SPATIOTEMPORAL VARIABILITY OF TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION DURING 1960-2008 INFERRED FROM INSTRUMENTAL RECORDS IN QINGHAI PROVINCE, NORTHEASTERN TIBETAN PLATEAU

Linear slopes of instrumental temperature and precipitation data from 1960 to 2008 in Qinghai Province, China, were analyzed to observe their temporal trends by a T-test method. Our findings indicate that both temperature and precipitation exhibit an increasing trend with fluctuations during that period across Qinghai Province. In addition, temperature and precipitation variations are highly positively correlated. The long-term temperature and precipitation trends of southeast Qinghai Province (SEQP), which is mainly controlled by the summer monsoon, and those of northwest Qinghai Province (NWQP), which is dominated by the Westerlies, are generally in agreement, with both temperature and precipitation exhibiting a rising trend. In general, the amplitude of temperature changes in the NWQP is larger than that in the SEQP. However, the amplitude of precipitation changes in NWQP is close to that in SEQP. The core regions that exhibit an increasing precipitation trend are located in high-altitude areas, such as southern Qinghai Plateau and Qilian Mountains, while the regions with an insignificant increasing trend are located in low-lying areas, such as Qinghai Lake Basin and Qaidam Basin. The contrasting pattern may be a result of topography-induced uplifting and subsiding air dynamics.