Extreme drought is increasing in frequency and intensity in many regions globally. Understanding the changes in vegetation resistance and resilience under aggravated drought is essential for maintaining regional ecosystem stability. In this study, a drought event–vegetation response framework was developed to explore vegetation resistance and resilience changes. The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was correlated with the standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) at multiple timescales to screen out the vegetation response time to drought. Then, the SPEI for the response time was detected using run theory to identify drought events during the period 2000–2017. Finally, drought-induced NDVI anomaly changes were identified using a sliding window to explore the changes in resistance and resilience to drought. This study focuses on Jilin province, China, which contains a famous environmentally vulnerable area. The results illustrate that the response time of vegetation to drought is 3 months. The northwest of Jilin province is considered to be drought-vulnerable because it has suffered the most drought events, i.e., 19–21 times, with severities in the range of 2.6–3.2 and durations in the range of 3.6–4.1 months. Grassland shows the weakest resistance and the strongest resilience, and tree cover shows the strongest resistance and the weakest resilience under severe drought disturbance among all vegetation. As the severity and duration of drought increase, the resistance decreases, and the resilience increases. During the growing season, the drought from May to July significantly impacts the vegetation resistance. Drought occurring from June to July has much less impact on resilience. Drought in August to September has less impact on resistance and a more significant impact on resilience. The results of this study may increase our knowledge regarding the response of vegetation to drought and guide ecosystem stability restoration.

The Cenozoic climatic evolution of the Tibetan Plateau (TP), together with its driving mechanism, have been a subject of interest for decades. This study presents detailed sedimentology, mineralogical (XRD), carbon, and oxygen isotope analyses of lacustrine deposits from the Eocene to the Miocene in the western Qaidam Basin, the northern TP. The petrological observation and XRD data of 109 samples reveal that the sediments are composed of mixed siliciclastic, carbonate, and evaporate minerals. And the carbonate isotopic results show negative δ13C (−7.49‰ to −3.41‰) and negative to slightly positive δ18 values (−14.65‰ to 0.2‰). Both isotopes display a positive correlation with the contents of carbonates and evaporates, which suggests that evaporation is the major controlling factor of carbon and oxygen isotope. Therefore, the isotopes can be used as reliable indicators of the intensity of evaporation for paleoclimatic reconstruction. The reconstruction results reveal three distinct arid stages: top of the lower Xiaganchaigou Formation to the upper Xiaganchaigou Formation (ca.40-32 Ma), bottom of the Xiayoushashan Formation (ca.22-20 Ma), top of the Shangyoushashan Formation (ca.13-8.2 Ma). We suggest that the aridity during ∼40-32 Ma may have been related to the regression of the Paratethys Sea and uplift of the TP, while the aridity during 22-20 Ma may have been caused by the uplift and denudation of the mountains around the basin. The aridity after ∼13 Ma could be attributed to both global cooling and tectonic events in the northern TP. Furthermore, by comparing the climate records of the Qaidam Basin with those of other basins in Central Asia, a regional correlation can be established between different basins during the first and third drought stages. This study reveals that during the Eocene to Miocene, the climate change between different regions in the Qaidam Basin was synchronized and had a good connection with the surrounding basins, which responded to global climate change and regional tectonic activities.