The characteristics of regional high temperature(HT) weather in 2013 and 2003 and their causes were studied using daily maximum temperature data, National Center for Environmental Prediction(NCEP) reanalysis data, and outgoing longwave radiation(OLR) data. For these two years of HT weather, there were many similar characteristics, such as their long duration, wide range, high intensity, and severe influence. However, there were also three obvious differences: firstly, in 2013, the major area where HT weather occurred was farther north than in 2003; secondly, the HT weather in South China and the southeast area of Jiangnan in 2013 lasted fewer days than in 2003, but in other areas it lasted for more days than in 2003; thirdly, the intensity of the HT weather in 2013 was also stronger in the north and weaker in the south, similar to that of the duration. A strong and stable western Pacific subtropical high(WPSH), a continental warm high, and the distribution of the warm center in the lower troposphere played important roles in the HT weather formation. Several probable causes for the differences are that the cold air was weaker, the WPSH was farther north, and the tropical convective systems were stronger in 2013 than in 2003. Finally, a preliminary cause analysis of the WPSH anomaly was presented.
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