Influence of ENSO on multi‐annual temperature variations at Hongyuan, NE Qinghai‐Tibet plateau: evidence from δ^<i>13</i>C of spruce tree rings

Abstract

Abstract Influence of ENSO on global temperature variations has aroused wide attention. However, little is known about this effect at regions where different monsoons prevail. In this study, we measured δ 13 C of spruce trees ( picea likiangensis var. rubescens ) and reconstructed temperature variations during the past 270 years at Hongyuan, the Zoige plateau where Indian summer monsoon (ISM) dominates. Temperature variation inferred from δ 13 C treering at the Zoige plateau shows anti‐teleconnection on multi‐annual timescales to the sea‐surface temperature (SST) anomaly in the Niño3 region (SSTA Niño3 for short) which has been widely used as an indicator of the “El Niño–South Oscillation” (ENSO). We speculate that the ENSO may modulate the regional surface temperature by influencing the intensity of the ISM, which affects the influx of warm/moist air mass to the study region and subsequently changes the latent heating. On multi‐annual scales, when the SSTA Niño3 is high (low), the ISM is weak (strong), monsoon precipitation decreases (increase), the latent heating is weakened (strengthened) and surface air temperature is lower (higher). Copyright © 2009 Royal Meteorological Society