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Revisiting Recent Elevation‐Dependent Warming on the Tibetan Plateau Using Satellite‐Based Data Sets
Author(s) -
Guo Donglin,
Sun Jianqi,
Yang Kun,
Pepin Nick,
Xu Yongming
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-8996
pISSN - 2169-897X
DOI - 10.1029/2019jd030666
Subject(s) - plateau (mathematics) , elevation (ballistics) , snow , climatology , environmental science , context (archaeology) , satellite , global warming , snow cover , cloud cover , daytime , climate change , physical geography , atmospheric sciences , geography , meteorology , cloud computing , geology , oceanography , mathematical analysis , geometry , mathematics , archaeology , aerospace engineering , computer science , engineering , operating system
Satellite data, characterized by extensive regional coverage and relatively high spatial resolution, have a distinct advantage for examining elevation‐dependent warming (EDW) across rugged topography in mountain regions where there are sparse in situ observations. Based on recent (2001–2015) comprehensive satellite‐based data sets (2 m air temperature, land surface temperature, snow cover, and daytime and nighttime cloud), this study finds that annual mean 2 m air temperature warming rates show rapid decrease above 4,500 m despite increasing from 2,000 to 4,500 m. This indicates a reversal in EDW at the highest elevations on the Tibetan Plateau, which is somehow different from the EDW derived from short‐term land surface temperature presented in earlier research. The decrease of warming rate above 4,500 m coincides with the elevation at which most of the current solid water resources reside. Thus, their decline may be less rapid than previously thought. Trends in nighttime cloud and snow cover are both correlated with patterns of EDW on the Tibetan Plateau, but the leading factor varies on an annual and seasonal basis. These results provide important evidence for understanding EDW and its controlling mechanisms in an extreme high‐elevation context.