Spatio-Temporal Characteristics of Spring Precipitation Days in Eastern Northwest China and Their Responses to the Intensity of Surface Heat-Field in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

With spring precipitation-day data at 104 meteorological observation stations in eastern Northwest China from 1960 to 2000, and by EOF and REOF analysis, the spatio-temporal characteristics of precipitation-day anomalies in the eastern part of Northwest China in spring were studied. The results show that two centers of high-precipitation days lie in the southeast side of Qilian Mountains and northern Sichuan, respectively. And there are two kinds of spatial anomaly distributions, which are the consistent anomaly and east-west reverse anomaly, the former increases and the latter decreases gradually. In addition, this region can be divided into seven climate sections and in the Tibetan Plateau, precipitation days have a tendency of increasing,but in other places decreasing. When the intensity of surface heat-field changes more strongly during winter in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, the rain days, in the next spring, along the Qilian Mountains, centre of Gansu Province, and the northeastern Longdong, are obviously more than that of normal years, and the rainy centre is mainly located at the mid-western of Qilian Mountains and the centre of Gansu Province.