THE average temperature in China in 2023 was the highest since 1961, when the country began compiling complete meteorological records, according to the National Climate Center. The national average reading in 2023 stood at 10.7 degrees Celsius, 0.8 degrees Celsius above the regular years, breaking the previous record made in 2021, namely 10.5 degrees Celsius. A total of 13 provincial-level regions logged record-high temperatures, including Shandong, Liaoning, Xinjiang, Guizhou, Yunnan, Tianjin, Hunan, Hebei, Sichuan, Henan, Beijing, Inner Mongolia, and Guangxi. The average precipitation across the country shrank 3.9% from the regular years and stood at 615 mm. The highest was Beihai in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which accumulated 3.23 meters during the year. In addition, 55 national weather stations recorded their highest daily precipitation. China’s highest temperature record was shattered July 16 when Turpan’s Sanpu Town, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, reached 52.2 degrees Celsius, and the record low was smashed Jan. 22 when the temperature in Mohe’s Jintao Town, Heilongjiang Province, sank to -53 degrees Celsius. A joint laboratory of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the China Meteorological Administration attributed the extreme weather patterns to global warming in the newly published green book on climate change response in 2023. “Due to the effect of climate change and the moderate to strong El Nino phenomenon, extreme weather events occurred more frequently, over a wider range and with greater intensity,” the green book said. It predicted that the average temperature in China will continue to rise in the coming decades, with the increase gradually becoming larger from southeast to northwest. Areas including the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, northern Xinjiang and northeastern parts of the country will experience more pronounced warming. Extreme rainfall and major droughts are also predicted to become more frequent, and the areas with increased risks are mostly located in the densely populated and economically developed eastern part of China. This poses significant challenges to the safety and security of the region, the green book said. (Xinhua, China Daily) | 