资源环境科技发展态势分析平台

The climatology of shallow foehn, also known locally as elevated south-easterly gales (ESEGs), on the northern lee side of the central Tianshan Mountains is analysed using radiosonde data recorded over a period of 10 years at Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in north-western China. ESEGs are a frequent weather phenomenon in the region, occurring on average 128.5 days/yr and most often in winter (47.0 days), particularly January (17.5 days), and least in summer (18 days). The vertical ESEG structures also undergo seasonal variations, with the height of the maximum ESEG wind and the base and top of the ESEG layer more elevated in the warm half (late spring through early fall) of the year than the cold half. However, the monthly mean maximum wind speeds, which vary around 10 m/s, appear to be independent of season. A typical synoptic pattern accompanying ESEGs is characterized by opposite air masses to the east (cold) and west (warm) of Xinjiang. A strong low-level west-east pressure gradient helps push cold air to enter Xinjiang from the east, which subsequently induces a north-south pressure gradient across the Tianshan Mountains. This regional pressure gradient combined with terrain channelling leads to the development of ESEGs. A comparison of boundary layer structure between days with/without ESEGs in winter shows that the ESEG days are accompanied by deeper (average of 900 m) and more intense (average 6 degrees C) inversion, but there is little difference in the cold air pool Froude Number between the two types of days.