Monitoring rock desert formation caused by two different origins(ice-snow melting and drying)in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau of China by considering topographic and meteorological elements

Monitoring rock desert formation caused by two different origins(ice-snow melting and drying)through remote sensing is crucial to our understanding of the interaction between the underlying surface of different rock desert and land-atmosphere types,as well as the relationship between bare land and soil erosion.A number of achievements have been made in remote sensing monitoring of desert areas,but there is a lack of accurate classification and remote sensing identification of rock desert types based on formation mechanism.In this study,the north and south sides of the eastern Kunlun Mountains in the northern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau of China were taken as the study areas.Landsat operational landscape imager,digital elevation model,and precipitation and temperature grid data were used as data sources.By identifying the bare areas based on the normalized difference vegetation index(NDVI),we used the multi-element fusion method of contours,isotherms,and isohyets to identify the rock desert types in the ice-snow melting and dry areas.The results showed that:(1)the rock desert areas identified by remote sensing based on topographic and meteorological elements were highly accurate,with an overall accuracy of 88.45%and kappa coefficient of 0.77.The multi-element fusion method of contours,isotherms,and isohyets could effectively identify the rock desert types in the ice-snow melting and dry areas;(2)the optimal segmentation range of the ice-snow melting and dry areas was 3600 m contour,-2°C-2°C isotherms,and 100-130 mm isohyets.The areas with elevation less than 3600 m,annual average temperature higher than 2°C,and average annual precipitation less than 100 mm were rock desert in the dry areas.The range of-2°C-2°C isotherms and 100-130 mm isohyets was the transition area between the ice-snow melting and dry areas.The areas with elevation higher than 3600 m,annual average temperature less than-2°C,and average annual precipitation higher than 130 mm were rock desert in the ice-snow melting areas;and(3)the identification accuracy of the bare areas based on the NDVI method was better,specifically,the identification accuracy of plain bare areas was generally better than that of mountain bare areas.The remote sensing identification method considers not only the topographic factors that have great influence on the spatial distribution of the two types of rock desert areas,but also the meteorological factors,which can provide a scientific reference for the effective identification of the two types of rock desert areas.

Seasonal compensation implied no weakening of the land carbon sink in the Northern Hemisphere under the 2015/2016 El Niño

The recurrent extreme El Niño events are commonly linked to reduced vegetation growth and the land carbon sink over many but discrete regions of the Northern Hemisphere(NH).However,we reported here a pervasive and continuous vegetation greening and no weakened land carbon sink in the maturation phase of the 2015/2016 El Niño event over the NH(mainly in the extra-tropics),based on multiple evidences from remote sensing observations,global ecosystem model simulations and atmospheric CO_(2)inversions.We discovered a significant compensation effect of the enhanced vegetation growth in spring on subsequent summer/autumn vegetation growth that sustained vegetation greening and led to a slight increase in the land carbon sink over the spring and summer of 2015(average increases of 23.34%and 0.63%in net ecosystem exchange from two independent datasets relative to a 5-years average before the El Niño event,respectively)and spring of 2016(6.82%),especially in the extra-tropics of the NH,where the water supply during the pre-growing-season(November of the previous year to March of the current year)had a positive anomaly.This seasonal compensation effect was much stronger than that in 1997 and 1998 and significantly alleviated the adverse impacts of the 2015/2016 El Niño event on vegetation growth during its maturation phase.The legacy effect of water supply during the pre-growing-season on subsequent vegetation growth lasted up to approximately six months.Our findings highlight the role of seasonal compensation effects on mediating the land carbon sink in response to episodic extreme El Niño events.

Soil microbial community diversity and distribution characteristics under three vegetation types in the Qilian Mountains, China

Qilian Mountains in Northwest China is a significant ecological security barrier due to its distinctive geographic setting,which has significant biological resource and gene pool.In order to assess the soil quality and ecosystem health in this area,we identified the structural characteristics and functional groups of soil microbial communities.This study focused on Amidongsuo,a typical watershed of the Qilian Mountains,and researched the vertical distribution and dominant populations of soil microorganisms in different habitats,and the relationship between soil microorganisms and environmental factors.Soil microorganisms from three grassland plots,five shrubland plots,and five forest plots in Amidongsuo were studied using high-throughput sequencing.The Venn diagram showed that the types of bacteria were fewer than those of fungi in Amidongsuo.Soil bacteria Acidobacteriota,Proteobacteria,and Methylomirabilota as well as fungi Basidiomycota,Ascomycota,and Mortierellomycota played dominant roles in Amidongsuo,according to the LEfSe(linear discriminant analysis(LDA)effect size)and community structure analyses.According to the ANOSIM(analysis of similarities)result,for both bacteria and fungi,R values of grassland and shrubland were small(R^(2)=0.045 and R^(2)=0.256,respectively),indicating little difference between these two ecosystems.RDA(redundancy analysis)showed a closer relationship between soil nutrients and fungi,and a gradually decreasing correlation between soil nutrients and microorganisms with increasing soil depth.Bacteria were mainly affected by pH,nitrogen(N),and potassium(K),while fungi were mainly affected by K.Overall,fungi had more effect on soil quality than bacteria.Therefore,adjustment of soil K content might improve the soil environment of Amidongsuo in the Qilian Mountains.

Testing the transfer functions for the Geonor T-200B and Chinese standard precipitation gauge in the central Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Accurately measuring precipitation is integral for understanding water cycle processes and assessing climate change in the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau(QTP).The Geonor T-200B weighing precipitation gauge with a single Alter shield(Geonor)and the Chinese standard precipitation gauge(CSPG)are widely used for measuring precipitation in the QTP.However,their measurements need to be adjusted for wetting loss,evaporation loss and windinduced undercatch.Four existing transfer functions for adjusting the Geonor-recorded and three transfer functions for adjusting the CSPG-recorded precipitation at hourly,daily or event scale has been proposed based on the precipitation intercomparison experiments conducted at a single site in different regions.Two latest transfer functions for the Geonor(which are referred to as K2017a and K2017b)at the half-hour time scale based on the precipitation intercomparison experiments at multiple stations in the northern hemisphere were provided in the World Meteorological Organization Solid Precipitation Intercomparison Experiment.However,the applicability of these transfer functions in the QTP has not been evaluated.Therefore,the current study carried out a precipitation measurement intercomparison experiment between August 2018 and September 2020 at a site in Beiluhe in central QTP.The performance of these transfer functions at this site was also evaluated on the basis of mean bias(MB),root mean squared error(RMSE)and relative total catch(RTC).The results are as follows:First,the unadjusted RTC values of the Geonor for rain,mixed(snow mixed with rain),snow and hail are 92.06%,85.35%,64.11% and 91.82%,respectively,and the unadjusted RTC values of the CSPG for the same precipitation types are 92.59%,81.32%,46.43% and 95.56%,respectively.Second,K2017a has the most accurate adjustment results for the Geonor-recorded snow and mixed precipitation at the half-hour time scale,and the post-adjustment RTC values increased to 98.25% and 98.23%,respectively.M2007e,an event-based transfer function,was found to have the most accurate adjustment results for the Geonorrecorded snow precipitation at the event scale,and the post-adjustment RTC value increased to 96.36%.Third,the existing transfer functions for CSPG underestimate snowfall,while overestimating rainfall.Fourth,hail is a significant precipitation type in central QTP.The catch efficiency of hail precipitation and the temperature when hail precipitation occurs are close to those of rain;moreover,the transfer functions for rain are suitable for hail as well.

Diverse Climatic and Anthropogenic Impacts on Desertification in the Middle Reaches of Yarlung Zangbo River Catchment on the Tibetan Plateau

The unique desertification processes occurring under the Alpine climate and ecosystem on the Tibetan Plateau could provide critical clues to the natural and anthropogenic impacts on desertification.This study used the Landsat data to investigate the spatial and temporal distribution of desertification from 1990 to 2020 in two areas(Shannan and Mainling),within the Yarlung Zangbo River Basin.The results show not only distinct spatial patterns but also various temporal changes of desertification.In Shannan,aeolian sand was distributed over wide areas from valley floor to mountain slope,while in Mainling,it is distributed sporadically at the footslope.The aeolian sandy land initially expanded before undergoing long-term shrinkage in Shannan.While in Mainling,it steadily expanded followed by a rapid decrease.These changes are attributed to both climate change and human activites.The increase in temperature causes desertification expansion in Shannan,while favorable climate conditions coupled with decreasing human activity promoted desertification reversal.However,both the expansion and shrinkage of desertification were sensitive to human activity in Mainling.This highlights the diverse responses of desertification to natural and anthropogenic impacts on different backgrounds of climatic and vegetation coverage.A threshold of climatic conditions may control the dominance factors in desertification,shifting from natural to anthropogenic elements.

Climatic implications in earlywood and latewood width indices of Chinese pine in north central China

Latewood width(LWW)indices of trees are considered a reliable proxy of summer precipitation in the Northern Hemisphere.However,the strong coupling and high correlation between earlywood width(EWW)and LWW indices often prevent registration of climate signals of the LWW index.In this study,328-year-long earlywood width and latewood width chronologies were developed from Chinese pine at two sites in the Hasi Mountains,north central China.The climate responses of these chronologies were analyzed and the LWW index used to derive sum-mer precipitation signals.Correlation analyses showed that LWW was particularly influenced by earlywood growth and recorded stronger climate signals of the previous year as EWW,rather than those of the current year with infrequent summer climate signals.However,after removing the effect of earlywood growth using a simple regression model,the adjusted LWW chronology(LWW_(adj))showed a strong relationship with July precipitation in dry years.This suggests that the LWW_(adj) chronology has the potential to be used to investigate long-term variability in summer precipitation in drought-limited regions.