Characteristics of climate change and its relationship with land use/cover change in Yunnan Province, China

This study analysed the characteristics of climate change (including temporal trend and spatial distribution of temperature and precipitation) in Yunnan Province, China during 1961-2011 based on the observed data from 22 meteorological stations, and its relationship with land use/cover change (LUCC) was also discussed. The results showed that: (1) Significant increasing trend in temperature was observed at the annual scale, especially for the period 1987-2011. At the seasonal scale, such trend was the most prominent in winter. (2) Temporally, the annual precipitation showed a non-significant decreasing trend, which was dominant by the rainy season; spatially, the annual precipitation showed the east-to-west and north-to-south increasing trends over this region. (3) This study analysed the impacts of elevation and geographical location on climate change patterns, and the statistical equations to estimate the annual temperature and precipitation as well as their changing rates were established based on longitude, latitude and elevation. (4) Through analysing the relationship between climate change and the LUCC, the correlation between the LUCC and temperature was stronger than that between the LUCC and precipitation. The results would be valuable for researchers and managers to better understand the characteristics of climate change as well as its relationship with the LUCC and to make better decisions in future.