A Climate Of Change

By Lu Yan

For authorities in Henan Province， central China， known as the “Granary of the Central Plains，” the key priority is to resume work and normal life after rainstorm-triggered floods ravaged the province.

In mid-July， record rainstorms inundated Henan. In Zhengzhou， the provinces capital city， 617 mm of rain fell over three days from July 17 to 20， close to the citys average annual rainfall. More than 14 million people in 150 counties were affected by the downpours. Over 1.09 million hectares of crops were damaged， and over 30，600 houses collapsed across the province， official data showed.

The frequent extreme weather and climate events， including the extreme heat in North America， floods in Europe and heavy rains in Henan， are all manifestations of global atmospheric abnormalities， said Jia Xiaolong， Vice Director of the National Climate Center （NCC）.

In August， a blue paper， issued by the China Meteorological Administration （CMA）， showed that the country saw increasingly extreme precipitation in the past six decades. Extreme weather conditions like heavy precipitation and high temperatures are on the rise， according to the paper.

“The specific reasons for these extreme events are certainly multifaceted. Nonetheless， climate change， aggravating the instability of the climate system， is an important background that causes the frequent extreme weather and climate events，” Jia said at a press conference in August.

Getting warmer

The blue paper showed its core conclusion—continuing climate warming and increasing risks of extreme weather occurrences—from five aspects， namely the atmosphere， hydrosphere， cryosphere， biosphere， and climate change drivers.

In 2020， the global average temperature was 1.2 degrees Celsius higher than the average level of the pre-industrial period （1850-1900）. It was also one of the three warmest years since meteorological observations have been taken， according to the blue paper.

In China， the annual average surface temperature increased by 0.26 degree Celsius every 10 years from 1951 to 2020， which is significantly higher than the global average increase of 0.15 degree Celsius in the same period.

The report also says that instances of extreme heat and the average intensity fluctuation of typhoons landing in China have increased since the 1990s.

Typhoon In-fa， one of the main reasons for Henans heavy rain， pushed water vapor into the province from the sea， and then a low pressure system lifted the moisture into the air where it quickly cooled and condensed. Also， the high pressure systems and the regions special terrain， surrounded by mountains， also contributed to the heavy showers.