Abstract
The headwaters of the Yangtze River are located on the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau, which is affected by climate change. Here, treamflow trends for Tuotuohe and Zhimenda sub-basins and relations to temperature and precipitation trends during 1961–2015 were investigated. The modified Mann–Kendall trend test, Pettitt test, wavelet analysis, and multivariate correlation analysis was deployed for this purpose. The temperature and precipitation significantly increased for each sub-basin, and the temperature increase was more significant in Tuotuohe sub-basin as compared to the Zhimenda sub-basin. A statistically significant periodicity of 2–4 years was observed for both sub-basins in different time spans. Higher flow periodicities for Tuotuohe and Zhimenda sub-basin were found after 1991 and 2004, respectively, which indicates that these are the change years of trends in streamflows. The influence of temperature on streamflow is more substantial in Tuotuohe sub-basin, which will ultimately impact the melting of glaciers and snowmelt runoff in this sub-basin. Precipitation plays a more critical role in the Zhimenda streamflow. Precipitation and temperature changes in the headwaters of the Yangtze River will change the streamflow variability, which will ultimately impact the hydropower supply and water resources of the Yangtze Basin. This study contributes to the understanding of the dynamics of the hydrological cycle and may lead to better hydrologic system modeling for downstream water resource developments.
Highlights
Climate change and its impacts have been evident in the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau over the last decade [1,2,3,4,5]
The headwaters of the Yangtze River (HWYZ) are located on the central Tibetan Plateau, with a large area covered by glaciers, permanently frozen soil, permafrost and lakes which include about 88.8 km3 of water
We focused on the periodic behavior of streamflow, precipitation, and temperature in the sub-basins of HWYZ
Summary
Climate change and its impacts have been evident in the Qinghai Tibetan Plateau over the last decade [1,2,3,4,5]. The headwaters of the Yangtze River (HWYZ) are located on the central Tibetan Plateau, with a large area covered by glaciers, permanently frozen soil, permafrost and lakes which include about 88.8 km of water [11] According to Chen, et al [12], the size and water storage capacity of glaciers and lakes have reduced in the HWYZ over the last two decades. These reductions will have severe impacts on dry season streamflows. Most of the studies conducted in this region were related to temperature and precipitation trends [15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
