Tibet braces for another mild winter

Tibet braces for another mild winter

(Xinhua)
14:21, December 03, 2011

LHASA, Dec. 3 (Xinhua) -- The "roof of the world" is bracing for another mild winter this year, or the 11th such season since 2001, due to the impact of global warming.

From Jan. 1 to Nov. 15, the average temperature in the Tibet Autonomous Region in southwest China ranged from minus 0.7 degrees Celsius to 14.7 degrees, or 0.5 degrees higher than normal years in most parts of the region, according to the latest data released by the Climate Center under the Tibet Regional Meteorological Bureau.

In some areas, including the regional capital of Lhasa, Ngari Prefecture and Tsethang Township, the temperature was 1-1.5 degrees higher than normal years, a center spokesman said Saturday.

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Over the past 50 years, the annual average temperature in Tibet has increased by 0.32 degrees every decade, especially in the past 10 years, he said.

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Glaciers on China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau melting fast due to global warming

English.news.cn 2011-10-21 20:38:20

XINING, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Glaciers in southwest China's Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, the major source of the country's largest rivers, are melting faster than ever under the influence of global warming, researchers said.

Experts have been conducting research on the waters, geology, glaciers, and wetlands in the headwaters of the Yangtze, Yellow and Lancang rivers in northwest China's Qinghai Province since 2005. Results from the study show that a large area of the glaciers has melted in the 2,400-square-kilometer region.

Glaciers are the largest source of fresh water on the planet. They are also a reliable indicator of climate change, and easy for scientists to observe.

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Xin Yuanhong, a senior engineer with the Qinghai Hydrography and Geology Study Center, said the melting of the glaciers could lead to a water shortage and even a dry-up of rivers in the long run, and consequent ecological disasters like wetland retreat and desertification.

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