What is the climate like in Yunnan?

Characteristics

Yunnan’s climate has the characteristics of low-latitude climate, monsoon climate, and mountain climate. Its main manifestations are:

First, the regional differences and vertical changes in climate are very obvious. This phenomenon is closely related to the two factors of Yunnan's latitude and altitude. In terms of latitude, its location is only equivalent to the geographical latitude from Leizhou Peninsula to Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan and Guizhou. However, due to the terrain being higher in the north and lower in the south, the height difference between the north and the south is as high as 6663.6 meters, which greatly aggravates the problems within the province. Temperature differences caused by latitude factors. This combination of high latitude and high altitude, low latitude and low altitude is consistent, that is, the increase in latitude in the horizontal direction coincides with the increase in altitude in the vertical direction. As a result, the annual average temperature in various places, except for the Jinsha River Valley and Yuanjiang River Valley, generally increases from north to south. The average temperature is around 5-24°C, and the temperature difference between the north and the south is about 19°C.

Due to the influence of terrain and different weather systems, special situations often occur in the latitudinal distribution of temperature across the province, which reflects regional differences and vertical changes in climate. The phenomenon of “hot in the north and cool in the south” has emerged. Especially in terms of vertical distribution, because the territory is mountainous, the erosion of river beds continues to deepen, forming high mountains and deep valleys. From the valley to the top of the mountain, there are differences in climate types caused by the increase in height. Generally, for every 100 meters of elevation on the plateau, the temperature is Lowered by about 0.6℃. "One mountain is divided into four seasons, and ten miles have different weather", which shows the characteristics of "three-dimensional climate".

Second, the annual temperature difference is small and the daily temperature difference is large. Because it is located on a low-latitude plateau, the air is dry and relatively sparse. The amount of solar heat received in various places not only increases or decreases with changes in the sun's altitude angle, but is also affected by clouds and rain. In summer, the average temperature on the hottest day is around 19-22℃; in winter, the average temperature on the coldest month is above 6-8℃. The annual temperature difference is generally 10-15℃, but the temperature is lower on rainy days. The daily temperature changes are cool in the morning and hot in the afternoon. Especially in winter and spring, the daily temperature difference can reach 12-20℃.

Third, there is abundant precipitation, with distinct dry and wet conditions and uneven distribution. The annual precipitation in most areas of the province is 1,100 mm. However, due to the control and influence of different atmospheric circulations in winter and summer, the distribution of precipitation in seasons and regions is extremely uneven. The most precipitation occurs in June to August, accounting for about 60% of the annual precipitation. The winter and spring season from November to April is the dry season, with precipitation accounting for only 10-20% of the whole year, or even less. Not only that, within a small area, precipitation is distributed unevenly due to changes in altitude.

Yunnan has a long frost-free period. The southern border is frost-free all year round; the frost-free period in Wenshan, Mengzi, Simao, Lincang, Dehong and other places in the south is 300-330 days; the frost-free period in Kunming, Yuxi, Chuxiong and other places in the central part is about 250 days; the colder Zhaotong and Di Qingda 210-220 days. Yunnan's lighting conditions are also good, with 90-150 kilocalories per square centimeter per year, second only to Tibet, Qinghai, Inner Mongolia and other provinces and autonomous regions.

The favorable aspect of Yunnan’s climate characteristics is that it is suitable for the growth and development of a variety of crops and cash crops, and it also provides favorable conditions for the development of tourism. The disadvantage is that the dry season and rainy season are too concentrated and unevenly distributed, and are also accompanied by disasters such as floods, low-temperature freezing, hail, etc., which will cause harm to agriculture.