Observed changes in climate extremes in Nigeria

Abstract

The study presents observed changes in climate extremes using daily precipitation and temperature data over 24 stations, covering the three climatic zones (Guinea coast, Savannah and Sahel) of Nigeria for the period 1971–2013. The data were homogenized with Expert Team on Climate Change Detection Indices (ETCCDI) RHtests version 4 software. RClimDex version 1.0 software was used to calculate 17 of the ETCCDI recommended precipitation and temperature extreme indices. The spatio‐temporal variation in the observed trends was analysed over each of the climatic zone. Results show a significant increase in the frequencies of warm spell, warm days and nights and decreasing cold spell, cold days and nights over the three climatic zones. A significant increase in annual total precipitation was found in some stations across the Guinea coast and Sahel zones. Changes in consecutive dry days and consecutive wet days are non‐significant in most stations. Also, a significant increase in extremely wet days was observed in a few stations across the three climatic zones. The implication of the observed warming could, however, result in thermal discomfort of lives in areas with significant positive trends. This could also exert pressure on the economy's power sector, as energy demand for cooling will increase. The increase in total annual precipitation will potentially be favourable for hydropower generation and increase the availability of the potable water supply for both industrial and domestic uses in the country. However, the increase in consecutive dry days and the decrease in consecutive wet days are dangerous for agricultural practices and, hence, food security.

Identifying changing precipitation extremes in Sub-Saharan Africa with gauge and satellite products

“…Further investigations into REGEN trends across Africa shown here and in Contractor et al (2019) would be worthwhile. ETCCDI studies based on nonpublicly available data (Alexander et al 2006), such as Omondi et al (2014) and Gbode et al (2019), could be good resources.…”

Climatic Variability and Periodicity for Upstream Sub-Basins of the Yangtze River, China

“…The modified Mann-Kendall (MMK) test [35,36] and Sen's estimator [37] were used for trend analysis and slope detection, respectively, while the pre-whitening was applied to detect the auto-correlation in the time series [38]. The MMK, a non-parametric trend analysis test, was used for the trend analysis of temperature, precipitation, and streamflow.…”

Trend and Variability Analysis of Rainfall and Extreme Temperatures in Burundi

“…Increasing trends in maximum and minimum temperature have been detected during near future 2050 and far future 2080 under A1B and A2 scenarios [6]. Observed changes in climate extremes in Nigeria have been assessed using Expert Team on Climate Change Detection Indices (ETCCDI) [7]. Results show a significant increase in the frequencies of warm spell, warm days and nights and decreasing cold spell, cold days and nights over the three climatic zones.…”