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How climate change has affected the spatio‐temporal patterns of precipitation and temperature at various time scales in North Korea
Author(s) -
Nam WonHo,
Hong EunMi,
Baigorria Guillermo A.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
international journal of climatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.58
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-0088
pISSN - 0899-8418
DOI - 10.1002/joc.4378
Subject(s) - precipitation , climatology , climate change , environmental science , period (music) , spatial ecology , global warming , temporal scales , physical geography , geography , meteorology , geology , ecology , oceanography , physics , acoustics , biology
Detecting changes in the spatio‐temporal patterns of temperature and precipitation is a prerequisite for developing effective adaptation options and strategies for the future. An effective method for assessing climate change and for providing information to decision makers and stakeholders is needed to implement appropriate adaptation strategies. The objective of this study was to determine whether climate change has caused spatio‐temporal changes in meteorological elements in North Korea. We delineated the spatio‐temporal patterns of temperature and precipitation caused by climate change in specific time periods based on statistically significant differences using a statistically robust method. Historical weather data from 27 meteorological stations over a 30‐year period (1981–2010) were used. The results demonstrated that statistically significant changes occurred over the 30 years. The temporal trends in the maximum and minimum temperatures were highly significantly different in the western agricultural regions and central/southwest urban regions during 1996–2010 compared with 1981–1995. The precipitation amounts were significantly different in the southeast regions (around the coast). The numbers of precipitation events were significantly different for portions of the northern and northeast areas near the mountains. Additionally, statistically significant differences in the spatial structures of the temperature and precipitation were found at different time scales. The significant differences were not uniform in each season/month. Therefore, significant differences occurred in the meteorological elements, and particular locations and urbanized areas were affected by global warming. However, the temporal trends and spatial structures of each meteorological element were not equally modified; the meteorological changes occurred locally as a result of the changing climate.