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Tree-Ring Research

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Tree-Ring Research 65(2):95-103. 2009
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3959/2008-2.1

Annual Precipitation Variation Inferred from Tree Rings Since A.D. 1770 for the Western Qilian Mts., Northern Tibetan Plateau

Eryuan Liang^1,^2,*, Xuemei Shao^1,², and Xiaohong Liu³

¹Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes (TEL), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 2871, Beijing 100085, China

²Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China

³Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China

*Corresponding author: liangey@itpcas.ac.cn, liangeryuan@yahoo.com; Fax 0086 10-62849886; Telephone 0086 10-62849380

Abstract

A long-term perspective of the recent climate change on the Tibetan Plateau is hampered by a lack of sufficiently long weather records. Here we describe a tree-ring based reconstruction of annual (prior July to current June) precipitation for the western Qilian Mts., northern Tibetan Plateau. This reconstruction accounts for 54.9% of the variance in instrumental precipitation data from 1935 to 2003. It shows distinct dry periods in 1782–1798, 1816–1837, 1869–1888 and 1920–1932, matching in general with local historical archives and other climatic proxy data on the northern Tibetan Plateau. Our research provides a background for evaluating hydroclimatic changes in the past two hundred years in a vulnerable arid region on the northern Tibetan Plateau.

Received: January 25, 2008; Accepted: January 2, 2009

Keywords: Tree rings, precipitation reconstruction, drought, western Qilian Mts, Picea crassifolia, Sabina przewalskii

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