scholarly journals Documentary Evidence of 17th Century Landcover and Climate Change in Northern China and Mongolia Compared to Modern Spectral Greening Trends

Land ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 100
Author(s):  
Michael Kempf
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Land Degradation ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Northern China ◽  
17Th Century ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
Vegetation Response ◽  
Climate Change Effects ◽  
The Past

Fighting land degradation of semi-arid and climate-sensitive grasslands are among the most urgent tasks of current eco-political agenda. Particularly, northern China and Mongolia are prone to climate-induced surface transformations, which were reinforced by the heavily increased numbers of livestock during the 20th century. Extensive overgrazing and resource exploitation amplified regional climate change effects and triggered intensified land degradation that forced policy-driven interventions to prevent desertification. In the past, however, the regions have been subject to continuous shifts in environmental and socio-cultural and political conditions, which makes it particularly difficult to distinguish into regional anthropogenic impact and global climate change effects. This article presents analyses of historical written sources, palaeoenvironmental data, and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) temporal series from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) to compare landcover change during the Little Ice Age (LIA) and current spectral greening trends over the period 2001–2020. Results show that decreasing precipitation and temperature records triggered increased land degradation during the late 17th century in the transition zone from northern China and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to Mongolia. From current climate change perspectives, modern vegetation shows enhanced physical vegetation response related to an increase in precipitation (Ptotal) and temperature (T). Vegetation response is strongly related to Ptotal and T and an increase in physical plant condition indicates local to regional grassland recovery compared to the past 20-year average.

scholarly journals Monitoring landcover change and desertification processes in northern China and Mongolia using historical written sources and vegetation indices

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Kempf
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Land Degradation ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Northern China ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
Maximum Temperature ◽  
Political Agenda ◽  
The Past ◽  
Landcover Change ◽  
Written Sources

Abstract. Fighting land degradation of semi-arid and climate-sensitive grasslands are among the most urgent tasks of current eco-political agenda. Northern China and Mongolia are particularly prone to surface transformations caused by heavily increased livestock numbers during the 20th century. Extensive overgrazing and resource exploitation amplify regional climate change effects and trigger intensified surface transformation, which forces policy-driven interventions to prevent desertification. In the past, the region has been subject to major shifts in environmental and socio-cultural parameters, what makes it difficult to measure the extent of the regional anthropogenic impact and global climate change. This article analyses historical written sources, palaeoenvironmental data, and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) temporal series from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) to compare landcover change during the Little Ice Age (LIA) and the reference period 2000–2018. Results show that decreasing precipitation and temperature records led to increased land degradation during the late 17th century. However, modern landcover data shows enhanced expansion of bare lands contrasting an increase in precipitation (Ptotal) and maximum temperature (Tmax). Vegetation response during the early growing season (March–May) and the late grazing season (September) does not relate to Ptotal and Tmax and generally low NDVI values indicate no major grassland recovery over the past 20 years.

Alpine sparsely vegetated areas in the eastern Qilian Mountains shrank with climate warming in the past 30 years

2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 415-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Biao Zeng ◽  
Fuguang Zhang ◽  
Taibao Yang ◽  
Jiaguo Qi ◽  
Mihretab G Ghebrezgabher
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Warming ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Qilian Mountains ◽  
Visual Interpretation ◽  
Hydrothermal Conditions ◽  
The Past ◽  
Distribution Ranges

Alpine sparsely vegetated areas (ASVAs) in mountains are sensitive to climate change and rarely studied. In this study, we focused on the response of ASVA distribution to climate change in the eastern Qilian Mountains (EQLM) from the 1990s to the 2010s. The ASVA distribution ranges in the EQLM during the past three decades were obtained from the Thematic Mapper remote sensing digital images by using the threshold of normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and artificial visual interpretation. Results indicated that the ASVA shrank gradually in the EQLM and lost its area by approximately 11.4% from the 1990s to the 2010s. The shrunken ASVA with markedly more area than the expanded one was mainly located at altitudes from 3700 m to 4300 m, which were comparatively lower than the average altitude of the ASVA distribution ranges. This condition led to the low ASVA boundaries in the EQLM moving upwards at a significant velocity of 22 m/decade at the regional scale. This vertical zonal process was modulated by topography-induced differences in local hydrothermal conditions. Thus, the ASVA shrank mainly in its lower parts with mild and sunny slopes. Annual maximum NDVI in the transition zone increased significantly and showed a stronger positive correlation with significantly increasing temperature than insignificant precipitation variations during 1990–2015. The ASVA shrinkage and up-shifting of its boundary were attributed to climate warming, which facilitated the upper part of alpine meadow in the EQLM by releasing the low temperature limitation on vegetation growth.

scholarly journals Climate Change Patterns of Wild Blueberry Fields in Downeast, Maine over the Past 40 Years

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 594
Author(s):  
Rafa Tasnim ◽  
Francis Drummond ◽  
Yong-Jiang Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Potential Evapotranspiration ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Spatial Average ◽  
Climate Variables ◽  
Threshold Values ◽  
The Past ◽  
Wild Blueberry ◽  
Crop Health

Maine, USA is the largest producer of wild blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium Aiton), an important native North American fruit crop. Blueberry fields are mainly distributed in coastal glacial outwash plains which might not experience the same climate change patterns as the whole region. It is important to analyze the climate change patterns of wild blueberry fields and determine how they affect crop health so fields can be managed more efficiently under climate change. Trends in the maximum (Tmax), minimum (Tmin) and average (Tavg) temperatures, total precipitation (Ptotal), and potential evapotranspiration (PET) were evaluated for 26 wild blueberry fields in Downeast Maine during the growing season (May–September) over the past 40 years. The effects of these climate variables on the Maximum Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVImax) were evaluated using Remote Sensing products and Geographic Information System (GIS) tools. We found differences in the increase in growing season Tmax, Tmin, Tavg, and Ptotal between those fields and the overall spatial average for the region (state of Maine), as well as among the blueberry fields. The maximum, minimum, and average temperatures of the studied 26 wild blueberry fields in Downeast, Maine showed higher rates of increase than those of the entire region during the last 40 years. Fields closer to the coast showed higher rates of warming compared with the fields more distant from the coast. Consequently, PET has been also increasing in wild blueberry fields, with those at higher elevations showing lower increasing rates. Optimum climatic conditions (threshold values) during the growing season were explored based on observed significant quadratic relationships between the climate variables (Tmax and Ptotal), PET, and EVImax for those fields. An optimum Tmax and PET for EVImax at 22.4 °C and 145 mm/month suggest potential negative effects of further warming and increasing PET on crop health and productivity. These climate change patterns and associated physiological relationships, as well as threshold values, could provide important information for the planning and development of optimal management techniques for wild blueberry fields experiencing climate change.

scholarly journals Late Holocene summer temperatures in the central Andes reconstructed from the sediments of high-elevation Laguna Chepical, Chile (32° S)

2013 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 2277-2308
Author(s):  
R. de Jong ◽  
L. von Gunten ◽  
A. Maldonado ◽  
M. Grosjean
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
South America ◽  
Temperature Reconstruction ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
Central Chile ◽  
Southern South America ◽  
Calibration Period ◽  
The Past ◽  
Insight Into

Abstract. High-resolution reconstructions of climate variability that cover the past millennia are necessary to improve the understanding of natural and anthropogenic climate change across the globe. Although numerous records are available for the mid- and high-latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, global assessments are still compromised by the scarcity of data from the Southern Hemisphere. This is particularly the case for the tropical and subtropical areas. In addition, high elevation sites in the South American Andes may provide insight into the vertical structure of climate change in the mid-troposphere. This study presents a 3000 yr long austral summer (November to February) temperature reconstruction derived from the 210Pb and 14C dated organic sediments of Laguna Chepical (32°16' S/70°30' W, 3050 m a.s.l.), a high-elevation glacial lake in the subtropical Andes of central Chile. Scanning reflectance spectroscopy in the visible light range provided the spectral index R570/R630, which reflects the clay mineral content in lake sediments. For the calibration period (AD 1901–2006), the R570/R630 data were regressed against monthly meteorological reanalysis data, showing that this proxy was strongly and significantly correlated with mean summer (NDJF) temperatures (R3yr = −0.63, padj = 0.01). This calibration model was used to make a quantitative temperature reconstruction back to 1000 BC. The reconstruction (with a model error RMSEPboot of 0.33 °C) shows that the warmest decades of the past 3000 yr occurred during the calibration period. The 19th century (end of the Little Ice Age (LIA)) was cool. The prominent warmth reconstructed for the 18th century, which was also observed in other records from this area, seems systematic for subtropical and southern South America but remains difficult to explain. Except for this warm period, the LIA was generally characterized by cool summers. Back to AD 1400, the results from this study compare remarkably well to low altitude records from the Chilean Central Valley and Southern South America. However, the reconstruction from Laguna Chepical does not show a warm Medieval Climate Anomaly during the 12–13th century, which is consistent with records from tropical South America. The Chepical record also indicates substantial cooling prior to 800 BC. This coincides with well-known regional as well as global glacier advances which have been attributed to a grand solar minimum. This study thus provides insight into the climatic drivers and temperature patterns in a region for which currently very few data are available. It also shows that since ca AD 1400, long term temperature patterns were generally similar at low and high altitudes in central Chile.

Ethics and politics in the Anthropocene

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (10) ◽  
pp. 1167-1181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maeve Cooke
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Human Activity ◽  
Land Degradation ◽  
Frankfurt School ◽  
Anthropogenic Climate Change ◽  
Considerable Evidence ◽  
The Past ◽  
Fundamental Challenge ◽  
Ecological Problems ◽  
Ethics And Politics

The most fundamental challenge facing humans today is the imminent destruction of the life-generating and life-sustaining ecosystems that constitute the planet Earth. There is considerable evidence that the strongest contemporary ecological threat is anthropogenic climate change resulting from the increasing warming of the atmosphere, caused by cumulative CO2 and other emissions as a result of collective human activity over the past few 100 years. This process of climate change is reinforced by further ecological problems such as pollution of land, air and sea, depletion of resources, land degradation and the loss of biodiversity. The name gaining currency for this emerging epoch of instability in the Earth’s eco-systems is the Anthropocene. Anthropogenic climate change calls for a categorical shift in thinking about the place of humanity in these systems and requires fundamental rethinking of ethics and politics. What would an appropriate ethical frame for politics in the Anthropocene look like? In response to this question, I sketch a proposal for an ethically non-anthropocentric ethics. I draw on early Frankfurt School Critical Theorists, and on Habermas, but move beyond these theorists in key respects.

scholarly journals Estimating South Cascade Glacier (Washington, U.S.A.) mass balance from a distant radiosonde and comparison with Blue Glacier

2001 ◽  
Vol 47 (159) ◽  
pp. 579-588 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. A. Rasmussen ◽  
H. Conway
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Mass Balance ◽  
Little Ice Age ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
The Past ◽  
Recent Warming ◽  
Flux Model ◽  
Present Area

AbstractA simple flux model using twice-daily measurements of wind, humidity and temperature from standard upper-air levels in a distant radiosonde estimated winter balance of South Cascade Glacier, Washington, U.S.A., over 1959–98 with error 0.24 m w.e. Correlation between net and winter balance is strong; the model estimates net balance with error 0.53 m w.e. Over the past 40 years, average net balance of South Cascade Glacier has been strongly negative (−0.46 m w.e.), and it has been shrinking steadily. In comparison, 200 km west-southwest at Blue Glacier, the average balance has been less negative (−0.13 m w.e); that glacier has undergone little change over the 40 years. Balance histories of the two glaciers are positively correlated (r = +0.54), and South Cascade has been more out of balance than Blue, presumably because it is still adjusting to climate change since the Little Ice Age. Recent warming and drying has made the net balance of both glaciers strongly negative since 1976 (−0.84 m w.e. at South Cascade, −0.56 m w.e. at Blue). If South Cascade Glacier were in balance with the 1986–98 climate, it would be about one-quarter of its present area.

scholarly journals Dynamics of Vegetation Greenness and Its Response to Climate Change in Xinjiang over the Past Two Decades

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 4063
Author(s):  
Jie Xue ◽  
Yanyu Wang ◽  
Hongfen Teng ◽  
Nan Wang ◽  
Danlu Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Vegetation Change ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index ◽  
Dynamic Change ◽  
Google Earth ◽  
Arid Areas ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
Northern Margin ◽  
The Past

Climate change has proven to have a profound impact on the growth of vegetation from various points of view. Understanding how vegetation changes and its response to climatic shift is of vital importance for describing their mutual relationships and projecting future land–climate interactions. Arid areas are considered to be regions that respond most strongly to climate change. Xinjiang, as a typical dryland in China, has received great attention lately for its unique ecological environment. However, comprehensive studies examining vegetation change and its driving factors across Xinjiang are rare. Here, we used the remote sensing datasets (MOD13A2 and TerraClimate) and data of meteorological stations to investigate the trends in the dynamic change in the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and its response to climate change from 2000 to 2019 across Xinjiang based on the Google Earth platform. We found that the increment rates of growth-season mean and maximum NDVI were 0.0011 per year and 0.0013 per year, respectively, by averaging all of the pixels from the region. The results also showed that, compared with other land use types, cropland had the fastest greening rate, which was mainly distributed among the northern Tianshan Mountains and Southern Junggar Basin and the northern margin of the Tarim Basin. The vegetation browning areas primarily spread over the Ili River Valley where most grasslands were distributed. Moreover, there was a trend of warming and wetting across Xinjiang over the past 20 years; this was determined by analyzing the climate data. Through correlation analysis, we found that the contribution of precipitation to NDVI (R2 = 0.48) was greater than that of temperature to NDVI (R2 = 0.42) throughout Xinjiang. The Standardized Precipitation and Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) was also computed to better investigate the correlation between climate change and vegetation growth in arid areas. Our results could improve the local management of dryland ecosystems and provide insights into the complex interaction between vegetation and climate change.

scholarly journals Vegetation Change and Its Response to Climate Change between 2000 and 2016 in Marshes of the Songnen Plain, Northeast China

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 3569 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanji Wang ◽  
Xiangjin Shen ◽  
Ming Jiang ◽  
Xianguo Lu
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Vegetation Change ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Normalized Difference Vegetation Index ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Maximum Temperature ◽  
Climate Data ◽  
Songnen Plain ◽  
Asymmetric Effects ◽  
Climate Change Effects

Songnen Plain is a representative semi-arid marshland in China. The Songnen Plain marshes have undergone obvious loss during the past decades. In order to protect and restore wetland vegetation, it is urgent to investigate the vegetation change and its response to climate change in the Songnen Plain marshes. Based on the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and climate data, we investigated the spatiotemporal change of vegetation and its relationship with temperature and precipitation in the Songnen Plain marshes. During 2000–2016, the growing season mean NDVI of the Songnen Plain marshes significantly (p < 0.01) increased at a rate of 0.06/decade. For the climate change effects on vegetation, the growing season precipitation had a significant positive effect on the growing season NDVI of marshes. In addition, this study first found asymmetric effects of daytime maximum temperature (Tmax) and nighttime minimum temperature (Tmin) on NDVI of the Songnen Plain marshes: The growing season NDVI correlated negatively with Tmax but positively with Tmin. Considering the global asymmetric warming of Tmax and Tmin, more attention should be paid to these asymmetric effects of Tmax and Tmin on the vegetation of marshes.

scholarly journals Climate change impacts on plant diseases

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 200-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanmoy Das ◽  
M. Hajong D Majumdar ◽  
RK Tombisana Devi ◽  
T Rajesh
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Plant Pathogens ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Plant Diseases ◽  
Past Century ◽  
Adaptive Potential ◽  
Climate Change Effects ◽  
The Past ◽  
Pathogen Populations

The change in Global climate is due to increasing concentration of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere. The earths’ observed climatic changes over the past 50 years are primarily caused by various human activities. The increasing global temperature over the past century by about 0.8°C and expected to rise between 0.9 and 3.5°C by 2100. Such changes will not only have a great effect on the growth and cultivation of different crops but also affect the reproduction, spread and severity of many plant pathogens. Various plant disease models have been developed to incorporate more sophisticated climate predictions at various levels. At the level, the adaptive potential of plant and pathogen populations may prove to be one of the most important predictors of the magnitude of climate change effects. This review highlights various influences of climate change on plant diseases and their effects with suitable examples.SAARC J. Agri., 14(2): 200-209 (2016)

scholarly journals A chironomid-based record of temperature variability during the past 4000 years in northern China and its possible societal implications

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 383-396 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haipeng Wang ◽  
Jianhui Chen ◽  
Shengda Zhang ◽  
David D. Zhang ◽  
Zongli Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Temperature Change ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Northern China ◽  
Temperature Variability ◽  
Warm Period ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
Shanxi Province ◽  
Societal Implications ◽  
Cold Event ◽  
The Past

Abstract. Long-term, high-resolution temperature records which combine an unambiguous proxy and precise dating are rare in China. In addition, the societal implications of past temperature change on a regional scale have not been sufficiently assessed. Here, based on the modern relationship between chironomids and temperature, we use fossil chironomid assemblages in a precisely dated sediment core from Gonghai Lake to explore temperature variability during the past 4000 years in northern China. Subsequently, we address the possible regional societal implications of temperature change through a statistical analysis of the occurrence of wars. Our results show the following. (1) The mean annual temperature (TANN) was relatively high during 4000–2700 cal yr BP, decreased gradually during 2700–1270 cal yr BP and then fluctuated during the last 1270 years. (2) A cold event in the Period of Disunity, the Sui-Tang Warm Period (STWP), the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) and the Little Ice Age (LIA) can all be recognized in the paleotemperature record, as well as in many other temperature reconstructions in China. This suggests that our chironomid-inferred temperature record for the Gonghai Lake region is representative. (3) Local wars in Shanxi Province, documented in the historical literature during the past 2700 years, are statistically significantly correlated with changes in temperature, and the relationship is a good example of the potential societal implications of temperature change on a regional scale.

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