Reconstruction of southeast Tibetan Plateau summer cloud cover over the past two centuries using tree ring δ¹⁸O

摘要

A tree-ring δ¹⁸O chronology of Linzhi spruce, spanning from AD 1781 to 2005, was developed in Bomi, Southeast Tibetan Plateau (TP). During the period with instrumental data (1961–2005), this record is strongly correlated with regional summer cloud cover, which is supported by a precipitation δ¹⁸O simulation conducted with the isotope-enabled atmospheric general circulation model LMDZiso. A 225-yr regional cloud cover reconstruction was therefore achieved. The observed cloud cover increased in the 1980s and this increase is not unprecedented in the entire reconstruction. The reconstructed cloud cover appears smaller and more stable in the 20th century than previously. A late 19th century decrease in our reconstructed cloud cover is consistent with a decrease in the TP glacier accumulation recorded in ice cores. Our data reveal a strong anomaly in the 1810s, which coincides with volcanic eruption in 1809 and the 1815 Tambora volcanic eruption.