Arid Zone Research ›› 2024, Vol. 41 ›› Issue (8): 1300-1308.doi: 10.13866/j.azr.2024.08.04

• Weather and Climate • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Spatial-temporal variations and trends in the human body comfort index in the Qaidam Basin, China, during 1979-2020

ZHANG Qunhui1(), CHANG Liang1,2,3, GU Xiaofan1,2,3, WANG Qian1, MA Maonan4, LI Xiaodeng1, DUAN Rui1, YOU Xiangzhi1   

  1. 1. Xi’an Geological Survey Center, China Geological Survey, Xi’an 710054, Shaanxi, China
    2. Shaanxi Province Engineering Research Centre of Water Resources and Environment, Xi’an 710054, Shaanxi, China
    3. Key Laboratory for Groundwater and Ecology in Arid and Semi-arid Areas, China Geological Survey, Xi’ an 710054, Shaanxi, China
    4. The Institute of Geological Survey, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, Hubei, China
  • Received:2023-11-18 Revised:2024-02-21 Online:2024-08-15 Published:2024-08-22

Abstract:

Research on climate comfort assessment in the Qaidam Basin is of great significance for the environment, the development of liveable climate resources, and the construction of ecology and civilization. This study utilized surface meteorological datasets with a long time series from 1979-2020, as well as the index of human body comfort, to analyze the spatial-temporal changes in human comfort at the interannual and seasonal scales in the Qaidam Basin. The results indicated that (1) the human comfort level in the entire basin increased over the years and in different seasons. Most areas were cold and uncomfortable, with the exception of some areas in the summer plains at a sufficient comfort level. (2) the change in the index of human body comfort had the strongest correlation with the change in air temperature in the entire basin, with a correlation coefficient >0.9, followed by wind speed and humidity. The correlation was weaker in the mountainous areas than in the plains. (3) through comprehensive analysis of trends and the Hurst index, it was observed that the air temperature and specific humidity continued to elevate with a strong persistence, while wind speed showed the opposite trend; except for the weak persistence in autumn in some mountainous areas, the index of human body comfort showed a conspicuous and continuous increasing trend in other seasons both in the mountains and plains. This study can provide some reference for the study of climate suitability in the Qaidam Basin and other alpine regions.

Key words: the index of human body comfort, spatial-temporal distributions, future trends, meteorological factors, Qaidam Basin