Abstract
The spatial and temporal variability of precipitation time series were investigated for the Hexi Corridor, in Northwest China, by analyzing the entropy information. The examinations were performed on monthly, seasonal, and annual timescales based on 29 meteorological stations for the period of 1961–2015. The apportionment entropy and intensity entropy were used to analyze the regional precipitation characteristics, including the intra-annual and decadal distribution of monthly and annual precipitation amounts, as well as the number of precipitation days within a year and a decade. The regions with high precipitation variability are found in the western part of the Hexi corridor and with less precipitation, and may have a high possibility of drought occurrence. The variability of the number of precipitation days decreased from the west to the east of the corridor. Higher variability, in terms of both of precipitation amount and intensity during crop-growing season, has been found in the recent decade. In addition, the correlation between entropy-based precipitation variability and the crop yield is also compared, and the crop yield in historical periods is found to be correlated with the precipitation intensity disorder index in the middle reaches of the Hexi corridor.
Highlights
The Hexi corridor in northwest China (Figure 1), located in 93◦ 210 –104◦ 050 E and 37◦ 150 –42◦ 480 N, plays an important role in grain production and regional economic development
The variability of the number of precipitation days decreased from the west to the east of the corridor
The correlation between entropy-based precipitation variability and the crop yield is compared, and the crop yield in historical periods is found to be correlated with the precipitation intensity disorder index in the middle reaches of the Hexi corridor
Summary
The Hexi corridor in northwest China (Figure 1), located in 93◦ 210 –104◦ 050 E and 37◦ 150 –42◦ 480 N, plays an important role in grain production and regional economic development. The corridor is a long-narrow region in Northwest China with a length of about 1000 km, an average width of about. The Qiliang Mountains are located in the southern part of the corridor and the Mazong and Longshou Mountains in the north, with the Wushaoling to the east and Dunhuang to the west. The long-term mean annual precipitation is about 100–150 mm. It receives relatively limited precipitation, the Hexi corridor has sufficient light and heat resources, with a sunshine duration of about 3000 h/year
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