HR: 0800h
AN: PP11B-0535    [Abstracts]
TI: Characteristics of Anomalous Precipitation Events over Eastern China during the Past Five Centuries
AU: * Shen, C
EM: cshen@climate.cestm.albany.edu
AF: Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, State University of New York at Albany, 251 Fuller Road, Albany, NY 12203,
AU: Wang, W
EM: wang@climate.cestm.albany.edu
AF: Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, State University of New York at Albany, 251 Fuller Road, Albany, NY 12203,
AU: Hao, Z
EM: haozx@climate.cestm.albany.edu
AF: Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, State University of New York at Albany, 251 Fuller Road, Albany, NY 12203,
AU: Gong, W
EM: wgong@climate.cestm.albany.edu
AF: Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, State University of New York at Albany, 251 Fuller Road, Albany, NY 12203,
AB: Characteristics of anomalous precipitation events during the past five centuries in North China (NC) and the middle-lower Yangtze River Valley (MLYRV) were investigated using the data network of dryness/wetness index (DWI) over eastern China. The high occurrence frequency of anomalous precipitation events mainly occurred at periods of high solar forcing, active volcanic eruption, and large anthropogenic forcing (the 20th century). Coherence and dipole were the two dominant modes in spatial patterns of anomalous precipitation events. Coherent floods dominated the 18th and 19th centuries, whereas coherent droughts occurred frequently in the 17th and 20th centuries. The dipole patterns of anomalous precipitation events were the most frequent in the 20th century. NC experienced more floods in the cold periods than warm periods. Both NC and the MLYRV experienced far fewer droughts and more floods in the warm 18th century when natural climate forcing dominated, and many more droughts in the 20th century when anthropogenic forcing dominated. Coherent drought was the only spatial pattern of precipitation significantly associated with explosive low-latitude volcanic eruptions. The increased coherent droughts and dipole patterns in the 20th century support the findings of previous modeling studies that the tropospheric aerosols and human-induced land cover changes play important roles in the changes of summer rainfall over eastern China.
DE: 1616 Climate variability (1635, 3305, 3309, 4215, 4513)
DE: 1637 Regional climate change
DE: 3305 Climate change and variability (1616, 1635, 3309, 4215, 4513)
DE: 3354 Precipitation (1854)
DE: 4215 Climate and interannual variability (1616, 1635, 3305, 3309, 4513)
SC: Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology [PP]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting