Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation

Study region: This study focuses on mainland China, covering eight subregions. Study focus: Dry-to-wet abrupt alternation (DWAA) events have become increasingly frequent worldwide, causing significant socioeconomic and environmental impacts. Current DWAA research overemphasizes monthly precipitation...

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Main Authors: Liaofeng Liang, Jun Xia, Zhonggen Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-08-01
Series:Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825003453
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author Liaofeng Liang
Jun Xia
Zhonggen Wang
author_facet Liaofeng Liang
Jun Xia
Zhonggen Wang
author_sort Liaofeng Liang
collection DOAJ
description Study region: This study focuses on mainland China, covering eight subregions. Study focus: Dry-to-wet abrupt alternation (DWAA) events have become increasingly frequent worldwide, causing significant socioeconomic and environmental impacts. Current DWAA research overemphasizes monthly precipitation while neglecting soil moisture integration, which reduces predictive accuracy in agricultural and monsoon regions where DWAA occur within a single month. This study addresses these gaps by developing a novel identification method combining daily soil moisture with precipitation data across mainland China (1961–2022). Using data from 2474 meteorological stations and ERA5 reanalysis, we investigated DWAA characteristics and atmospheric circulation patterns across different subregions. New hydrological insights for the region: Results reveal pronounced regional heterogeneity in DWAA distribution. Northern, Central, and Southern China experienced more frequent events, with Southern China showing the highest station average frequency (24.8 events). Northeastern, Northern China, and Eastern Arid regions displayed higher intensity values, while Southern and Southwestern regions exhibited longer durations. Temporal analysis showed distinct seasonal patterns, with summer DWAA events dominating (35.5 %), significantly exceeding winter (16.7 %) and spring (19.2 %). Atmospheric circulation analysis revealed significant tropospheric reconfigurations characterized by pronounced geopotential height changes at various pressure levels. Water vapor flux analysis identified moisture convergence zones along Southern China and the Yangtze River Basin, exhibiting significant positive anomalies of 0.006–0.012 kg/(m·s), establishing preferential corridors for moisture transport into water-deficient areas.
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publishDate 2025-08-01
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spelling doaj-art-899fb584243a41cda4ea02434480292e2025-08-20T03:55:59ZengElsevierJournal of Hydrology: Regional Studies2214-58182025-08-016010252010.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102520Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitationLiaofeng Liang0Jun Xia1Zhonggen Wang2Key Laboratory of Water Cycle and Related Land Surface Processes, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; National Institute of Natural Hazards, Ministry of Emergency Management of China, Beijing 100085, ChinaKey Laboratory of Water Cycle and Related Land Surface Processes, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; State Key Laboratory of Water Resources Engineering and Management, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, ChinaNational Institute of Natural Hazards, Ministry of Emergency Management of China, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 101400, China; Corresponding author at: National Institute of Natural Hazards, Ministry of Emergency Management of China, Beijing 100085, China.Study region: This study focuses on mainland China, covering eight subregions. Study focus: Dry-to-wet abrupt alternation (DWAA) events have become increasingly frequent worldwide, causing significant socioeconomic and environmental impacts. Current DWAA research overemphasizes monthly precipitation while neglecting soil moisture integration, which reduces predictive accuracy in agricultural and monsoon regions where DWAA occur within a single month. This study addresses these gaps by developing a novel identification method combining daily soil moisture with precipitation data across mainland China (1961–2022). Using data from 2474 meteorological stations and ERA5 reanalysis, we investigated DWAA characteristics and atmospheric circulation patterns across different subregions. New hydrological insights for the region: Results reveal pronounced regional heterogeneity in DWAA distribution. Northern, Central, and Southern China experienced more frequent events, with Southern China showing the highest station average frequency (24.8 events). Northeastern, Northern China, and Eastern Arid regions displayed higher intensity values, while Southern and Southwestern regions exhibited longer durations. Temporal analysis showed distinct seasonal patterns, with summer DWAA events dominating (35.5 %), significantly exceeding winter (16.7 %) and spring (19.2 %). Atmospheric circulation analysis revealed significant tropospheric reconfigurations characterized by pronounced geopotential height changes at various pressure levels. Water vapor flux analysis identified moisture convergence zones along Southern China and the Yangtze River Basin, exhibiting significant positive anomalies of 0.006–0.012 kg/(m·s), establishing preferential corridors for moisture transport into water-deficient areas.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825003453Dry-to-wet abrupt alternationPrecipitationSoil MoistureAtmospheric circulationExtreme event
spellingShingle Liaofeng Liang
Jun Xia
Zhonggen Wang
Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation
Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies
Dry-to-wet abrupt alternation
Precipitation
Soil Moisture
Atmospheric circulation
Extreme event
title Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation
title_full Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation
title_fullStr Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation
title_full_unstemmed Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation
title_short Dynamics of dry-to-wet abrupt alternation events in mainland China from 1961 to 2022: A novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation
title_sort dynamics of dry to wet abrupt alternation events in mainland china from 1961 to 2022 a novel identification method integrating daily soil moisture and precipitation
topic Dry-to-wet abrupt alternation
Precipitation
Soil Moisture
Atmospheric circulation
Extreme event
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825003453
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AT zhonggenwang dynamicsofdrytowetabruptalternationeventsinmainlandchinafrom1961to2022anovelidentificationmethodintegratingdailysoilmoistureandprecipitation