Current Issue

24 March 1997, Volume 16 Issue 1   
  • INFLUENCES OF SEVEN TIBETAN PLATEAU RAISING PROCESSES ON CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENT
  • Tang Maocang;Dong Wenjie
  • 1997 Vol. 16 (1): 23-29. 
  • Abstract ( ) PDF (244KB) ( )
  • In this paper, it is systematically discussed that the influences of seven Tibetan Plateau raising processes on climate and environment. The cause of climate formation is analyzed by means of meteorological theory. The main conclusions are those: (1) the cause of hot-dry climate before elevation of plateau is that the efficiency of atmospheric heat engine is lower than after the elevation owing to flatter global landform;(2) at the beginning of Oligocene Epoch, the horizontal scale of plateau reached the critical scale of geostraphic adjustment of baroclinic atmosphere, following which atmospheric general circulation changed from "two vortexes in south pole and north pole stand facing each other" pattern into "three vortexes tripartite confrontation" pattern, or climate suddenly changed;(3) a series of variability in atmospheric general circulation, corresponding to the plateau's reaching 2 000 m, an important critical height, at 2.5 Ma B P is analyzed;(4) the energy balance of earth-atmosphere system at the Great Ice age is estimated, and the difference between the energy balance at the Grent and at present is contrasted, based on which the climate during that period is discussed, moreover, the mean plateau elevation is evaluated lower than 3 000 m at 0.5 Ma B P.