Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: In the latter half of the twentieth century, a significant climate phenomenon “diurnal asymmetric warming” emerged, wherein global land surface temperatures increased more rapidly during the night than during the day. However, recent episodes of global brightening and regional droughts and heatwaves have brought notable alterations to this asymmetric warming trend. Here, we re-evaluate sub-diurnal temperature patterns, revealing a substantial increase in the warming rates of daily maximum temperatures (T max ), while daily minimum temperatures have remained relatively stable. This shift has resulted in a reversal of the diurnal warming trend, expanding the diurnal temperature range over recent decades. The intensified T max warming is attributed to a widespread reduction in cloud cover, which has led to increased solar irradiance at the surface. Our findings underscore the urgent need for enhanced scrutiny of recent temperature trends and their implications for the wider earth system.
Source: Nature Communications
Institutions: Beijing Normal University, State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Chalmers University of Technology, University of Gothenburg, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Sun Yat-sen University, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, Hohai University, Ministry of Natural Resources, Peking University, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, State Key Laboratory of Desert and Oasis Ecology, State Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Climate action
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $6,290
Award: G7336690691
OpenAlex ID: W4388495263