simulated changes in the lake's water volume under various scenarios.These included diverting water from incoming rivers,cutting agricultural water use by 40.0%,releasing dam water in non-agricultural seasons,treated wastewater utilization,and inter-basin transfers.Analytical hierarchy process(AHP)was utilized to analyze the simulation results.Expert opinions with AHP analysis,acted as a multi-criteria decision-making tool to evaluate the simulation and determine the optimal water supply source priority for the Urmia Lake.Our findings underscore the critical importance of reducing agricultural water consumption as the foremost step in preserving the lake.Following this,inter-basin water transfers are suggested,with a detailed consideration of the inherent challenges and limitations faced by the source watersheds.It is imperative to conduct assessments on the impacts of these transfers on the downstream users and the potential environmental risks,advocating for a diplomatic and cooperative approach with adjacent country.This study also aims to forecast the volumes of water that can be transferred under different climatic conditions—drought,normal,and wet years—to inform strategic water management planning for the Urmia Lake.According to our projection,implementing the strategic scenarios outlined could significantly augment the lake's level and volume,potentially by 3.57×109–9.38×109 m3 over the coming 10 a and 3.57×109–10.70×109 m3 in the subsequent 15 a.

EVIDENCE FOR ABRUPT CLIMATIC CHANGES ON NORTHWESTERN MARGIN OF EAST ASIAN MONSOON REGION DURING LAST DEGLACIATION

Based on investigations of the Zhongwei Nanshan aeolian section situated in the southeastern margin of Tengger Desert, carbon-14 and TL (thermoluminescence) dating results and paleoclimatic proxies such as magnetic susceptibility and grain size, we inferred that the northwestern margin of East Asian monsoon region experienced abrupt climatic changes during the last deglaciation. Six oscillation events were identified: Oldest Dryas, Bolling, Older Dryas, Allerod, Intra-Allerod Cold Period (IACP) and Younger Dryas (YD). The summer monsoon was weaker during Oldest Dryas and Younger Dryas when the winter monsoon was stronger. However, during the B/A (Bolling/Allerod) period, the summer monsoon strengthened, reflected by magnetic susceptibility, when the winter monsoon also became strong, which is different from the paleoclimatic pattern established in the East Asian monsoon region. Furthermore, the summer monsoon was nearly in phase with the climate changes inferred from the oxygen isotopic records of Greenland ice cores. It could be speculated that the variations of the sea ice cover in the high latitudes of the North Hemisphere affected the high pressure of Asian continent and the changes of the winter monsoon inland. On the other hand, the sea ice cover variations might have indirectly caused the occurrence of ENSO events that has tightly been related to the summer monsoon in northwest margin of East Asian monsoon region.

The World Physical Triad: Matter, Antimatter and “Dark Energy” in the Processes of Climatic Changes on the Earth

The opening and many years of research of magnetic spinor particles (real magnetic charges) in atoms and substance have enabled the author to formulate the conception of the Physical Triad, according which the real World consists of three fundamental phases: Matter, Antimatter and Energo-phase (Energo-medium). Particles of Matter are called spinors and particles of Antimatter are called antispinors. Energo-medium is a gasiform phase of high density that fills by himself all the infinite space of the real World. It consists of spinless and massless particles-energions. Spinor fields can be both flows energions (fields of Matter), so and anti-flow energions (fields of Antimatter). Atomic-shaped structures consisting of electric and magnetic spinor particles represent a Physical Mass (atoms, nucleons, etc.). The main characteristic of all varieties of Mass is its ability radiate gravitational field, which is a vortex electromagnetic field. All spinor particles are massless so as individually generate a gravitational field they can’t. All primary forces in the real World are implemented by means of Energo-medium, i.e. contact pressure its particles—energions. The spinor fields, including the gravitational field, myself the real of the power significance, have not. They are only intermediaries, inducing in Energo-medium its active (power) education, which is called “Dark Energy”. “Dark Energy” can be both positive, so and negative. Namely, a positive “Dark Energy”, which is associated with the technical activity of man, is responsible for stable climatic changes on Earth. Greenhouse gases are not the main “culprit” of climatic changes on our planet. However, these gases are the simplest indicator of the overall level of irreversible physical processes that stimulate the growth of the positive “Dark Energy” and are responsible for the negative thermal scenario on Earth.

Sensitivity experiments and assessment of climatic changes in China induced by greenhouse effect

Climatic changes can be separated into two parts: natural changes -and human activity influenced on climatic changes. The observed data could not only show the effects caused by human activity. Several simulated results as simulated by the GCMs induced by the greenhouse effects in China .have been analysed. It is shown that an obvious warming of about 3-6℃ in winter and 2-5℃ in summer in China as simulated by the GCMs induced by doubling CO2 have been found. There are getting drier or wetter regions in China due to doubled CO2 as simulated by most of models. Comparing the simulated results with the observed data in China, some simulated results are able to be believed. The GCMs should be improved, especially in the regional areas.

Potential control of climatic changes on flood events in the Yangtze Delta during1100-2002

Wide collection on the historic records of the climatic changes and flood events is performed in the Yangtze Delta. Man-Kendall (MK) method is applied to explore the changing trends of the time series of the flood discharge and the maximum high summer temperature. The research results indicate that the flood magnitudes increased during the transition from the medieval warm interval into the early Little Ice Age. Fluctuating climate changes of the Little Ice Age characterized by arid climate events followed by the humid and cold climate conditions give rise to the frequent flood hazards. Low-lying terrain made the study region prone to the flood hazards, storm tide and typhoon. MK analysis reveals that the jumping point of the time series of the flood discharge changes occurred in the mid-1960s, that of the maximum summer temperature changes in the mid-1990s, and the exact jump point in 1993. The flood discharge changes are on negative trend before the 1990s, they are on positive tendency after the 1990s; the maximum high summer temperature changes are on negative trend before the 1990s and on positive tendency after the 1990s. These results indicate that the trend of flood discharge matches that of the maximum high summer temperature in the Yangtze Delta. The occurrence probability of the maximum high summer temperature will be increasing under the climatic warming scenario and which will in turn increase the occurrence probability of the flood events. More active solar action epochs and the higher sea surface temperature index (SST index) of the south Pacific Ocean area lying between 4 o N-4 o S and 150 o W-90 o W correspond to increased annual precipitation, flood discharge and occurrence frequency of floods in the Yangtze Delta. This is partly because the intensified solar activities and the higher SST index give rise to accelerated hydrological circulation from ocean surface to the continent, resulting in increased precipitation on the continent.

Observed climatic changes in Shanghai during 1873-2002

Variation characteristics of temperature and precipitation in January and July and annual mean temperature and annual precipitation are analyzed with the help of cumulative anomalies, Mann-Kendall analysis and wavelet analysis. The research results indicate that January precipitation presents an increasing trend after 1990, wavelet analysis result suggests that this increasing trend will continue in the near future. The changes of July precipitation present different features. During 1900-1960, July precipitation is in a rising trend, but is in a declining trend after 1960. Wavelet analysis shows that this declining trend will go on in the near future. Temperature variations in Shanghai are in fluctuations with 2 to 3 temperature rising periods. Mann-Kendall analysis indicates that temperature variations have the obvious abrupt change time when compared with precipitation changes in Shanghai during the past 100 years. The abrupt change time of January temperature lies in 1985, and that of July temperature lies in 1931-1933 and annual mean temperature has the abrupt change time in 1923-1930. Except July precipitation, the precipitation in January, temperature in January, July and annual mean temperature, and annual precipitation are also in a rising trend in the near future. The research results in this paper may be meaningful for future further climatic changes of Shanghai and social mitigation of climatic disasters in the future.

Climatic changes have led to significant expansion of endorheic lakes in Xizang (Tibet) since 1995

Robust climate warming has led to significant expansion of lakes in the central Tibetan Plateau. Using remote sensing data, our quantitative analysis indicates that Siling Co, a saline lake in a characteristic endorheic basin in the central region of the Plateau, has expanded more than 600 km2 in area since 1976. Particularly since 1995, the lake has signif- icantly expanded in response to increasing precipitation, decreasing water surface evaporation caused by weaker winds and less solar radiation, and increased glacier meltwater draining to the lake. Glacie^lake interactions are important in governing lake expansion and are also part of a feedback loop that influences the local climate. Worsening climatic conditions （decreased precipitation and increased temperatures） that could have caused the lake to shrink during 1976-1994 were offset by increasing glacier meltwater feeding the lake, which made the lake nearly stable. We demonstrate that this pattern changed during 1995-2009, when glacier meltwater actually decreased but participation runoff increased and evaporation decreased, leading to expansion of the lake. If climatic conditions became suitable for further lake development, which would be indicated by expansion in lake area, glacier meltwater could be saved in a stable reservoir.

Changes in Agricultural System as Farmers Adapt to Economic-Social and Climatic Changes in the Min Upriver Rural Areas in Western Sichuan,Southwestern China

Rapid economic growth in China has brought about great economic-social changes in rural areas, having considerable impact on the society in economy and environment. With a per capita possession of about 0.08 ha of cropland, Chinese farmers in rural areas adopt various ways in response to these changes in a bit to maintain their livelihood, wherein the agricultural system is facing one more options possible. To understand how rural communities have used different mechanisms to adapt to the economic and natural changes, we joined a survey in dry valleys of the Min upriver area under Maoxian county of western Sichuan province, southwestern China and visited the local people. Changes in the main crop cultivation have shown up an important means to keep up their household income. Farm households start seeking economic growth through diversified cultivating of cereal and economic crops in five lines, namely cereal, apple monoculture, apple and vegetables, plum and vegetables, mixed fruits and vegetables. These new lines mirror farmers' flexibility to cope with today's economic-social and climatic changes. The farming operation has changed all the more from a subsistence on grain to special agricultural products. Economic reforms in the early 1980 s motivated theprogress first in conversion of production from grain to fruits, and the desire to increase family income turned out to be an impetus for the subsequent events. At present, more farmers moving out of the rural areas, uneasy availability of labor force, increased opportunity cost of labors and their wages, increased farm size, and the urgent demand for the agricultural labor force, all these combine into the trend of the agricultural system of China on facing further economic-social reforms and reconstruction of the countryside across China.

Erosion response to anthropogenic activity and climatic changes during the Holocene: case studies in northwestern China and southern Norway

Soil erosion assessment and prediction play critical roles in addressing problems associated with erosion control or soil conservation. The past dynamics of soil erosion can provide valuable information for us to understand the relations of soil erosion to environmental change and anthropogenic activity. The present paper has compared Holocene climatic changes in northwestern China with those in southern Norway, and investigated the past dynamics of erosion activity during the Holocene. Modern soil erosion on the Loess Plateau is a combination of the intensive natural erosion and human-induced erosion, the latter being four times greater than the former. Because of global warming and increasing human activities, climate on the Loess Plateau is becoming dryer and more unstable, causing an enhanced erosion problem and water scarcity. In the arctic-alpine region of southern Norway, however, the global warming and regional wetting caused expansion of the largest European ice cap. This has accentuated the erosion in that region, with a higher frequency of avalanches and debris flows.

Response of Lake Environment to Climatic Changes on The Tibetan Plateau,Western China

The large-scale summer monsoon circulations of south Asia makes a strong impact on precipitation in the area of southwestern China including Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and Yun-Gui Plateau.however,the monsoon is both spatially and temporally complex and smaller-scale circulations are forced by a variety of local or regional orographic effects,local or regional land-atmosphere or

Monitoring Climatic Changes and Carbon Cycle in Canyons and Caves： The C6 Project

The acronym C6 means ＂Climatic Changes and Carbon Cycle in Canyons and Caves＂. It is a monitoring project, for the evaluation of climate change signals, based on measuring sites located inside canyons and caves; it merged in the year 2005, under the scientific supervision of the Palermo Branch of the Italian National Institute for Geophysics and Volcanology （INGV）, two different monitoring programs active since 1999. The choice of these environments is based on their morphological structure： being them more or less segregated respect the outer atmosphere, they act as low-pass filters respect the variations of the monitored parameters, which are rainfall and dropping water amounts and rates, air temperatures and relative humidity and carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere. On the basis of the preliminary data, reported and discussed in the paper, the C6 network seems to be capable to give useful information on the local effects of global changes, even if at the moment the monitored parameters concern only the abiotic components of the studied ecosystems.

Climatic Changes and Their Effect on Wildlife of District Dir Lower, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

Climatic changes and their impact are increasingly evident in Pakistan,especially in the mountainous regions. Mountain ecosystems are consideredto be sensitive indicators of global warming;even slight variationsin temperature can lead to significant shifts in local climate, which can,in turn, drastically affect the natural environment, subsequently alteringpeople’s lifestyle and wildlife habitats. The targeted area for the presentresearch was Lower Dir District, Pakistan. The study gathered the requiredinformation from primary and secondary sources. Secondary dataon temperature and precipitation were obtained from various sources,i.e., local CBO, including WWF Pakistan. Based on information gatheredon climate change and wildlife, a detailed questionnaire was designed.Results showed that no regular pattern of the increase was found in temperaturefrom 2010 to 2018;the same was noticed in the rainfall decreasepattern. Results also showed that the leading causes behind climaticchanges are an increase in greenhouse gases due to pollution by industries,vehicles, crushing plants, deforestation, and some natural phenomenasuch as floods. The study showed that more than 80% of the respondentsagreed that climatic effects have a significant impact on wildlife, i.e.,the existence of wildlife falls in danger due to climatic changes as it maylead to habitat change, making it difficult for the survival and adaptationof the wildlife. Hence, in consequence, it leads to migration, low growthrate, an increase in morbidity and mortality rate, and finally leading to theextinction of the species or population. It is concluded from the study thatpeople are severely noticing the climatic change and its leading causesare greenhouse gases and deforestation. To control climatic changes andwildlife extinction, we need an appropriate policy for forest conservation,wildlife conservation, prevent hunting, industrial pollution control, vehiclepollution control, increase in plantation, awareness of policy for thecontrol of climatic changes, etc.

Climate Changes and Sustainability

Climate change is the phrase used to describe long-term changes in temperatures and weather patterns. Changes in the atmosphere and their interactions with diverse geologic, chemical, biological, and geographic variables are the main contributors to this cyclical adjustment of the Earth’s climate. Such changes may be induced purposefully, because of burning fossil fuels, clearing forests, and raising animals, or they may be natural, brought on by significant volcanic eruptions or variations in the sun’s activity. By significantly increasing the amount of greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere, this heightens the greenhouse effect and contributes to global warming. This work includes several additional theoretical and practical explanations of sustainable development. The theoretical work encompasses hundreds of researches that identify requirements for how development routes might satisfy sustainable development (SD) criteria using economic theory, complex systems approach, ecological science, and other techniques. The agreements made by the Parties in various nations across the world will consider a wide range of perspectives about what would be considered undesirable effects on the environment, the climate system, sustainability, economic growth, or food production.

Vegetation Restoration in Response to Climatic and Anthropogenic Changes in the Loess Plateau, China

A thorough understanding of the vegetation succession in relation to both climatic changes and anthropogenic activities is vital for the formulation of adaptation strategies that address potential ecosystem challenges.Various climatic factors such as temperature,precipitation,and solar radiation,as well as anthropogenic factors such as ecological engineering and population migration,will affect the conditions for vegetation.However,the relationships among various factors remain unclear and the response of vegetation to climate change and anthropogenic activities in the Loess Plateau of China has not been well established.This study investigated the spatio-temporal characteristics and relationships between vegetation coverage and climatic factors in the Loess Plateau for the period of 1985–2015.Further analysis separated the anthropogenic and climatic factors on vegetation succession based on residual analysis.The results showed that the normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI)followed a significant upward trend with annual change rates of 0.15%during 1985–2015.The trend of human-induced NDVI increase was consistent with the spatial distribution of increasing forest areas in the eastern part of the Loess Plateau.Eco-restoration projects were the main driving factors that promoted vegetation coverage on the Loess Plateau.Furthermore,these results demonstrated that migrants to cities in the Loess Plateau could relieve ecological pressures and promote vegetation restoration.Therefore,the government should strive to increase population mobility and restore vegetation to sustain this particularly fragile ecological environment.

Changes in Climatic Factors and Extreme Climate Events in Northeast China during 1961-2010

This study focuses on examining the characteristics of climate factors and extreme climate events in Northeast China during 1961- 2010 by using daily data from 104 stations, including surface air temperature, precipitation, wind speed, sunshine duration, and snow depth. Results show that annual mean temperature increased at a significant rate of 0.35℃ per decade, most notably in the Lesser Khingan Mountains and in winter. Annual rainfall had no obvious linear trend, while rainy days had a significant decreasing trend. So, the rain intensity increased. High-temperature days had a weak increasing trend, and low-temperature days and cold wave showed significant decreasing trends with rates of 3.9 d per decade and -0.64 times per decade, respectively. Frequency and spatial scope of low-temperature hazard reduced significantly. Warm days and warm nights significantly increased at 1.0 and 2.4 d per decade, while cold days and cold nights decreased significantly at -1.8 and -4.1 d per decade, respectively. The nighttime warming rate was much higher than that for daytime, indicating that nighttime warming had a greater contribution to the overall warming trend than daytime warming. The annual mean wind speed, gale days, and sunshine duration had significant decreasing trends at rates of-0.21 m s-1 per decade, -4.0 d per decade and -43.3 h per decade, respectively. The snow cover onset dates postponed at a rate of 1.2 d per decade, and the snow cover end date advanced at 1.5 d per decade, which leads to shorter snow cover duration by -2.7 d per decade. Meanwhile, the maximum snow depth decreased at -0.52 cm per decade. In addition, the snow cover duration shows a higher correlation with precipitation than with temperature, which suggests that precipitation plays a more important role in maintaining snow cover duration than temperature.

Climatic Changes Dominant Interannual Trend in Net Primary Productivity of Alpine Vulnerable Ecosystems

The Three-River Headwaters(TRH), which is the source area of Yangtze River, Yellow River and Lancang River, is vulnerable and sensitive, and its alpine ecosystem is considered an important barrier for China’s ecological security. Understanding the impact of climate changes is essential for determining suitable measures for ecological environmental protection and restoration against the background of global climatic changes. However, different explanations of the interannual trends in complex alpine ecosystems have been proposed due to limited availability of reliable data and the uncertainty of the model itself. In this study, the remote sensing-process coupled model(GLOPEM-CEVSA) was used to estimate the net primary productivity(NPP) of vegetation in the TRH region from 2000 to 2012. The estimated NPP significantly and linearly correlated with the above-ground biomass sampled in the field(the multiple correlative coefficient R2 = 0.45, significant level P < 0.01) and showed better performance than the MODIS productivity product, i.e. MOD17 A3,(R2 = 0.21). The climate of TRH became warmer and wetter during 1990-2012, and the years 2000 to 2012 were warmer and wetter than the years1990–2000. Responding to the warmer and wetter climate, the NPP had an increasing trend of 13.7 g m^–2(10 yr)^–1 with a statistical confidence of 86%(P = 0.14). Among the three basins, the NPP of the Yellow River basin increased at the fastest rate of 17.44 g m^–2(10 yr)^–1(P = 0.158), followed by the Yangtze River basin, and the Lancang River, which was the slowest with a rate of 12.2 g m^–2(10 yr)^–1 and a statistical confidence level of only 67%. A multivariate linear regression with temperature and precipitation as the independent variables and NPP as the dependent variable at the pixel level was used to analyze the impacts of climatic changes on the trend of NPP. Both temperature and precipitation can explain the interannual variability of 83% in grassland NPP in the whole region, and can explain high, medium and low coverage of 78%, 84% and 83%, respectively, for grassland in the whole region. The results indicate that climate changes play a dominant role in the interannual trend of vegetation productivity in the alpine ecosystems on Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. This has important implications for the formulation of ecological protection and restoration policies for vulnerable ecosystems against the background of global climate changes.

Research Advances of Impacts of Climate Changes on Crop Climatic Adaptability

Agriculture received most direct influences from climate changes. Because of climate changes, agricultural climate resources changed and thus influenced climate adaptability of agricultural products. The growth and output of crops were finally affected. The calculation method and application of agricultural products in recent years were summarized. Several questions about the response of agricultural crops to climate elements were proposed for attention.

Towards understanding the environmental and climatic changes and its contribution to the spread of wildfires in Ghana using remote sensing tools and machine learning (Google Earth Engine)

Data processing and climate characterisation to study its impact is becoming difficult due to insufficient and unavailable data,especially in developing countries.Understanding climate’s impact on burnt areas in Ghana(Guinea-savannah(GSZ)and Forest-savannah Mosaic zones(FSZ))leads us to opt for machine learning.Through Google Earth Engine(GEE),rainfall(PR),maximum temperature(Tmax),minimum temperature(Tmin),average temperature(Tmean),Palmer Drought Severity Index(PDSI),relative humidity(RH),wind speed(WS),soil moisture(SM),actual evapotranspiration(ETA)and reference evapotranspiration(ETR)have been acquired through CHIRPS(Climate Hazards group Infrared Precipitation with Stations),FLDAS dataset(Famine Early Warning Systems Network(FEWS NET)Land Data Assimilation System)and TerraClimate platform from 1991 to 2021.The objective is to analyse the link and the contribution of climatic and environmental parameters on wildfire spread in GSZ and FSZ in Ghana.Variables were analysed(area burnt and the number of activefires)through Spearman correlation and the cross-correlation function(CCF)(2001 to 2021).The tests(Mann-Kendall and Sens’s slope trend test,Pettitt test and the Lee and Heghinian test)showed the overall decrease in rainfall and increase in temperature respectively(-0.1 mm;+0.8℃)in GSZ and(-0.9 mm;+0.3℃)in FSZ.In terms of impact,PR,ETR,FDI,Tmean,Tmax,Tmin,RH,ETA and SM contribute tofire spread.Through the codes developed,researchers and decision-makers could update them at different times easily to monitor climate variability and its impact onfires.

Progress in Research on the Influences of Climatic Changes on the Industrial Economy in China

Global climate changes have led to ocean acidification,ice and snow melting,a continuous rise in temperature,and an increasing frequency of extreme weather events,with profound impacts on the social economic system.With the aggravation from climate changes,even the industrial fields with a relatively strong resistance to climatic changes have also suffered serious losses.At present,the vulnerability of the industrial field is growing,and the absolute economic losses are increasing.The quantitative evaluation of these industrial economic losses is therefore an important basis for formulating policies to tackle global climate change,and analyzing the current research progress can provide ideas and methods for the effective evaluation of the industrial economy.Therefore,in this paper,we summarized both the positive and negative effects of climate changes on the industrial fields and found that the influences of climatic changes on different industrial sectors are slightly variable.For example,while the mining industry,so far,has positively responded to the changing climate,severe weather events such as storms,drought,and rain could severely impede the normal production and business operation activities of the mining industry in the future.The manufacturing industry mostly involves indoor jobs,which are relatively resistant to extreme weather events,and some industries have complex response mechanisms.In terms of the construction industry,its losses are mainly indirect through increased electricity costs.The production and supply industries for electricity,heat,and water would suffer transmission supply losses in extreme weather events;and as the largest carbon emission industries,the costs of emission reduction would affect the economic growth of this sector in the short term.Overall,the industrial sectors pay relatively high costs for climate change mitigation and adaptation,and therefore,the quantitative evaluation of industrial economic losses through models is crucial for both the development of reasonable policies and ensuring a smooth and consistent growth of the industrial economy.

Climatic change in Western North America during the last 15,000 years:The role of changes in the relative strengths of air masses in producing the changing climates

In the Cordillera of western North America, the influence of the Pacific Interdecadal Oscillation only affects coastal areas west of the Coast Range and the lowlands of western and southern Alaska. The rest of the area is subject to a climate controlled by the relative strengths of three distinct air masses, viz., the cold cA/cP air that is dominant in winter, the mP air bringing cool moist air over the mountains throughout the year, and the dry hot cT air from the deserts of the southwestern United States. The Arctic Front marks the boundary between the cA/cP air mass and the other two. Changes in the relative strengths of these air masses appear to explain the climatic changes documented throughout the region. Thus, in the last 30 years, the average position of the Arctic Front has moved north from about 53°N to 58°N, causing the warming in northern British Columbia and cooling south of Calgary, Alberta. This concept of changing positions of the air masses also appears to explain the mechanism behind the past climatic changes in this region. During the last Neoglacial event （c.1400-1900 A.D.）, it appears that the cA/cP air mass had strengthened enough to push the Arctic Front south of the 49th parallel. Incursions of mP air increased with localized areas of short-term heavy snowfalls resulting in small-scale advances of glaciers in these regions. This accounts for the variability in timing and extent of these glacial advances, while the resulting increased Chinook activity produced the development of a sand sea between Medicine Hat and Regina on the southern Prairies. The cT air mass was relatively weak, permitting these changes. During the maximum of the Altithermal/Hysithermal warm event （6,000 years B.P.）, the Arctic Front had retreated into the southern Yukon Territory as the cT air mass became stronger. The mP air could not move inland as easily, resulting in drier climates across the region. Prairie plants mi- grated into the southern Yukon Territory, and land snails from the eastern United States were able to migrate up the Saskatchewan River system as far as Lake Louise, Alberta. On the southern Prairies, the many small sloughs and lakes dried up. During the maximum of the Late Wisconsin Glacial event （15,000 years B.P.）, the Arctic Front had moved south to the vicinity of 30°N, while there had been a southward movement of the Zone of Intertropical Convergence from the equator to about 10°S. The mP air was also very strong and dumped enormous quantities of snow in the glaciated Canadian Cordillera, but it does not appear to have moved south any distance into the northern United States, witness the limited glaciation and widespread permafrost that developed there. Instead, there is evidence for buffering of the climatic changes in the closed basins in the northern Cordillera of the contiguous United States. The source of the cT air mass had moved south into the northern part of South America, permitting an exchange of savannah biota between the two continents. An extensive area of white dune sands inundated both savannah and forest along the inland hills in Guyana. This parallels the massive changes in African climatology during the last Ice Age （Fairbridge, 1964）. If these changes occurred each time there was a major glaciation in the Northern Hemisphere, this would explain the movement of biota from all terrestrial environments between the two American continents in the last 2 million years. A similar northward movement of climatic belts occurred in South America, with the cA air from Antarctica expanding northwards into southern Argentina and Chili. However paucity of data and the potential effects of El Ni o and the Southern Oscillation make it difficult toprovide details of the changes there in the present state of knowledge. This technique of studying the mechanisms of present-day climatic changes and applying the results to past climatic events has considerable potential for elucidating past climatic changes elsewhere in continental regions. This may prove particularly valuable in studying the Siberian anticyclone that is the main cause of the distribution of permafrost, but this will need international cooperation to be successful.