Arid Zone Research ›› 2025, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (3): 420-430.doi: 10.13866/j.azr.2025.03.03

• Weather and Climate • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Characteristic of surface heat fluxes in alpine desert and meadow in the Three Rivers Source in Qinghai

YAN Yuqian(), LI Fu, CHEN Qi(), DU Huali, SUN Shujiao   

  1. Key Laboratory of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation in Qinghai Province, Qinghai Institute of Meteorological Science, Xining 810001, Qinghai, China
  • Received:2024-05-15 Revised:2024-07-24 Online:2025-03-15 Published:2025-03-17
  • Contact: CHEN Qi E-mail:yan_yq1113@sina.com;qq7qq7cq@163.com

Abstract:

The biogeophysical process of land use change is an essential part of global change studies. Recognizing the characteristics of land surface heat flux under different vegetation cover is of great scientific significance for further understanding global change. Based on the eddy observation of the surface heat flux and gradient micrometeorological data of the Tuotuohe and Longbao field stations, the sensible and latent heat transfer coefficients were constructed by an inverse algorithm. Using this coefficient, the monthly heat flux values from 1981 to 2020 were constructed based on the Tuotuohe and Yushu meteorological stations. The interannual and monthly changes of heat flux were analyzed. The relationship between heat flux and meteorological elements is discussed systematically, and the calculated heat flux data are compared with the reanalysis data in detail. The conclusions are as follows: (1) Compared with the heat flux calculated by the total transport method and the field station’s eddy observation value, the correlation of the two stations’ surface sensible heat flux is better than that of the surface latent heat flux; that of the Tuotuohe station is better than that of the Longbao station. (2) The interannual variation of surface heat flux of different underlying surface types is not consistent. From 1981 to 2020, the surface latent and sensible heat fluxes and surface heat source of the Tuotuohe station displayed a weak decreasing trend. The Yushu station’s surface sensible and latent heat fluxes and surface heat source display an upward trend. (3) The monthly averages of surface sensible and latent heat fluxes display a single peak at both stations. The surface sensible heat flux reaches its maximum in May, and the surface latent heat flux reaches its maximum in July. The surface heat source differs slightly between the two stations: it exhibits a single peak at the Tuotuohe station, reaching a maximum in June, and a double peak at the Yushu station, reaching a peak in May and August. (4) The correlation between the calculated heat flux and the reanalysis data of the Tuotuohe station is better than that of the Yushu station. The surface sensible heat flux of the Yushu station is overestimated and underestimated. The calculated value of the Yushu station’s surface latent heat flux is lower than the reanalysis value before 2008 and higher than that after 2008.

Key words: sensible heat flux, latent heat flux, surface heat source, Three River Source