Understanding the Effects of Cold and Warm Season Air Warming on the Permafrost Hydrology Changes in the Source Region of the Lancang River, the Qinghai‐Tibetan Plateau

Xu, Lei; Gao, Bing

doi:10.1029/2022jd036551

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…The escalated pace of warming expedites the meltdown of glaciers (Huss and Hock 2018), a reduction in snow cover as snowfall patterns shift to rainfall (Musselman et al 2021;Qin et al 2022), degradation of permafrost causing the loss of frozen water reserves (Wang and Gao 2022;Xu and Gao 2022), and an intensified water cycle characterized by augmented solid-liquid-gas phase changes. The TP's climate is influenced by atmospheric circulation systems stemming from the westerlies and the Asian monsoon.…”

Section: E443mentioning

confidence: 99%

Cryosphere–Hydrometeorology Observations for a Water Tower Unit on the Tibetan Plateau Using the BeiDou-3 Navigation Satellite System

Liu,

Wang,

Wang

et al. 2024

Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society

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Life and civilization in arid regions depend on the availability of freshwater. Arid alpine river basins, where hydrological processes are highly sensitive to rapid warming, act as vital water towers for lowland oases. However, scientific understanding of precipitation variability and related cryosphere-hydrology processes is extremely limited because of the scarcity of in situ observations. The upper Danghe River Basin (UDB, ∼14,000 km2) is an arid and westerly- dominated basin on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau and is the water source for the Dunhuang Oasis in China. We have established a comprehensive cryosphere-hydrometeorology observation network in the basin since 2014. At present, the network consists of 21 automatic rain gauges, 22 soil freeze-thaw monitoring stations, 4 automatic weather stations (AWS), and a 50-m gradient meteorological tower with an eddy covariance system. In particular, the 18 sites, located in remote areas without public networks, are equipped with new-generation BeiDou-3 communication terminals that enable the observations to be easily, safely, and reliably read and quality-controlled in near real-time from offices in the city or at home. This integrated observation network over the UDB that facilitates the monitoring of cryosphere- hydrology processes, land-atmosphere interactions, and local weather processes. In addition, the observations are helpful for the objective evaluation, and continual improvement, of hydrological models, satellite-retrieval products, and reanalysis datasets. Finally, the network is expected to promote a better understanding of the status and role of water towers in arid zones and to provide basic data support for the sustainable development of the Dunhuang Oasis and the Belt and Road.

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Section: E443mentioning

confidence: 99%

Cryosphere–Hydrometeorology Observations for a Water Tower Unit on the Tibetan Plateau Using the BeiDou-3 Navigation Satellite System

Liu,

Wang,

Wang

et al. 2024

Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society

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“…Professor Cheng's hypotheses and conceptual model of permafrost hydrology have been highly recognized and valued by many Chinese and international peers [115][116][117][118]. For example, Yang et al [119] developed a robust distributed hydrological model for permafrost regions and gradually extended the applications of this model to the simulation of permafrost hydrological processes and the assessment of water resources in the upper reaches of major rivers on the QTP [120,121].…”

Section: Scientific Impact and Follow-up Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Professor Cheng's hypotheses and conceptual model of permafrost hydrology have been highly recognized and valued by many Chinese and international peers [115–118]. For example, Yang et al.…”

Section: Permafrost Hydrology and Hydrogeology: Channeling And Sink‐h...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Academician Guodong Cheng's Contributions to Permafrost Science

2024

Permafrost & Periglacial

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Permafrost is strongly associated with human well‐being and has become a frontier of cryospheric science. Professor Guodong Cheng is one of the most outstanding geocryologists in China. He was elected as an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1993 and served as the president of the International Permafrost Association from 1993–1998. In the early 1980s, Professor Cheng proposed the hypothesis of the repeated‐segregation mechanism for the formation of thick‐layered ground ice near the permafrost table. Subsequently, in the early 2000s, he proposed the “proactive roadbed cooling” concept and led the successful development of a series of specific engineering measures that were fully applied in the Qinghai–Tibet Railway Project. Furthermore, he developed a conceptual model to describe the influences of changing permafrost on the groundwater system and discovered the “sink‐holing effect” (channeling with improved hydraulic conductivity of warming permafrost). Professor Cheng has also developed theories on the three‐dimensional zonation and proposed a classification system and an altitude model for high‐altitude permafrost distribution. On this special occasion of Professor Cheng's 80th birthday, this paper summarizes his outstanding achievements on permafrost science, hoping the permafrost research community will carry forward the momentum to further advance permafrost science worldwide.

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“…It is widely acknowledged that the climate in the TP has changed significantly in the past half century, mainly due to climate warming and wetting [27]. Rising temperatures are not only accelerating the melting of glaciers [28], but also permafrost degradation [29], both of which, together with precipitation, directly or indirectly affect GWS. Therefore, the elicidation of the influence of climate factors on GWS is key.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatiotemporal Variation Characteristics of Groundwater Storage and Its Driving Factors and Ecological Effects in Tibetan Plateau

Ren,

Gao,

Qian

et al. 2023

Remote Sensing

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Known as the “Asian Water Tower”, the Tibetan Plateau (TP) is a rich water resource and serves an important ecological function. Climate change may cause changes to the water cycle, and these changes may affect the alpine vegetation growth. However, the variation characteristics of groundwater storage (GWS) and its driving factors and associated ecological effects in the TP are poorly understood. In this study, terrestrial water storage changes retrieved by GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) were combined with GLDAS (Global Land Data Assimilation System) to estimate the GWS changes in the TP. The temporal and spatial variation characteristics of GWS were identified using linear regression and the modified Mann–Kendall (MMK) test, respectively. The analyses showed that the GWS of the TP decreased at an average rate of −0.89 mm/a from January 2003 to December 2021, but since January 2016, it gradually recovered at a rate of 1.47 mm/a. This shows that the GWS in the eastern and northern parts of the TP is decreasing, while the GWS in the western and southern parts is increasing. The influence of climate change on GWS in time and space was determined using the correlation analysis method. Decreased precipitation and permafrost degradation caused by increasing temperatures will lead to a decrease in GWS. On the other hand, rising temperatures may result in an increase in GWS in regions where glaciers are distributed. In this study, the ecological effects were represented by the relationship between GWS and vegetation change. A decline in GWS means that the vegetation will not receive enough water, leading to a decrease in the NDVI and the eventual degradation of grassland to sand, desert, or other kinds of unused land on the TP. On the other hand, an increase in GWS would promote vegetation restoration. The results of this study offer a new opportunity to reveal the groundwater changes in a cryosphere region and to assess the impact of changes in hydrological conditions on ecology.

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Understanding the Effects of Cold and Warm Season Air Warming on the Permafrost Hydrology Changes in the Source Region of the Lancang River, the Qinghai‐Tibetan Plateau

Cited by 4 publications

References 64 publications

Cryosphere–Hydrometeorology Observations for a Water Tower Unit on the Tibetan Plateau Using the BeiDou-3 Navigation Satellite System

Cryosphere–Hydrometeorology Observations for a Water Tower Unit on the Tibetan Plateau Using the BeiDou-3 Navigation Satellite System

Academician Guodong Cheng's Contributions to Permafrost Science

Spatiotemporal Variation Characteristics of Groundwater Storage and Its Driving Factors and Ecological Effects in Tibetan Plateau

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