Effects of Drought on Net Primary Productivity:Roles of Temperature,Drought Intensity,and Duration

Northeast China has experienced frequent droughts over the past fifteen years. However, the effects of droughts on net primary productivity(NPP) in Northeast China remain unclear. In this paper, the droughts that occurred in Northeast China between 1999 and 2013 were identified using the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index(SPEI). The NPP standardized anomaly index(NPP-SAI) was used to evaluate NPP anomalies. The years of 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2007 were further investigated in order to explore the influence of droughts on NPP at different time scales(3, 6, and 12 months). Based on the NPP-SAI of normal areas, we found droughts overall decreased NPP by 112.06 Tg C between 1999 and 2013. Lower temperatures at the beginning of the growing season could cause declines in NPP by shortening the length of the growing season. Mild drought or short-term drought with higher temperatures might increase NPP, and weak intensity droughts intensified the lag effects of droughts on NPP.

Diagnosing anomalous characteristics of atmospheric water cycle structure during seasonal-scale drought events:A case study in middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River

Anomalous characteristics of the atmospheric water cycle structure are highly significant to the mechanisms of seasonal-scale meteorological droughts.They also play an important role in the identification of indicative predictors of droughts.To better understand the causes of seasonal meteorological droughts in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River(MLRYR),characteristics of the atmospheric water cycle structure at different drought stages were determined using standardized anomalies.The results showed that the total column water vapor(TCWV)was anomalously low during drought occurrence periods.In contrast,there were no anomalous signals at the drought persistence and recovery stages in the MLRYR.Moreover,there was no significant temporal correlation between the TCWV anomaly and seasonal-scale drought index(the 3-month standardized precipitation index(SPI_(3))).During drought events,water vapor that mainly originated from the Bay of Bengal was transported southwest of the MLRYR.Meanwhile,the anomalous signal of water vapor transport was negative at the drought appearance stage.At the drought persistence stage,the negative anomalous signal was the most significant.Water vapor flux divergence in the MLRYR showed significant positive anomalous signals during drought events,and the signal intensity shifted from an increasing to a decreasing trend at different drought stages.In addition,a significant positive correlation existed between the anomaly of water vapor flux divergence and regional SPI_(3).Overall,water vapor flux divergence is more predictive of droughts in the MLRYR.

Increased Browning of Woody Vegetation due to Continuous Seasonal Droughts in Yunnan Province, China

In this paper, based on the analysis of satellite measurements, the authors conclude that the continuous seasonal droughts intensify the browning of woody vegetation and that evergreen needleleaf forest(ENF) shows a larger browning percentage than other woody vegetation types over Yunnan Province. Based on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission(TRMM) precipitation standardized anomaly, in the dry season, which is from October to March, the 2010 drought affected an area of Yunnan Province 1.77 times larger than the 2012 drought, but in the post-drought months(April to June), the browning area of all woody vegetation in 2012 was 1.11 times larger than that in 2010 on the basis of the enhanced vegetation index(EVI) standardized anomaly. The reduction of vegetation greenness over large areas of Yunnan Province represents a photosynthetic capacity loss which will have an impact on carbon fluxes to the atmosphere.