The wind speed is the key for the development of wind power industry. Changes of the near-surface wind speed may exert profound influences on environment and social economy. 

Recently, researchers from the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources of the Chinese Academy of Sciences analyzed the spatiotemporal characteristics and variation mechanisms of the near-surface wind speed in 1979-2019 using the homogenized observations at 679 observation stations in China as well as the ERA-Interim datasets. 

Related results were published in Theoretical and Applied Climatology on March 3. 

The researchers found that the wind speed in China showed decreased trends at 487 out of 679 observation stations during 1979 and 2019. 

The annual mean wind speeds in northern and eastern regions, Tibetan Plateau and the coastal zones were larger than that in other regions of China. In addition, the dispersion degree of the wind speed in spring was also larger than that in other seasons both spatially and temporally. 

Besides, the researchers analyzed the wind speed change mechanisms in China from two aspects: upper wind fields and uneven warming between high and low latitude zone. 

The results showed that the significantly declined trend of the surface wind speed was closely related to the weakened upper westerly wind field. In addition, the uneven warming between high and low latitudes may also contribute to the surface wind speed changes through thermal adaption. 

These findings could help to create new opportunities for the development of wind energy industry in China. 

Contact:

PAN Yongjie

E-mail: panyongjie@lzb.ac.cn