Trends of major hydroclimatic variables in the Tarim River basin during the past 50 years

The nonparametric Mann–Kendall test was used to detect the trends of major hydroclimatic variables in the Tarim River Basin, the largest inland river basin in China for the period of 1960–2007. Results showed that both mean annual air temperature and precipitation experienced an increasing trend, wh...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of arid environments 2010-02, Vol.74 (2), p.256-267
Main Authors: Xu, Zongxue, Liu, Zhaofei, Fu, Guobin, Chen, Yaning
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
air temperature
anthropogenic activities
Climate change
evaporation
history
hydrology
Mann–Kendall test
precipitation
rivers
runoff
seasonal variation
snowmelt
stream flow
time series analysis
Trend
Water resources
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Summary:The nonparametric Mann–Kendall test was used to detect the trends of major hydroclimatic variables in the Tarim River Basin, the largest inland river basin in China for the period of 1960–2007. Results showed that both mean annual air temperature and precipitation experienced an increasing trend, while annual streamflow demonstrated a mixed trend of decreasing and increasing: The mountainous region upstream showed an increasing trend and the region downstream exhibited a decreasing trend. Impacts of the increased air temperature on streamflow have shown different characteristics depending on location and seasons: it has positive effect on the runoff at mountainous region due to snowmelt and glacier-melt in spring, but negative effect on the runoff at plain area due to the increase of actual evaporation in summer. In addition, human activity contributed to the declining of streamflow in the arid plain oases at downstream of the Tarim River Basin. The results obtained in this paper can be used as a reference for the planning and management of water resources to maintain the health of the river system.
ISSN:0140-1963
1095-922X
DOI:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2009.08.014