The Influence of Climate Change on Surface Water in the Upper Yellow River

Based on the hydrological data of Tangnag hydrometric station in the upper Yellow (Huanghe) River and meteorological data of this river basin in the same period, this paper studied the influence of climate change on surface water resource in the upper Yellow River. The results show that the annual flow in the upper Yellow River has been decreasing, it is especially more significant since the 1990s; while the climate change in the upper Yellow River tends toward desiccation with the increase of air temperature, decrease of precipitation and increment of evaporation, which is extremely significant in the 1990s. The increase of air temperature, decrease of precipitation and increment of evaporation resulted in the decrease of flow in the upper Yellow River, and among them, precipitation amount is the main climate factor to impact flow. The decrease of precipitation amount, especially its decrease in summer, is the direct cause to make the flow decrease in the upper Yellow River.