Influence of Qinba Mountains on summer precipitation in the North-South transition zone based on WRF simulation

The Qinba Mountains (QBM) as the natural geographic and climatic boundary between north and south China, play an important role in changing the climate and ecological of the North-South transition zone (NSTZ). However, the influence of the QBM on precipitation in NSTZ and its process are still uncle...

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Main Authors: Bin Wang, Yiru Yang, Peter Clift, Li Xing, Yurui Zhang, Hui Tang, Ting Sun, Chris Brierley, Wei Shang, Ying Cheng, Shuangshuang Li, Keqin Duan, Wenting Gao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:Environmental Research Communications
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/addbab
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Summary:The Qinba Mountains (QBM) as the natural geographic and climatic boundary between north and south China, play an important role in changing the climate and ecological of the North-South transition zone (NSTZ). However, the influence of the QBM on precipitation in NSTZ and its process are still unclear. To reveal the influence of the QBM on the NSTZ, this study conducted topographic sensitivity experiments for Qinling Mountians, Daba Mountians and their combined effects over the NSTZ using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) high-resolution numerical model. The results reveal that the elevation changed of the Qinling and Daba Mountains regulate the precipitation pattern in summer over the NSTZ. The combined effects of the Qinling and Daba Mountains have the most significant regulatory impact on precipitation, intensifying the climatic pattern of dryness in the north and wetness in the south. The uplift of the QBM resulted in a significant increase in precipitation over the Qinling and Daba Mountain regions (125.52 mm and 177.68 mm, respectively). It also resulted in a decrease in precipitation in north of the QBM (113.68 mm), causing a significant aridification of the Loess Plateau. In contrast, the change in precipitation in south of QBM is relatively small (89.21 mm). The driving mechanisms include altering the pathways of water vapor transport and vertical motion. In the QBM sensitivity experiments, the southeast-northwest oriented positive water vapor transport pathway becomes more pronounced, with the changes in terrain-induced disturbances reaching their peak, thereby modifying the pathways and directions of water vapor transport. These findings deepen our understanding of the climatic effects of mountain uplift.
ISSN:2515-7620